In July, readers across Mid Sussex picked up debut novels for the Mid Sussex Reading Challenge, including Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Gail Honeyman’s Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and Sally Rooney’s Conversations with Friends.
Sarah from East Grinstead chose The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson, and she wasn’t disappointed, giving it 5 stars. The novel was published in 2009 in its original language of Swedish, before being translated into English in 2012, followed by a sequel in 2018. It follows the story of Allan Karlsson – a man approaching his 100th birthday in a retirement home, who decides to disappear out the window and finds himself in some hilarious adventures. Read on to find out what Sarah thought of her latest read!
The somewhat ‘normal’ vogue for entertainment from Sweden can be quite dark – think TV dramas like Wallander and Modus, coupled with the fact that this book must have the longest title in eternity, but don’t be put off! Oh no! Within turning the first few pages, the story unravelling is light-hearted and humorous, and this is more or less the theme throughout of the highly imaginative author. Traversing the story are some serious historical points, as we discover that our lead character, Allan Karlsson, has packed a lot of daring adventures and met a lot of VIP historical figures into his 100 colourful and explosive years on Earth! Plus, a full-sized elephant is in the mix. What a fantastic debut novel by Mr Jonasson – now made into a film, and one I must watch!
Have you read Jonas Jonasson’s debut novel, or any of his other books? Let us know by sending in your own review, posting in our Facebook group or tweeting us @WSCCLibraries using the hashtag #MidSussexReadingChallenge.
You can now request books to collect from the door of your local library using our Select and Collect service, or if you’re not sure what you’d like to read next, fill out our Staff Select form and we’ll pick out some books for you for free! Head to our current offer page to find out how to use this service, plus how to access thousands of free eBooks, eAudiobooks and eComics from home using the West Sussex eLibrary.
The views expressed in this review are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of West Sussex Libraries.
Mid Sussex Reading Challenge 2020 