Beartown is Fredrik Backman’s bestselling novel about life in a small town where hockey is king and winners are revered, sometimes at the expense of the people they have hurt. The author explores some dark themes in this story, with the characteristic wisdom and insight that make all of Backman’s novels thought provoking.

I read Beartown as part of the 2024 Thoughtful Reading Challenge. January’s challenge was to read a book that has been made into a movie or TV series. The series was produced by HBO but has since been pulled and is hard to find on other streaming services. Reading between the lines, it was not a commercial success.

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Let’s begin with a Beartown summary, including some spoilers.

Beartown is a small, depressed town isolated in a Swedish forest. The town’s employers are struggling or have disappeared completely, diminishing Beartown’s resources and population. The one bright spot for many citizens is hockey.

The town has a long, fairly successful history with hockey and has even produced some NHL players. One of them is David, who has returned to his hometown to be the general manager of the local hockey club. With the dwindling population, the club has had difficulty fielding competitive teams, but this year is different. Led by a superstar player named Kevin, the junior team has a good chance of winning the national championship, and a town full of rabid hockey fans is over the moon about it. And acting crazier than normal.

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Kevin, the star player, has been raised by emotionally distant parents and grew up in a misogynistic hockey culture. He’s also extremely competitive, so when a fellow teammate bet him at a party that he couldn’t have sex with the general manager’s daughter, Maya, he did it even though she said “no.”

The aftermath of the rape is a firestorm of anger, accusations, and injustice, as the town shows its truly ugly side.

There are so many well-developed themes packed into the story. They include love and loyalty, friendship and betrayal, and decency and lack thereof.

First off, the author insightfully portrays how leaders establish a culture based on what they do and don’t allow, and how that culture influences the behavior of people who are part of that culture, especially if they are young.

The rape and its implications are depicted in a heartbreakingly straightforward way that illustrates how it affects both Maya and her family. Her parents, who had previously lost a child, believe that parents can’t protect their children, a belief that’s reinforced by their daughter’s rape. They’re devastated by the event, which puts Maya into the position of consoler. I suspect that’s not too uncommon.

The last theme I’ll talk about is that of acceptance and exclusion. Much of Beartown is centered on high school kids. If they are good hockey players, they are at the head of the pack. But those who look different or have unique personalities are often ostracized or bullied. The outcasts turn out to be some of the strongest people in the book.

My overall opinion of Beartown? It’s darker than I expected. In fact, the heaviness of the story threw me off. I liked it and I thought it covered some important topics. I think Fredrik Backman is wise and perceptive and he challenges me to think about human nature in new ways. However, I liked A Man Called Ove and Anxious People (both written by this author) better.

If you’ve read Beartown, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

And if you took this month’s challenge, tell us about the book in the comments section!

* * Reminder – February’s challenge is to read a book with a flower in the title in honor of Valentine’s Day.

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