"Backman is a masterful writer, his characters familiar yet distinct, flawed yet heroic. . . There are scenes that bring tears, scenes of gut-wrenching despair, and moments of sly humor. . .Like Friday Night Lights, this is about more than youth sports; it's part coming-of-age novel, part study of moral failure, and finally a chronicle of groupthink in which an unlikely hero steps forward to save more than one person from self-destruction. A thoroughly empathetic examination of the fragile human spirit, Backman's latest will resonate a long time."
- Kirkus Reviews
"[It's] Backman's rich characters that steal the show, and his deft handling of tragedy and its effects on an insular town. While the story is dark at times, love, sacrifice, and the bonds of friendship and family shine through ultimately offering hope and even redemption."
- Publishers Weekly
"Another solid offering from best-selling Swedish author Backman, with many parallels for American readers and small towns everywhere."
- Library Journal
"The sentimentally savvy Backman (A Man Called Ove, 2014) takes a sobering and solemn look at the ways alienation and acceptance, ethics and emotions nearly destroy a small town and young people."
- Booklist
"[A] slow burn of a novel about a community that pours all its hopes into a youth hockey team. Think Friday Night Lights for Swedes."
- O, The Oprah Magazine
"As popular Swedish exports go, Backman is up there with Abba and Stieg Larssson."
- The New York Times Book Review
"Backman is the Dickens of our age, and though you'll cry, your heart is safe in his hands."
- Green Valley News (Arizona)
"There are, in the end, real acts of bravery and sacrifice in this appealing novel."
- Wall Street Journal
"Mr. Backman cements his standing as a writer of astonishing depth and proves that he also has very broad range plus the remarkable ability to make you understand the feelings of each of a dozen different characters. . . . The story is fully packed with wise insights into the human experience causing characters and readers to ponder life's great question of who we are, what we hope to be and how we should lead our lives."
- The Washington Times
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