A slow success
ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT
A slow success COSTCO STUDIO / FRANCE FREEMAN
At first rejected, A Man Called Ove sells millions of copies internationally
DESCRIBING A MAN Called Ove as a surprise hit may be somewhat of an understatement. Written by Swedish author Fredrik Backman, the book has been on the New York Times best-seller list for more than a year, yet Backman struggled at first Fredrik Backman to get editors to look at the book. Today, more than 2.8 million copies of Ove (oo-ve), in 40 languages, have been sold globally, with 1 million paperback copies sold in the U.S. alone. It’s a far cry from the 6,600 hardcover copies that its American publisher, Atria, initially printed. A movie based on the book, released in September, was one of 2016’s highest-grossing foreign films. Not bad for Backman’s first attempt at writing a novel. “It was a slow success,” says Backman, 35, from his home outside Stockholm. “It didn’t explode in Sweden until it came out in paperback and people passed it on to friends and family, recommending they read it. In the U.S., success was also gradual. My publicist worked hard to get the book out to book clubs, reading groups and librarians, who shared it with readers and blogged about it. That’s how it initially got traction. No one had any idea of the proportions it would take.” A Man Called Ove is about a curmudgeon who values principles and routines above all. He writes down the license plates of cars in a guest parking lot to ensure they don’t stay longer than the 24 hours they’re allowed, and he gets upset when bikes are left outside a bike shed. It’s easy to believe there’s not much kindness in him. But when a young family moves in next door, the stories of Ove’s past slowly unravel and his world starts to change. SIGNED BOOK GIVEAWAY Costco has 50 copies of Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove with signed bookplates to give away. To enter, go to costcoconnectionbookgive away.com. NO PURCHASE, PAYMENT OR OPT-IN OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS SWEEPSTAKES. Purchase will not improve odds of winning. Sweepstakes is sponsored by Costco Wholesale, 1045 Lake Drive, Issaquah, WA 98027. Open to legal residents of the U.S. (except Puerto Rico) who are age 18 or older at the time of entry. One entry per household. Entries must be received before the April issue is available online, which will happen around March 26, 2017. Winners will be randomly selected and notified by mail on or before May 1, 2017. The value of the prize is $16. Void where prohibited. Winners are responsible for all applicable federal, state and local taxes. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received. Employees of Costco or Simon & Schuster and their families are not eligible.
LINNEA JONASSON BERNHOLM
BY RACHEL STAFLER OUR DIGITAL EDITIONS Click here to watch the movie trailer for A Man Called Ove. (See page 9 for details.)
Backman’s own story sounds remarkably like the plot of a book. He studied religion at university but eventually quit to focus on writing and offered to work for a local magazine without pay. He supported himself by driving a forklift on nights and weekends. The magazine soon offered to pay him for his efforts, and he ended up starting what became a popular blog. A particularly well-read post was the inspiration for A Man Called Ove. Backman had recounted a story that a friend told him about standing in line at a museum, behind a man who was fighting with the staff about the proper pronunciation of an artist’s name. The man insisted that his pronunciation was correct, and he wouldn’t back down until the woman admitted she was wrong. Readers flooded Backman’s inbox with similar stories, sparking the idea for the novel. “I started asking myself questions about him: Where did he come from, where did he grow up, who does he love, who loves him?” says Backman, who still blogs. “There’s this sense that he’s really angry and he starts fights, but he’s not always wrong. Even the rudest person you will meet today has someone who loves him or her. They have a family. People can be awful in one context and really good in another.” Backman says that he, too, can get overexcited about small issues, often arguing on principle rather than actual need. “One example was when I was checking out of a hotel in New York and they gave me the bill. We were there for a week, so of course the bill is high and that’s fine, but I do react to the fact that they charged $7 for package handling when my publisher sent me an envelope. In the grand scheme of things it’s useless, but you fight for it out of principle. Most people can relate to this.” Backman and his wife have two young children, which allows him to do school drop-offs and pickups most days, while his wife, Neda, works at an office-based job. In the four years since Ove was published in Sweden, he’s written four other novels, including Beartown,, which is about a small town in Sweden that hangs its hopes on a local high school hockey player. It’s clear that while Ove may have been Backman’s first and biggest success thus far, he’s certainly no one-hit wonder. C
PENNIE’S PICK THIS MONTH’S book buyer’s pick, A Man Called Ove, is nothing short of a true gem. It’s no cliché to say that I laughed and cried while reading this book. We’ve all known an Ove, the classic grumpy old man. He’s particular and unyielding. But when a young family moves in—and his backstory is slowly revealed to readers— we learn how and why he became the person he is. What I love most about this book is the way it serves as a gentle reminder that everyone has a story—and most of the time we have no idea what lies below the surface of a cantankerous exterior. A Man Called Ove (Item #1049132) is available now in most Costco warehouses. Beartown will be available in most warehouses on April 25. For more book picks, see page 63. —Pennie Clark Ianniciello, Buyer, Books
Rachel Stafler is a London–based writer. MARCH 2017 The Costco Connection 61
