{"product_id":"my-friends","title":"My Friends","description":"\u003cp\u003e \"This is Fredrik Backman at the height of his empathy and resonance. . . I frequently paused to marvel at the way Backman captured the rebellion of joy, the ferocity of devotion, and the cruelty of indifference. Every Backman book should come with the warning that your heart will be split in two, but also, more importantly, with the assurance that it will be repaired with restored faith in the small miracles of being human.\" --NPR, Favorite Fiction Reads of 2025\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost people don't even notice them-three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it's just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an artist herself, knows otherwise and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures. Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their difficult home lives by spending their days laughing and telling stories out on a pier. There's Joar, who never backs down from a fight; quiet and bookish Ted who is mourning his father; Ali, the daughter of a man who never stays in one place for long; and finally, there's the artist, a boy who hoards sleeping pills and shuns attention, but who possesses an extraordinary gift that might be his ticket to a better life. These four lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream. Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be put into eighteen-year-old Louisa's care. As she struggles to decide what to do with this bequest, she embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn the story of how the painting came to be. The closer she gets to the painting's birthplace, the more she feels compelled to unleash her own artistic spirit, but happy endings don't always take the form we expect in this fresh testament to the transformative power of friendship and art\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFredrik Backman\u003c\/strong\u003e is the #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eA Man Called Ove\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eMy Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBritt-Marie Was Here\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBeartown\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eUs Against You\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eAnxious People\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Winners, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eMy Friends\u003c\/i\u003e, 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 X @BackmanLand and on Instagram @Backmansk.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Fredrik Backman","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49961357345053,"sku":"9781982112820","price":29.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0821\/9095\/8877\/files\/9781982112820.jpg?v=1746645899","url":"https:\/\/staging.anovelideaphilly.com\/products\/my-friends","provider":"A Novel Idea on Passyunk","version":"1.0","type":"link"}