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And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: A Novella
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Start ReadingRatings:
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (207 ratings)
Length: 70 pages49 minutes
- Publisher:
- Atria Books
- Released:
- Nov 1, 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781501160578
- Format:
- Book
Description
A little book with a big heart—from the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and Anxious People.
“I read this beautifully imagined and moving novella in one sitting, utterly wowed, wanting to share it with everyone I know.” —Lisa Genova, bestselling author of Still Alice
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, and Anxious People comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
With all the same charm of his bestselling full-length novels, here Fredrik Backman once again reveals his unrivaled understanding of human nature and deep compassion for people in difficult circumstances. This is a tiny gem with a message you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
“I read this beautifully imagined and moving novella in one sitting, utterly wowed, wanting to share it with everyone I know.” —Lisa Genova, bestselling author of Still Alice
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, and Anxious People comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
With all the same charm of his bestselling full-length novels, here Fredrik Backman once again reveals his unrivaled understanding of human nature and deep compassion for people in difficult circumstances. This is a tiny gem with a message you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
Book Actions
Start ReadingBook Information
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: A Novella
Ratings:
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (207 ratings)
Length: 70 pages49 minutes
Description
A little book with a big heart—from the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and Anxious People.
“I read this beautifully imagined and moving novella in one sitting, utterly wowed, wanting to share it with everyone I know.” —Lisa Genova, bestselling author of Still Alice
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, and Anxious People comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
With all the same charm of his bestselling full-length novels, here Fredrik Backman once again reveals his unrivaled understanding of human nature and deep compassion for people in difficult circumstances. This is a tiny gem with a message you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
“I read this beautifully imagined and moving novella in one sitting, utterly wowed, wanting to share it with everyone I know.” —Lisa Genova, bestselling author of Still Alice
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, and Anxious People comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
With all the same charm of his bestselling full-length novels, here Fredrik Backman once again reveals his unrivaled understanding of human nature and deep compassion for people in difficult circumstances. This is a tiny gem with a message you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
- Publisher:
- Atria Books
- Released:
- Nov 1, 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781501160578
- Format:
- Book
About the author
Fredrik Backman is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, Beartown, Us Against You, and Anxious People, as well as two novellas and one work of nonfiction. His books are published in more than forty countries. He lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife and two children. Connect with him on Facebook and Twitter @BackmanLand and on Instagram @Backmansk.
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Book Preview
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer - Fredrik Backman
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Dear Reader,
One of my idols once said, The worst part about growing old is that I don’t get any ideas anymore.
Those words have never quite left me since I first heard them, because this would be my greatest fear: imagination giving up before the body does. I guess I’m not alone in this. Humans are a strange breed in the way our fear of getting old seems to be even greater than our fear of dying.
This is a story about memories and about letting go. It’s a love letter and a slow farewell between a man and his grandson, and between a dad and his boy.
I never meant for you to read it, to be quite honest. I wrote it just because I was trying to sort out my own thoughts, and I’m the kind of person who needs to see what I’m thinking on paper to make sense of it. But it turned into a small tale of how I’m dealing with slowly losing the greatest minds I know, about missing someone who is still here, and how I wanted to explain it all to my children. I’m letting it go now, for what it’s worth.
It’s about fear and love, and how they seem to go hand in hand most of the time. Most of all, it’s about time. While we still have it. Thank you for giving this story yours.
Fredrik Backman
There’s a hospital room at the end of a life where someone, right in the middle of the floor, has pitched a green tent. A person wakes up inside it, breathless and afraid, not knowing where he is. A young man sitting next to him whispers:
Don’t be scared.
Isn’t that the best of all life’s ages, an old man thinks as he looks at his grandchild. When a boy is just big enough to know how the world works but still young enough to refuse to accept it. Noah’s feet don’t touch the ground when his legs dangle over the edge of the bench, but his head reaches all the way to space, because he hasn’t been alive long enough to allow anyone to keep his thoughts on Earth. His grandpa is next to him and is incredibly old, of course, so old now that people have given up and no longer nag him to start acting like an adult. So old that it’s too late to grow up. It’s not so bad either, that age.
