What’s to like: No matter how tragic life gets, wait for the light at the end of the tunnel!
Fredrik Backman has a real flair for writing characters who initially feel like they have doomed lives but end up turning things around, giving the book a realistic feel.
We meet Louisa, a 17-year-old orphan who will turn 18 in a few hours, trying to break into a chapel to see a painting she has admired since she was young. She has only seen the painting on a postcard, and it is called The One of the Sea. But only Louisa and her friend Fish are able to notice a detail that anyone who isn’t curious—and is only interested in buying the famous painting for its value—would miss: three teenagers sitting at the end of a pier in a corner of the painting. This piece of art is the most expensive painting the artist C. Jat has ever created, but for Louisa, it speaks of a life beyond her own—of learning to swim in the sea, of getting out and fending for herself while grieving her friend, who was the hero of her life. She manages to break in and gets close enough to see that the artist has signed his name with skulls drawn next to it. She then draws fish on the wall beside the painting before a guard tries to catch her, and she escapes. She hides behind the chapel but bumps into a middle-aged homeless man, covered in dirt from the street, with a cat by his side. He diverts the guards, gaining her trust, after which she opens up and tells him about her life. She then asks if he wants to paint on the chapel wall with her paint can, and while doing so, she sees him draw the same skulls from the painting and realizes he is the artist himself. She explains how important the painting has been to her and then escapes, telling him she will meet him again. But the artist dies the next day.
His best friend Ted is entrusted with the responsibility of giving the world-famous painting (which was also the artist’s first) to Louisa. He meets her at the same chapel and gives it to her, but she doesn’t know what to do with it. So, he grudgingly decides to help this moody yet buoyant teenager sell the painting, and she becomes curious to find out who the teenagers in the painting are. During their train ride back to the place where the painting was made—Ted’s hometown—he tells Louisa the story behind the painting and his friends: Ted, Joar, and Ali. He shares what they meant to each other and how the summer when they were 15 changed their lives 25 years ago—for better or worse, you decide as the reader.
I love the time shifts between the making of the painting and the present-day train ride. There is a gradual build in how Louisa warms up to Ted, begins to look up to him, and sees herself in his story, interspersed with anecdotes about her and Fish. Their constant bickering and protectiveness create a comforting contrast. But while all of this seems simple, the story behind the painting itself is very complex and tragic. It shows how a town can shape the lives of its people and how even a tiny ray of hope to save someone you love can push you to do anything to make it happen. It also depicts how parents—their choices and words—can shape a child’s personality and overall outlook on life. Every character in this book serves a purpose beautifully, and every ending is tied up in a neat little bow. If you feel the book is getting very gloomy, hold on—it may seem like it will get worse, but the ending is truly satisfying and heartwarming. Also, the tiny plot twists for every detail scattered throughout, like beautiful shells on a beach, make it a book worthy of gracing your shelves.
Favorite Line: “Art is what we leave of ourselves in other people.”
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