My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry
A charming, warmhearted novel from the author of the New York Times bestseller A Man Called Ove. Elsa is seven years old and different. Her grandmother is seventy-seven years old and crazy--as in standing-on-the-balcony-firing-paintball-guns-at-strangers crazy. She is also Elsa's best, and only, friend. At night Elsa takes refuge in her grandmother's stories, in the Land-of-Almost-Awake and the Kingdom of Miamas, where everybody is different and nobody needs to be normal. When Elsa's grandmother dies and leaves behind a series of letters apologizing to people she has wronged, Elsa's greatest adventure begins. Her grandmother's instructions lead her to an apartment building full of drunks, monsters, attack dogs, and old crones but also to the truth about fairy tales and kingdoms and a grandmother like no other. My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry is told with the same comic accuracy and beating heart as Fredrik Backman's bestselling debut novel, A Man Called Ove. It is a story about life and death and one of the most important human rights: the right to be different.
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Community Reviews
An endearing and heartwarming read. My granny was quite the character as well so, I thoroughly enjoyed reading of Granny & Elsa’s adventures/shenanigans. The middle was very slow and caused me to put it down for several weeks. Also, it loses 2 points and a star for the wurse (dog) dying. If I have a daughter one day, I hope she is different like Elsa.
In general I found it just a light read, with all the advantages and disadvantages that entails. It had some funny moments, and the characters were reasonably interesting. But I didn’t find myself getting very attached to any of them or their fates. The throughline of the fairy tale added some color, but in a way kind of prevented the book from being very thought-provoking. Things were always ratified in a way that just seemed to be bound up with Elsa & her grandmother’s ongoing story, more than with the world we actually live in. Surely we’re supposed to take that tale as an allegory for the Real World, but for me it didn’t really ring true that way. Still, I got pretty much what I expected; it was a quick, fun read.
I loved this so much. The relationships, the found family. The way Elsa and her grandmother loved each other. The way Elsa thought about her granny, and how she interacted with everyone she came in contact with.
I love Elsa! And yes, dang it, I cried. More than once. So good!
Highly recommend. This is my new favorite author. I have read several of his books now and so far none have them have disappointed. Very interesting characters and, as usual, a wonderful twist to the story. I love this man’s mind and can’t wait to read more from him. Each book I read is different but each one has his special touch. Recommend for book clubs and personal reads alike.
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