The bench is in a square; Noah blinks heavily at the sunrise beyond it, newly woken. He doesn’t want to admit to Grandpa that he doesn’t know where they are, because this has always been their game: Noah closes his eyes and Grandpa takes him somewhere they’ve never been before. Sometimes the boy has to squeeze his eyes tight, tight shut while he and Grandpa change buses four times in town, and sometimes Grandpa just takes him straight into the woods behind the house
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Reviews
Reviews
What people think about And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer
4.5Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
207 ratings / 56 reviews
What did you think?
Rating: out of 5 stars
Reader reviews
tjsjohanna_1
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)
Was this review helpful for you?
This little story is a bit confusing to read but that it is fitting because the main character is a bit confused himself. The connection of grandfather to grandchild contains all these regrets about the relationship of grandfather to his own son and also beautiful connections to the grandchild.
tjsjohanna_1
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)
This little story is a bit confusing to read but that it is fitting because the main character is a bit confused himself. The connection of grandfather to grandchild contains all these regrets about the relationship of grandfather to his own son and also beautiful connections to the grandchild.
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jessibud2
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
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A very small book that packs a huge punch. Full of love, memory, family and more love. You know how to braid? There are three strands and one goes over another then the third gets interwoven through the first. Or something like that. The directions sound more complicated than the actual act itself. This story is like that. There are several strands but they are all interwoven, folding through and over one another, and all fitting together perfectly, right to the end. Backman says in the intro that he never actually meant for this to be published; it was just something he wrote to work through some emotions he was dealing with at the time. I'm glad he changed his mind.
jessibud2
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
A very small book that packs a huge punch. Full of love, memory, family and more love. You know how to braid? There are three strands and one goes over another then the third gets interwoven through the first. Or something like that. The directions sound more complicated than the actual act itself. This story is like that. There are several strands but they are all interwoven, folding through and over one another, and all fitting together perfectly, right to the end. Backman says in the intro that he never actually meant for this to be published; it was just something he wrote to work through some emotions he was dealing with at the time. I'm glad he changed his mind.
Was this review helpful for you?
booklover3258
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)
Was this review helpful for you?
I loved this short novella! It's about a man who is onset dementia/Alzheimer's. The story bounces from his brain with his grandson to the present with him in the hospital. Very sad and very informative what it may be like to experience what dementia may be like. Recommended
booklover3258
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)
I loved this short novella! It's about a man who is onset dementia/Alzheimer's. The story bounces from his brain with his grandson to the present with him in the hospital. Very sad and very informative what it may be like to experience what dementia may be like. Recommended
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cj82487
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
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Synopsis:
A beautiful novella by the man known for A Man Called Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, Fredrik Backman, that tells the story of an elderly man's struggle to hold on to his memories. Grandpa and Noah are sitting on a bench in a square that is getting smaller every day. Grandpa tells Noah stories about falling in love, how umbers can solve any problem and how soon, Noah will need to say goodbye.
Noah's feet don't touch the ground when his legs dangle over the edge of the bench, but his head reaches all the way to space, because he hasn't been alive long enough to allow anyone to keep his thoughts on Earth.
Noah's father, Ted, is there soon to help Grandpa find the way home, a path which has become more difficult to travel since Grandma passed away. Ted and Grandpa never understood each other, one loves numbers while the other loves words, but Noah bridges the gap between them.
He learned his lesson he was a different man when Noah was born, became someone else as Grandpa than he had been as a father.
Backman's beautiful story of a man holding n t the memories that mean the most and how losing the way home affects everyone is a tear-jerking tale addressing love, aging, and mortality.
Humans are a strange breed in the way our fear of getting old seems to be even greater than our fear of dying.
