On the day of his 100th birthday Alan Karlsson climbs out of the ground floor window of his room in an old people’s home and so begins a journey which takes him on a n adventure involving gangsters, Hell’s Angels and chasing Police. As readers we are taken on a tour of Alan’s life from a rural and illiterate childhood in to meetings with President Truman, Chou En Lai, the Manhattan Project and a series of coincidental influences and involvement in the great events of the 20th Century.
Part adventure, part historical and always comic in its satire this novel is a true delight to read and one that is hard to put down. ‘One more chapter’ being a frequent refrain in the mind of this reader as the desire to continue as the omniscient companion on Alan’s journey became one that was as compelling as it is fantastic.
Jonasson’s sparing use of dialogue impresses and his style of narration allows for a flow to a story which the reader never feels alienated from. One doesn’t need to be a scholar of history to understand the import of the encounters and events in which the main character finds himself entwined and influencing and the author’s descriptions of these moments are often hilarious.
A novel which celebrates the absurdity of the human condition and one which shows how people can come together in the strangest of circumstances despite not being obvious travel companions this is one book where a recommendation is easy to make.
Robert Hill
