A Man Called Ove | All Good Books Blog

The All Good Books club will meet on Thursday, May 12, 2016 to discuss Fredrik Backman’s “A Man Called Ove” at 7 PM in the Community of Christ Church Library (7842 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS 66208).

Below are some possible discussion questions for our meeting:

If you underlined or highlighted portions of the novel, share one of your favorite quotes.
What events in the novel define Ove for you? How would you describe his worldview and work ethic? Do you know anyone like Ove?
How would you describe Ove and Sonja’s relationship?
Who are the Pregnant Foreign Lady, the Lanky One and their children? How did they meet Ove?
Why do you think Ove’s three worst words are “batteries not included?”
What do you think the narrator means by the following quote? “He was a man of black and white. And she was color. All the color he had.”
In describing Ove’s relationship with his father, the narrator says “They never had much, but they always had enough.” What does that mean to you? Have you heard that phrase before?
Ove’s father, in one of the few topics he would talk about, said, “Engines give you what you deserve….If you treat them with respect they’ll give you freedom; if you behave like an ass they’ll take it from you.” How do you interpret that message?
Ove’s father said, “We’re not the sort of people who tell tales about what others do.” What is the story behind the quote and how did it affect the person Ove became?
Do you agree with Ove “men are what they are because of what they do. Not what they say?”
Discuss Ove’s opinions about quality, exchangeability, pride and expertise. Hint: he referred to “the unreserved celebration of mediocrity” and that “one should not go through life as if everything was exchangeable.”
What role does the cat play in the novel? And what does Ove mean when he says, “I’m not running a cat repair company?”
Why was it important that Ove feed the bird only every other day?
Why do you think Sonja was attracted to Ove?
Why did Ove have a hatred for the “men in white shirts?” Who are the “men in white shirts?”
Why did Ove hate buses and decide to drive Parvaneh to the hospital rather than let her take a bus?
Why does Nasanin always draw Ove with colored crayons while everyone else is drawn in black? Who is Nasanin?
Why did Ove and Rune, who once were friends, become adversaries? What role did Rune’s purchase of a sporty BMW have in the separation?
What does the narrator mean by the following quote? “Both men, once as close as men of that sort could be, stare at each other. One of them a man who refuses to forget the past, and one who can’t remember it at all.”
How does Sonja find healing after the accident?
What does the author mean by “all people at root are time optimists?”
How is “loving someone…like moving into a house?” as Sonja used to say.
What does the author mean by “broadly speaking there are two kinds of people. Those who understand how extremely useful white cables can be, and those who don’t?”
Do you agree, “The greatest fear of death is always that it will pass us by. And leave us there alone?”
Why is Ove, as Parvaneh says, “UTTERLY LOUSY at dying?”
What are your feelings about Ove’s final note to Parvaneh?
Was the ending of the book expected? Emotional? Incomplete? Satisfying?
Would you recommend A Man Called Ove to your friends to read? Why or why not?

Come join us on Thursday, May 12, 2016 at 7 PM.

Discussion Questions for “A Man Called Ove”