Review:
Some books have the power to heal open wounds, to alleviate pain that has lingered for so long, and t aide in understanding the confusing aspects of being human. And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer is a short story with a huge message.
This is for anyone that has ever looked into the eyes of a loved one and seen a blank stare; for anyone struggling to understand the horrible reality of dementia or Alzheimer's; for anyone looking for a story that shows the beauty and the strength in the bond between family members; or for anyone needing a good book to cry over.
For such a short book, it is packed with images that brought tears to my eyes. Using this image of a square that gets smaller every day to represent how Grandpa is losing the memories he has collected over his lifetime is a brilliant way to explain memory loss. Noah's reaction to Grandpa's brain being sick is heart-warming and innocent. The relationships between Grandpa and Noah and Grandpa and Ted are realistic and are what make the novella wonderful.
Grandpa may be losing his memory, but Noah is there to help keep his feet on the ground.
This book was over too soon. I digested it in a matter a about an hour while putting my youngest down for nap. No, it didn't take that long for her to fall asleep, but I couldn't move. I had to finish reading. I had big, fat, ugly tears falling down my face through about 3/4 of it and I didn't even care. I think one of the scariest things about getting older is losing those memories that make you who you are and Backman taps into this common fear.
I think the most beautiful part of this novel is the introductory letter to readers. It set the stage for a truly wonderful experience. Backman writes, "I never meant for you to read it, to be honest. I wrote it just because I was trying to sort out my own thoughts.."
I great book, but be prepared for a little tears!
A beautiful novella by the man known for A Man Called Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, Fredrik Backman, that tells the story of an elderly man's struggle to hold on to his memories. Grandpa and Noah are sitting on a bench in a square that is getting smaller every day. Grandpa tells Noah stories about falling in love, how umbers can solve any problem and how soon, Noah will need to say goodbye.
Noah's feet don't touch the ground when his legs dangle over the edge of the bench, but his head reaches all the way to space, because he hasn't been alive long enough to allow anyone to keep his thoughts on Earth.
Noah's father, Ted, is there soon to help Grandpa find the way home, a path which has become more difficult to travel since Grandma passed away. Ted and Grandpa never understood each other, one loves numbers while the other loves words, but Noah bridges the gap between them.
He learned his lesson he was a different man when Noah was born, became someone else as Grandpa than he had been as a father.
Backman's beautiful story of a man holding n t the memories that mean the most and how losing the way home affects everyone is a tear-jerking tale addressing love, aging, and mortality.
Humans are a strange breed in the way our fear of getting old seems to be even greater than our fear of dying.
Review:
Some books have the power to heal open wounds, to alleviate pain that has lingered for so long, and t aide in understanding the confusing aspects of being human. And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer is a short story with a huge message.
This is for anyone that has ever looked into the eyes of a loved one and seen a blank stare; for anyone struggling to understand the horrible reality of dementia or Alzheimer's; for anyone looking for a story that shows the beauty and the strength in the bond between family members; or for anyone needing a good book to cry over.
For such a short book, it is packed with images that brought tears to my eyes. Using this image of a square that gets smaller every day to represent how Grandpa is losing the memories he has collected over his lifetime is a brilliant way to explain memory loss. Noah's reaction to Grandpa's brain being sick is heart-warming and innocent. The relationships between Grandpa and Noah and Grandpa and Ted are realistic and are what make the novella wonderful.
Grandpa may be losing his memory, but Noah is there to help keep his feet on the ground.
This book was over too soon. I digested it in a matter a about an hour while putting my youngest down for nap. No, it didn't take that long for her to fall asleep, but I couldn't move. I had to finish reading. I had big, fat, ugly tears falling down my face through about 3/4 of it and I didn't even care. I think one of the scariest things about getting older is losing those memories that make you who you are and Backman taps into this common fear.
I think the most beautiful part of this novel is the introductory letter to readers. It set the stage for a truly wonderful experience. Backman writes, "I never meant for you to read it, to be honest. I wrote it just because I was trying to sort out my own thoughts.."