A slow success COSTCO STUDIO / FRANCE FREEMAN
At first rejected, A Man Called Ove sells millions of copies internationally
DESCRIBING A MAN Called Ove as a surprise hit may be somewhat of an understatement. Written by Swedish author Fredrik Backman, the book has been on the New York Times best-seller list for more than a year, yet Backman struggled at first Fredrik Backman to get editors to look at the book. Today, more than 2.8 million copies of Ove (oo-ve), in 40 languages, have been sold globally, with 1 million paperback copies sold in the U.S. alone. It’s a far cry from the 6,600 hardcover copies that its American publisher, Atria, initially printed. A movie based on the book, released in September, was one of 2016’s highest-grossing foreign films. Not bad for Backman’s first attempt at writing a novel. “It was a slow success,” says Backman, 35, from his home outside Stockholm. “It didn’t explode in Sweden until it came out in paperback and people passed it on to friends and family, recommending they read it. In the U.S., success was also gradual. My publicist worked hard to get the book out to book clubs, reading groups and librarians, who shared it with readers and blogged about it. That’s how it initially got traction. No one had any idea of the proportions it would take.” A Man Called Ove is about a curmudgeon who values principles and routines above all. He writes down the license plates of cars in a guest parking lot to ensure they don’t stay longer than the 24 hours they’re allowed, and he gets upset when bikes are left outside a bike shed. It’s easy to believe there’s not much kindness in him. But when a young family moves in next door, the stories of Ove’s past slowly unravel and his world starts to change. SIGNED BOOK GIVEAWAY Costco has 50 copies of Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove with signed bookplates to give away. To enter, go to costcoconnectionbookgive away.com. NO PURCHASE, PAYMENT OR OPT-IN OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS SWEEPSTAKES. Purchase will not improve odds of winning. Sweepstakes is sponsored by Costco Wholesale, 1045 Lake Drive, Issaquah, WA 98027. Open to legal residents of the U.S. (except Puerto Rico) who are age 18 or older at the time of entry. One entry per household. Entries must be received before the April issue is available online, which will happen around March 26, 2017. Winners will be randomly selected and notified by mail on or before May 1, 2017. The value of the prize is $16. Void where prohibited. Winners are responsible for all applicable federal, state and local taxes. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received. Employees of Costco or Simon & Schuster and their families are not eligible.
LINNEA JONASSON BERNHOLM
BY RACHEL STAFLER OUR DIGITAL EDITIONS Click here to watch the movie trailer for A Man Called Ove. (See page 9 for details.)
Backman’s own story sounds remarkably like the plot of a book. He studied religion at university but eventually quit to focus on writing and offered to work for a local magazine without pay. He supported himself by driving a forklift on nights and weekends. The magazine soon offered to pay him for his efforts, and he ended up starting what became a popular blog. A particularly well-read post was the inspiration for A Man Called Ove. Backman had recounted a story that a friend told him about standing in line at a museum, behind a man who was fighting with the staff about the proper pronunciation of an artist’s name. The man insisted that his pronunciation was correct, and he wouldn’t back down until the woman admitted she was wrong. Readers flooded Backman’s inbox with similar stories, sparking the idea for the novel. “I started asking myself questions about him: Where did he come from, where did he grow up, who does he love, who loves him?” says Backman, who still blogs. “There’s this sense that he’s really angry and he starts fights, but he’s not always wrong. Even the rudest person you will meet today has someone who loves him or her. They have a family. People can be awful in one context and really good in another.” Backman says that he, too, can get overexcited about small issues, often arguing on principle rather than actual need. “One example was when I was checking out of a hotel in New York and they gave me the bill. We were there for a week, so of course the bill is high and that’s fine, but I do react to the fact that they charged $7 for package handling when my publisher sent me an envelope. In the grand scheme of things it’s useless, but you fight for it out of principle. Most people can relate to this.” Backman and his wife have two young children, which allows him to do school drop-offs and pickups most days, while his wife, Neda, works at an office-based job. In the four years since Ove was published in Sweden, he’s written four other novels, including Beartown,, which is about a small town in Sweden that hangs its hopes on a local high school hockey player. It’s clear that while Ove may have been Backman’s first and biggest success thus far, he’s certainly no one-hit wonder. C
PENNIE’S PICK THIS MONTH’S book buyer’s pick, A Man Called Ove, is nothing short of a true gem. It’s no cliché to say that I laughed and cried while reading this book. We’ve all known an Ove, the classic grumpy old man. He’s particular and unyielding. But when a young family moves in—and his backstory is slowly revealed to readers— we learn how and why he became the person he is. What I love most about this book is the way it serves as a gentle reminder that everyone has a story—and most of the time we have no idea what lies below the surface of a cantankerous exterior. A Man Called Ove (Item #1049132) is available now in most Costco warehouses. Beartown will be available in most warehouses on April 25. For more book picks, see page 63. —Pennie Clark Ianniciello, Buyer, Books
Rachel Stafler is a London–based writer. MARCH 2017 The Costco Connection 61
