I also think sports, for a lot of people, me included, they're a happy place. And sports and literature is the same thing for me. I want to go into another world or go someplace else or experience something that I haven't known before, didn't know that I was craving, didn't know that I was longing for. I'm always on the hunt for something that helps me escape. That's when I figured out that, 'Oh, this is a vehicle to help you escape reality.' And I didn't like reality very much. I found sports and literature at the same time, when I was five or six years old. And as far as loving something more than you should, how does hockey play into it? What is the good that hockey brings to Beartown and what is the bad?įB: First of all, sports, all sports, are, to me, an escape from reality. I was like, 'Okay, I'll give it a try.' But hockey really is a big deal in this series. I was first drawn to this book because it's a hockey book that you don't have to be a hockey fan to enjoy.

TF: Talking about something you love too much in life, for Beartown that obvious thing is hockey. All of Beartown comes from that core of people who just love something more than they should. I wish I was more like that a lot of the time, but I think I'm only interested in people who are too interested in something. Nothing that ever makes them go too far with something or being too emotional or people who are in balance all of the time. Nothing that makes them lose touch with reality. I have very little in common with people who like things on a reasonable level, who nothing that they are obsessed with. TF: Can you tell us what this phrase means to you?įB: I think the core of Beartown, the core of those books, was that I'm interested in people who are obsessed with things. Narrator Marin Ireland: 'To you who talk too much and sing too loud and cry too often and love something in life more than you should.' It immediately reminded me why I've loved the residents of Beartown so much, and it's a simply beautiful dedication. But I have to say, from the moment I pressed play and listened to the dedication of The Winners, I knew I was back in Beartown. It's been about four years for us here in the US since Us Against You came out, Book 2 in the series.

TF: The Winners is a long-awaited conclusion to the Beartown series, which inspired an HBO series of the same name and follows a small hockey town's residents as they grapple with change, pain, hope, and redemption. Thank you so much for being here today.įredrik Backman: Well, thank you. And we're here today to talk about The Winners, the third and final book in the beloved Beartown trilogy. Tricia Ford: Hello everyone, this is Audible Editor Tricia Ford and with me is Fredrik Backman, bestselling author of listener favorites like A Man Called Ove and Anxious People. Note: Text has been edited and does not match audio exactly

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