I great book, but be prepared for a little tears!
cj82487
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
Synopsis:
A beautiful novella by the man known for A Man Called Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, Fredrik Backman, that tells the story of an elderly man's struggle to hold on to his memories. Grandpa and Noah are sitting on a bench in a square that is getting smaller every day. Grandpa tells Noah stories about falling in love, how umbers can solve any problem and how soon, Noah will need to say goodbye.
Noah's feet don't touch the ground when his legs dangle over the edge of the bench, but his head reaches all the way to space, because he hasn't been alive long enough to allow anyone to keep his thoughts on Earth.
Noah's father, Ted, is there soon to help Grandpa find the way home, a path which has become more difficult to travel since Grandma passed away. Ted and Grandpa never understood each other, one loves numbers while the other loves words, but Noah bridges the gap between them.
He learned his lesson he was a different man when Noah was born, became someone else as Grandpa than he had been as a father.
Backman's beautiful story of a man holding n t the memories that mean the most and how losing the way home affects everyone is a tear-jerking tale addressing love, aging, and mortality.
Humans are a strange breed in the way our fear of getting old seems to be even greater than our fear of dying.
Review:
Some books have the power to heal open wounds, to alleviate pain that has lingered for so long, and t aide in understanding the confusing aspects of being human. And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer is a short story with a huge message.
This is for anyone that has ever looked into the eyes of a loved one and seen a blank stare; for anyone struggling to understand the horrible reality of dementia or Alzheimer's; for anyone looking for a story that shows the beauty and the strength in the bond between family members; or for anyone needing a good book to cry over.
For such a short book, it is packed with images that brought tears to my eyes. Using this image of a square that gets smaller every day to represent how Grandpa is losing the memories he has collected over his lifetime is a brilliant way to explain memory loss. Noah's reaction to Grandpa's brain being sick is heart-warming and innocent. The relationships between Grandpa and Noah and Grandpa and Ted are realistic and are what make the novella wonderful.
Grandpa may be losing his memory, but Noah is there to help keep his feet on the ground.
This book was over too soon. I digested it in a matter a about an hour while putting my youngest down for nap. No, it didn't take that long for her to fall asleep, but I couldn't move. I had to finish reading. I had big, fat, ugly tears falling down my face through about 3/4 of it and I didn't even care. I think one of the scariest things about getting older is losing those memories that make you who you are and Backman taps into this common fear.
I think the most beautiful part of this novel is the introductory letter to readers. It set the stage for a truly wonderful experience. Backman writes, "I never meant for you to read it, to be honest. I wrote it just because I was trying to sort out my own thoughts.."
I great book, but be prepared for a little tears!
A beautiful novella by the man known for A Man Called Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, Fredrik Backman, that tells the story of an elderly man's struggle to hold on to his memories. Grandpa and Noah are sitting on a bench in a square that is getting smaller every day. Grandpa tells Noah stories about falling in love, how umbers can solve any problem and how soon, Noah will need to say goodbye.
Noah's feet don't touch the ground when his legs dangle over the edge of the bench, but his head reaches all the way to space, because he hasn't been alive long enough to allow anyone to keep his thoughts on Earth.
Noah's father, Ted, is there soon to help Grandpa find the way home, a path which has become more difficult to travel since Grandma passed away. Ted and Grandpa never understood each other, one loves numbers while the other loves words, but Noah bridges the gap between them.
He learned his lesson he was a different man when Noah was born, became someone else as Grandpa than he had been as a father.
Backman's beautiful story of a man holding n t the memories that mean the most and how losing the way home affects everyone is a tear-jerking tale addressing love, aging, and mortality.
Humans are a strange breed in the way our fear of getting old seems to be even greater than our fear of dying.
Review:
Some books have the power to heal open wounds, to alleviate pain that has lingered for so long, and t aide in understanding the confusing aspects of being human. And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer is a short story with a huge message.
