This section is for all reviews about creative pieces (e.g: Books, Plays, Movies, TV Shows, etc.). Your reviews can be anything you want them to be, we just want to know your thoughts! To help in this process, here are some questions to help you structure your review:

1. What is the creative piece about? (provide a summary)

2. What do you feel is the message of the creative piece?

3. What did you like from the creative piece?

4. What did you not like from the creative piece?

5. How one could have made it better?

6. What do you rate the creative piece? (out of 5 stars)

7. Any additional comments?

"We want that education by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, the intellect is expanded, and by which one can stand on one's own feet" -Swami Vivekananda

“We always think there's enough time to do things with other people. Time to say things to them. And then something happens and then we stand there holding on to words like 'if'.”

A Man Called Ove is a 2012 novel by Frederik Backman. It tells the heartwarming, yet bittersweet story of an elderly man named Ove and his journey to opening up to his new neighbors and friends. Ove starts out as bitter and uptight man due to the loss of his wife, and throughout the novel grows into a warmer figure with the help of his neighbors. The novel follows Ove on this journey while also including snippets from Ove's past to help understand Ove’s character and the reason for his closed-off personality.

One of the biggest messages of this creative piece is the idea that love transforms lives. Ove starts his journey out as a cold and closed off man. Even from the snippets of his past, Ove still remains a very much uptight person until he meets his wife. When his wife dies, Ove returns to that uptight and closed off space. His new neighbors force their way into his lives, and Ove starts to warm up to them. The love that they bring into his life gives him a whole new outlook on the world, and completely transforms his character. Relationships and familial bonds, even between people who are not blood related are heavily emphasized in the book. The book is mostly character-based, with not much of a plot, however due to the themes of kindness and compassion, the book manages to get the message out without becoming dull. Ove’s journey not only transforms the character, but also the reader.

There are many things I enjoyed about the novel. One of the biggest aspects that I liked was the narration style. Despite the novel being written in third person, the narrator’s voice fits the mood perfectly. I could feel Ove’s character in the words, and I could envision the scenario. Not only Ove, but I could also picture the rest of the characters. The characters in this novel are beautifully created. Every single one is given their own distinct personality and role in the novel. They are not meant to be just mere plot devices to develop Ove’s character, but rather have their own journey which in turn facilitates Ove’s journey. Ove, despite being more than twice my age, was such a character that I could relate to. Our experiences are not the same, however the emotions that Ove felt and the pain and the happiness that he went through all stood out to me. It was very easy to empathize with the characters and understand their motives and perspectives. The inspiring and heartwarming nature of the novel made me feel good as well.

The novel’s snippets into the past are another very interesting thing about the novel. Rather than Ove’s backstory in one chunk, these snippets are scattered throughout the novel and help to bring Ove’s character to life. Ove’s experience with death is handled very well, and is woven into the greater message of the book. The novel is also very emotional. By the time I had finished it, I had become so attached to all the characters and their lives. The amount of emotion and meaning that’s poured into the book is indescribable. The amazing characters, the beautiful messages about life and love, and the emotional scenes all come together to create a masterpiece of a novel.

I only have one small complaint which is that the writing style can be hard to follow sometimes. There are many long paragraphs and sentences in this novel, and when that’s paired with the back-and-forth style of the flashbacks, the story might be difficult to follow at times. However, this was not a big deal for me as I could quickly figure out what was going on. It’s very easy to get wrapped up in the book so I don’t think this would ruin the reading experience in any way.

My overall rating for this book would be five out of five stars. I’d recommend it to anyone who loves character-driven, slice-of-life stories with many meaningful lessons and messages.