# Fredrik Backman

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Swedish columnist, blogger, and writer

Fredrik Backman Backman at Bokmässan 2013 Born (1981-06-02) 2 June 1981 (age 45) Brännkyrka in Söderort, Sweden Occupation Columnist, blogger, and novelist Period 2012–present Genre Fiction Realistic Fiction Satire Humor Notable works A Man Called Ove My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry Britt-Marie Was Here Beartown Spouse Neda Shafti Backman Signature Website fredrikbackman.com

**Fredrik Backman** (born 2 June 1981) is a [Swedish](/source/Sweden) author, blogger, and columnist. He wrote *[A Man Called Ove](/source/A_Man_Called_Ove_(novel))* (2012), *Things My Son Needs to Know about the World* (2012), *[My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry](/source/My_Grandmother_Asked_Me_to_Tell_You_She's_Sorry)* (2013), *[Britt-Marie Was Here](/source/Britt-Marie_Was_Here)* (2014), *[Beartown](/source/Beartown_(novel))* (2017), *Us Against You* (2018), *[Anxious People](/source/Anxious_People)* (2020), *The Winners* (2022), and *[My Friends](/source/My_Friends_(Backman_novel))* (2025). The books were number one bestsellers in his home country of Sweden. Backman's books have been published in more than twenty-five languages.[1]

## Biography

Backman grew up in [Helsingborg](/source/Helsingborg), [Scania](/source/Scania), Sweden. He has been writing for the Swedish newspaper *[Helsingborgs Dagblad](/source/Helsingborgs_Dagblad)* and for the Swedish men's magazine, *Moore Magazine.* Backman debuted as a novelist in 2012 with *A Man Called Ove.* The novel was adapted as [a film](/source/A_Man_Called_Ove_(film)) which premiered on 25 December 2015, and [again](/source/A_Man_Called_Otto) in 2023.[2] The rights to his book *[Beartown](/source/Beartown_(novel))* were bought by Swedish production company, [Filmlance](/source/Filmlance). It was [adapted for television](/source/Beartown_(TV_series)) in 2020.[3] Many of his books have been translated into English. After his debut novel, *A Man Called Ove*, was translated into English, it spent over a year on [*The New York Times* Best Seller list](/source/The_New_York_Times_Best_Seller_list).[4][5] Following the success of his first book, Atria/[Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster) bought the rights to his other novels and had them translated into English.[4]

## Personal life

Fredrik Backman married Neda Shafti Backman in 2009.[6] They have two children. His second book, *Things My Son Needs to Know about the World* (2012), was based on his own experiences with parenting. He labeled it a "dysfunctional parenting guide" and made a deal that his publisher had to publish the book in order to publish *A Man Called Ove*.[7]

## Published works

### Novels

- *En man som heter Ove* (2012; English translation *[A Man Called Ove](/source/A_Man_Called_Ove_(novel))*, 2013)[8][6]

- *Min mormor hälsar och säger förlåt* (2013; English translation *[My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry](/source/My_Grandmother_Asked_Me_to_Tell_You_She's_Sorry)*, 2015)[9]

- *Britt-Marie var här* (2014; English translation *[Britt-Marie Was Here](/source/Britt-Marie_Was_Here)*, 2016)[10]

- *Björnstad* (2016; English translation *[Beartown](/source/Beartown_(novel))*, UK title *The Scandal*,[11] 2017)[12]

- *Vi mot er* (2017; English translation *Us Against You*, sequel to *Beartown*, 2018)[13]

- *Folk med ångest* (2019; English translation *[Anxious People](/source/Anxious_People)*, 2020)[14]

- *Vinnarna* (2021; English translation *The Winners*, last in the *Beartown* trilogy, 2022)

- *Mina vänner* (2025; English translation *[My Friends](/source/My_Friends_(Backman_novel))*, 2025)

### Novellas

- *Och varje morgon blir vägen hem längre och längre* (2015; English translation *And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer*, 2016)[15]