This is for anyone that has ever looked into the eyes of a loved one and seen a blank stare; for anyone struggling to understand the horrible reality of dementia or Alzheimer's; for anyone looking for a story that shows the beauty and the strength in the bond between family members; or for anyone needing a good book to cry over.
For such a short book, it is packed with images that brought tears to my eyes. Using this image of a square that gets smaller every day to represent how Grandpa is losing the memories he has collected over his lifetime is a brilliant way to explain memory loss. Noah's reaction to Grandpa's brain being sick is heart-warming and innocent. The relationships between Grandpa and Noah and Grandpa and Ted are realistic and are what make the novella wonderful.
Grandpa may be losing his memory, but Noah is there to help keep his feet on the ground.
This book was over too soon. I digested it in a matter a about an hour while putting my youngest down for nap. No, it didn't take that long for her to fall asleep, but I couldn't move. I had to finish reading. I had big, fat, ugly tears falling down my face through about 3/4 of it and I didn't even care. I think one of the scariest things about getting older is losing those memories that make you who you are and Backman taps into this common fear.
I think the most beautiful part of this novel is the introductory letter to readers. It set the stage for a truly wonderful experience. Backman writes, "I never meant for you to read it, to be honest. I wrote it just because I was trying to sort out my own thoughts.."
I great book, but be prepared for a little tears!
Was this review helpful for you?
labfs39
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
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Fredrik Backman has been one of my favorite authors ever since I read A Man Called Ove. This novella is intensely beautiful. It's the story of a man and his grandson, a man and his son, and the process of losing one's memories through dementia. Sort of a cross between Tove Jansson's Summer Book and Tan Twan Eng's Garden of Evening Mists. I don't know how to share more without trying in vain to reproduce a feeling that is too precious to squander with retelling. Highly recommended
labfs39
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
Fredrik Backman has been one of my favorite authors ever since I read A Man Called Ove. This novella is intensely beautiful. It's the story of a man and his grandson, a man and his son, and the process of losing one's memories through dementia. Sort of a cross between Tove Jansson's Summer Book and Tan Twan Eng's Garden of Evening Mists. I don't know how to share more without trying in vain to reproduce a feeling that is too precious to squander with retelling. Highly recommended
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carolee888
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars(3/5)
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And Every Morning The Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman is the time that I have listened to or read one of Backman's Stories. This story is very short, I was very surprised at how short it was. I have been reading a lot of books about Dementia and Alzheimers. There are relatives on both sides of my family who have had those diseases. Also I now have Mild Cognitive Impairment so my chances for developing Alzheimers are four times a person without it. This story has a sweetness about it and there are two strong themes of love and fear. Tge three generations of the old man, his son and his grandson are experiencing losing their mind with its memories and thinking abilities or having a close relative who it. The language used by the grandpa was a good representation of beginning Alzheimers and later on. It is difficult to sort out time periods but that is to be expected. It does have beautiful messages but I was wanting more.I wanted more of the struggle that people going through this experience have. It just seems a little bit too positive for me. I will continue to read the authors's writings, just sending the message that some of what happens was left out.
carolee888
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars(3/5)
And Every Morning The Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman is the time that I have listened to or read one of Backman's Stories. This story is very short, I was very surprised at how short it was. I have been reading a lot of books about Dementia and Alzheimers. There are relatives on both sides of my family who have had those diseases. Also I now have Mild Cognitive Impairment so my chances for developing Alzheimers are four times a person without it. This story has a sweetness about it and there are two strong themes of love and fear. Tge three generations of the old man, his son and his grandson are experiencing losing their mind with its memories and thinking abilities or having a close relative who it. The language used by the grandpa was a good representation of beginning Alzheimers and later on. It is difficult to sort out time periods but that is to be expected. It does have beautiful messages but I was wanting more.I wanted more of the struggle that people going through this experience have. It just seems a little bit too positive for me. I will continue to read the authors's writings, just sending the message that some of what happens was left out.
Was this review helpful for you?