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A review by kmardahl
Menneske uden hund by Håkan Nesser
4.0
(I read this book in Danish, but I'm reviewing in English. The book is available in English, but not listed on Goodreads yet. See nesser.se for the names of the English version of the Barbarotti series.)
I did not expect to start a 458-page book on a Friday evening and finish it on a Sunday morning. By the time I was about 25% of the way through the book, I was hooked and just wanted to sit and read it straight to the end. I credit Nesser's style of writing for all that. I look forward to the next books in this series.
The book opens with an introduction to the people in a rather dysfunctional family. Inspector Barbarotti doesn't make an entrance until quite a bit into the book. By then, I am hoping he will make sense of what is going on. He can't. He is stumped by the paltry clues and information he has.
Someone said that if I liked Fredrik Backman's "A Man Called Ove/En Mand Der Hedder Ove" (and I did: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1339124873) then I should read the third book in this Barbarotti series. I was told the books in the series were stand-alone and I could jump straight to the third book. I didn't. I wanted to get to know Barbarotti so I started with number 1. I am glad I did. This will also give me more time to enjoy Nesser's writing style. This is classified as a crime novel. That is correct. However, it is not the forensic science or bloody type of crime novel, in my opinion. It's the storytelling kind of crime novel, if I can put it that way. Nesser writes in what I can only describe as a subtle, quiet, and human style. I like it.
I did not expect to start a 458-page book on a Friday evening and finish it on a Sunday morning. By the time I was about 25% of the way through the book, I was hooked and just wanted to sit and read it straight to the end. I credit Nesser's style of writing for all that. I look forward to the next books in this series.
The book opens with an introduction to the people in a rather dysfunctional family. Inspector Barbarotti doesn't make an entrance until quite a bit into the book. By then, I am hoping he will make sense of what is going on. He can't. He is stumped by the paltry clues and information he has.
Spoiler
I never resolved the meaning of the title "Menneske uden hund" - Man Without Dog. We only get a glimpse of it toward the end when Kristina is reading it, thinking she will reveal something about her brother. She is puzzled by what she reads and wonders why he chose the words she reads. I am not bothered by not seeing any meaning in the title or by missing what might be obvious to others. I think it just illustrates how dysfunctional this family was. Karl-Erik's obsession with the perfection of his first born and disgust with the second born and indifference with the third. I would not have accepted an invitation to that 105th birthday party!!Someone said that if I liked Fredrik Backman's "A Man Called Ove/En Mand Der Hedder Ove" (and I did: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1339124873) then I should read the third book in this Barbarotti series. I was told the books in the series were stand-alone and I could jump straight to the third book. I didn't. I wanted to get to know Barbarotti so I started with number 1. I am glad I did. This will also give me more time to enjoy Nesser's writing style. This is classified as a crime novel. That is correct. However, it is not the forensic science or bloody type of crime novel, in my opinion. It's the storytelling kind of crime novel, if I can put it that way. Nesser writes in what I can only describe as a subtle, quiet, and human style. I like it.