by Jonas Jonasson
396 pages
Originally I had planned to finish the first part of the list before moving on to any of the “Advanced List” categories. I just wanted to make sure I’d finish the others first. I broke my rule a little bit here for one reason. This book is about Allan Karlsson who snuck out the window on his 100th birthday. I was out of town last week as I read this, but I paced myself to finish this book on the day that my own grandma would have celebrated her own 100th birthday. My grandma passed away on Valentine’s Day of this year – just four months short of the big 100 (June 22, 2017). I suppose this was simply another way of preserving her memory. So, while my grandma didn’t climb out the window and break a bunch of laws, she still lived a pretty amazing life.
Now onto the book. This book begins by introducing us to the 100-year-old, Allan Karlsson. It is Allan’s 100th birthday. He is living in a retirement home and they are planning a birthday party for him. Allan does not want to attend this party, so he simply climbs out his window and wanders away. As the book goes on, the chapters alternate between two stories. One story tells of 100-year-old Allan’s new adventure, the other story tells about the first 100 years of his life – beginning with his birth.
After disappearing out the window, Allan heads to the bus station. As chance would have it, a man asks him to watch his suitcase while he uses the restroom. Because his bus arrives before the man returns, Allan decides to take the suitcase with him. This decision sets in motion an incredible adventure that leads to new friends, murder, many broken laws, a lot of luck, and ultimate happiness. I enjoyed this part of the story more than the other part. I found myself eager to find out how these new friends would remain one step ahead at all times.
From a very young age, Allan Karlsson was talented at blowing things up. This part of the book tells about all of the exciting, and often dangerous, adventures that Allan has been on in his life. This portion of the book takes us all over Europe, Asia, and America. Allan meets powerful world leaders (including Presidents, Prime Ministers, and dictators), he works as a spy, and he gives the secrets to atom bombs to both East and West. Many times, Allan was able to talk his way out of sticky situations and survived on wit and luck. While I really enjoyed many of these stories, some of it bored me. I have never been a big fan of history, and a lot of these parts read like tedious history lessons.
All in all, I am glad I read the book, but I don’t think I’d read it again. I would recommend it to people who enjoy history (even though it’s fiction) or maybe even spy-type books. I don’t know. At just under 400 pages, I think Jonasson could have cut back a little on the story line that tells about Allan’s past.
3 Stars