My Friends Audiobook Review: Fredrik Backman at His Best
Everything you love about Backman — the misfits, the tenderness, the tragedy — taken to a new high.
My Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars: Excellent)
- Author: Fredrik Backman
- Category: Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
- Published: 2025
- Runtime: 13 hours
Bold statement, but I mean it: This is my favorite Backman book so far. Each new book of his is a treat, but this one is a new high. It’s everything you look for from Backman — the quirky misfits, the tenderness of human connection balancing the tragedy of tough luck, the distinctive sentence construction — but taken to new heights with an absolutely perfect cast of characters, a unique structure, and laugh-out-loud moments.
Teenage Louisa has had the worst luck. She lives in a body too awkward and big for her to manage; she’s lived in a sampler of awful foster homes; and now she’s lost the one person who was a ray of light in her life. But in a grimy alleyway, she meets a famous artist (and a cat), and the artist immediately recognizes one of his own.
This is the beginning of Louisa and Ted’s unintentional adventure. Ted too once had friends who were rays of light in a tough teenage life, and he gradually shares their stories with Louisa. There’s tragedy, but there’s also humor: a pet plant with an outsized role, a meet-cute so absurd it shouldn’t work, and the kind of small comic details Backman deploys to remind you of the absurdity and sweetness of life.
Beyond the story itself, the construction of this book is special. The artist’s first painting is the narrative’s focal point, and Backman circles back to it across time, letting each return reveal something new about both past and present. It creates the sensation of a story slowly coming into focus, like adjusting a lens.
The Audiobook Experience
★★★★☆
Marin Ireland narrates Backman’s very specific rhythm — short declarative sentences, strategic repetition, intentional pauses — beautifully. She brings his work to life while letting the writing stay the focus.
Typical fiction multitasking is possible here.
Audio or print? Both formats work thanks to Backman’s strong prose is strong either way, but the narration adds depth. Choose audio if you have the option.
Read It or Skip It?
Read it if: you’ve enjoyed any Backman book, or you’re looking for literary fiction that takes a serious yet loving look at modern life.
Skip it if: you find Backman’s style heavy or overdone.
Related: A Man Called Ove and Anxious People are the best Backman entry points if you’re new to him. The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson for a similar Scandinavian sensibility (but a wildly different story).
Book Club Guide
My Friends is an ideal book club pick: propulsive enough that everyone will finish it, with many areas to dig into from the characters to the structure.
Discussion Questions:
- How did you relate to Ted and Louisa? What parts of their personalities felt relatable or not?
- Louisa’s self-talk is a thread through the novel. How did you feel about it?
- The painting is the organizing structure of the novel. Did that device work for you? At what point did you realize what it was doing?
- The book suggests that we’re all misfits in some way. Do you agree?
- Backman uses humor alongside serious grief and hardship. Did those lighter moments land for you, or did they undercut the weight of the harder material?
- Both groups of teenagers, Louisa’s present and Ted’s past, are dealing with loss and belonging. What felt different about how those two groups navigated it? What felt the same?
- Backman writes a lot about chosen families. What does the novel say about obligation versus chosen connection? Did it resonate with anything in your own life?
Listen Now
I only recommend audiobooks and resources I’ve personally experienced. This post contains affiliate links — if you purchase through them, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
