Published: September 2016
Pages: 432
Series: Beartown #1
Summary
People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.
Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.
My thoughts
I had no idea what I was expecting with this story. A book about a hockey town is not really my thing. But let me tell you, this is not just a book about hockey. This is a book about a community, their behaviour, their willingness to turn their backs, their unity of both their love for hockey and their desperation.. This is also a story of bravery, of courage to go against the grain, of friendship, of surviving.
“Everyone has a thousand wishes before a tragedy, but just one afterward.”
I first read Backman with his book ‘Anxious People‘ – I loved that book. This book is written similarly. We explore a town filled with characters of all walks of life, beliefs, relationships.. what they all have in common is that they love hockey. This is a book that explores the brutal choices humans make when pushed to their limits. Who would imagine there was such drama in a town with very limited jobs, surrounded by forest and wilderness where the local entertainment is hockey games. But this book packs a punch, not just with the different perspectives of our characters, not just by Backman’s incredible writing which has me re-examining my own belief’s and feelings, but the aftermath of the violent incident and seeing how the story unfolds..
Hate can be a deeply stimulating emotion. The world becomes easier to understand and much less terrifying if you divide everything and everyone into friends and enemies, we and they, good and evil. The easiest way to unite a group isn’t through love, because love is hard, It makes demands. Hate is simple. So the first thing that happens in a conflict is that we choose a side, because that’s easier than trying to hold two thoughts in our heads at the same time. The second thing that happens is that we seek out facts that confirm what we want to believe – comforting facts, ones that permit life to go on as normal. The third is that we dehumanise our enemy.
Small towns can be strange places. Being small everyone knows everyone, and that can be a good thing. You know who to go to when your car breaks down, you know who could help mend a broken pipe, kids can ride share to school, you have each other’s back. When one is down, the others lift them up. There are certain things that come with living in a small town and the community can be a beautiful thing. There is also another side and this book shows both very well.
The flip side is that people are less inclined to go against the status quo, things have always been done a certain way and things don’t change over night. It’s easy to cast someone out who stands aside from the community, who thinks differently. It’s easier to bury feelings and excuse behaviour because there’s a community to protect, even if someone in the community is hurting, it’s not the majority, a blind eye can be taken. But where this books pushes further is that there is a difference between good and evil, and sometimes you have to take a stand and hope someone stands with you.
There are risks when you are different. Sacrifices must be made but what are sacrifices if you are doing the right thing? Some people in this story don’t know what the right thing is, some don’t care, but what they all fall back on is hockey. A lot can be excused as long as the town are winning, and the only way to do that is through hockey.
If you are honest, people may deceive you. Be honest anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfishness. Be kind anyway.
All the good you do today will be forgotten by others tomorrow. Do good anyway.
This event forces every character to confront their deepest beliefs and exposes the raw, ugly, underbelly of desperation and the group-mind. Backman doesn’t shy away from the difficult questions: What is the true cost of loyalty? How far will a community go to protect its own, even when faced with undeniable truth? And what happens when the very foundation of a town’s identity is built on a fragile dream?
Difficult questions, simple answers. What is a community?
It is the sum total of our choices.
Backman’s prose is as sharp and impactful, so many times it words cut deep, they made me think. His writing is philosophical, and he makes observations that resonate. Whether you’re young, or a working parent, or you also share a huge love for something that you are passionate about, or you’ve had a difficult upbringing. There isn’t one perspective in this book, there are several. The way I loved this book may look different to why another did. His writing is direct, yet deeply empathetic, we feel the tension, the resentments, and the fierce love that binds the residents of Beartown.
Backman excels at portraying the nuances of human relationships, the unspoken acts, and the devastating consequences of silence.
“Sometimes life doesn’t let you choose your battles. Just the company you keep.”
This isn’t an easy read. It tackles uncomfortable truths that happen every single day. To many of us we’ll have never having to experience any of this, and we’ll hope that we raise good, kind children that we can protect from others and themselves. However, it is precisely this unflinching honesty that makes the book so compelling and important. I’m writing this review as I’m already halfway through the final book and this story just keeps on getting better.
Not a second has passed since she had children without her feeling like a bad mother. For everything. For not understanding, for being impatient, for not knowing everything, not making better packed lunches, for still wanting more out of life than just being a mother.
Would I recommend?
Yes, this was such a moving and thought-provoking book. You come in expecting a story of a hockey town but you get far more than that in return. This is a completely character-driven story so if you don’t enjoy those, I’d say give it a try but if its not for you that’s also okay!