“You create your own universe that you can step into, where things make sense or where you can, in my case, try to put words onto a feeling,” he explained. It’s also an accelerant in Backman’s own creative process, although he didn’t use this term. They’re a motley crew on the first page, Backman writes, “This is a book about a lot of things, but mostly about idiots.”Īs the title suggests, anxiety is a theme. The book is equal parts comedy, relationship drama and locked-room mystery - “It’s not a murder or something gruesome” - in which a failed bank robber blunders into an open house and holds the attendees hostage. 1 best seller in the United States and is now at No. The author of “ A Man Called Ove” and “ Beartown” knew he was standing in the setting for his next novel, “Anxious People,” which was an instant No. Everyone is standing there asking themselves a lot of questions: Where do I want to live? Is this the person I want to spend the rest of my life with? Are we going to have kids? Are the schools good here? Can we afford this? And everyone feels a little bit invaded: This could be my home and what are all these strangers doing here?” Everyone is making a really big life decision. “We’d seen maybe nine apartments and I was like, ‘I’m good with all of them.’ I could live basically anywhere as long as my wife and kids are OK with it,” Backman said in a phone interview. HOMEBODY A few years ago, Fredrik Backman was looking for a new apartment in Stockholm when inspiration hit during an open house.

Backman anxious people