Anxious People

#1 New York Times bestseller



From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and "writer of astonishing depth" (The Washington Times) comes a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined.

Viewing an apartment normally doesn't turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers begin slowly opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths.



First is Zara, a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else until tragedy changed her life. Now, she's obsessed with visiting open houses to see how ordinary people live-and, perhaps, to set an old wrong to right. Then there's Roger and Anna-Lena, an Ikea-addicted retired couple who are on a never-ending hunt for fixer-uppers to hide the fact that they don't know how to fix their own failing marriage. Julia and Ro are a young lesbian couple and soon-to-be parents who are nervous about their chances for a successful life together since they can't agree on anything. And there's Estelle, an eighty-year-old woman who has lived long enough to be unimpressed by a masked bank robber waving a gun in her face. And despite the story she tells them all, Estelle hasn't really come to the apartment to view it for her daughter, and her husband really isn't outside parking the car.



As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people.



Rich with Fredrik Backman's "pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature" (Shelf Awareness), Anxious People's whimsical plot serves up unforgettable insights into the human condition and a gentle reminder to be compassionate to all the anxious people we encounter every day. 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, Anxious People, The Winners, and My Friends, 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. "Hits the sweet spot between profoundly insightful and preposterously funny . . . I hugged this book tightly with a smile on my face and tears in my eyes."

- USA Today "Funny, compassionate and wise . . . an absolute joy."

- AJ PEARCE, bestselling author of Dear Mrs. Bird "Full of Backman's wry humour, his insight into people's hidden lives and his compassion for those people. This tale really is full of love stories, of people getting on despite myriad problems, but it is not sappy, not in his hands."

- Winnipeg Free Press "[A] story of serendipity and the interconnectedness of all things."

- Zoomer "[Backman's] writing is always compassionate and propulsive even as he asks hard questions and reveals truths about the human condition."

- Toronto Star "Captures the messy essence of being human . . . It's clever and affecting, as likely to make you laugh out loud as it is to make you cry."

- Washington Post "[A] witty, lighthearted romp . . . Backman charms."

- Publishers Weekly "[A] tight-knit, surprise-filled narrative. . . . The brisk, absorbing action prompts meditation on marriage, parenting, responsibility, and global economic pressures. Comedy, drama, mys