- *Ditt livs affär* (2016; English translation *The Deal of a Lifetime*, 2017)[16]

### Short stories

- *Sebastian och trollet* (2017; English translation *Sebastian and the Troll* published on the author's website, 2018)[17]

- *Svaret är nej* (2024; English translation *The Answer is No* published as an Amazon Original Stories ebook, 2024)[18]

### Essays

- *Saker min son behöver veta om världen* (2012; English translation *Things My Son Needs to Know About the World*, 2019)[19]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Fredrik Backman"](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Fredrik-Backman/411545926). *Simon & Schuster*. Retrieved 24 September 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["A Man Called Ove (2015)"](http://www.sfi.se/en-GB/Swedish-film-database/Item/?itemid=79650&type=MOVIE&iv=Basic). [Swedish Film Database](/source/Swedish_Film_Database). Retrieved 15 February 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Fredrik Backman's Beartown to be adapted for TV"](http://filmlance.se/en/2017/02/fredrik-backmans-beartown-to-be-adapted-for-tv/). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). Retrieved 1 August 2017.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_4-1) Alter, Alexandra (28 October 2016). ["The Man Behind *A Man Called Ove*, Sweden's Latest Hit Novel"](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/29/books/a-man-called-ove-fredrik-backman-sweden-success.html). *The New York Times*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0362-4331](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331). Retrieved 24 March 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Combined Print & E-Book Fiction - Best Sellers - Books - June 25, 2017"](https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2017/06/24/combined-print-and-e-book-fiction/). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. 24 June 2017. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0362-4331](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331). Retrieved 5 April 2025.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_6-1) ["A Man Called Ove (Backman) - Author Bio"](https://www.litlovers.com/reading-guides/fiction/9920-man-called-ove-backman?start=1). *www.litlovers.com*. Retrieved 24 September 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Haupt, Angela. ["'A Man Called Ove' author Fredrik Backman reflects on the highs and lows of fatherhood"](https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/a-man-called-ove-author-fredrik-backman-reflects-on-the-highs-and-lows-of-fatherhood/2019/05/02/8c69df2e-6c1d-11e9-a66d-a82d3f3d96d5_story.html). *Washington Post*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0190-8286](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0190-8286). Retrieved 26 March 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** [*A Man Called Ove*](http://books.simonandschuster.com/A-Man-Called-Ove/Fredrik-Backman/9781476738024). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). 5 May 2015. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781476738024](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781476738024). Retrieved 15 February 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** [*My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry*](http://books.simonandschuster.com/My-Grandmother-Asked-Me-to-Tell-You-Shes-Sorry/Fredrik-Backman/9781501115066). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). 16 June 2015. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781501115066](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781501115066). Retrieved 15 February 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** [*Britt-Marie Was Here*](http://books.simonandschuster.com/Britt-Marie-Was-Here/Fredrik-Backman/9781501142536). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). 7 February 2017. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781501142543](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781501142543). Retrieved 15 February 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** ["The Scandal"](https://web.archive.org/web/20170802040705/https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/304470/the-scandal/). [Penguin Books](/source/Penguin_Books). Archived from [the original](https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/304470/the-scandal/) on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 1 August 2017.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** [*Beartown*](http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Beartown/Fredrik-Backman/9781501160769). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). 25 April 2017. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781501160769](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781501160769). Retrieved 1 August 2017.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** ["Us Against You (sequel to Beartown)"](https://www.facebook.com/Backmanland/photos/a.1034492189990763.1073741827.102825186490806/1212551568851490). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). Retrieved 1 August 2017.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** ["Anxious People"](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49127718-anxious-people). *www.goodreads.com*. Retrieved 27 December 2019.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** [*And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: A Novella*](http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/And-Every-Morning-the-Way-Home-Gets-Longer-and-Longer/Fredrik-Backman/9781501160486). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). November 2016. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781501160486](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781501160486). Retrieved 1 August 2017.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** [*The Deal of a Lifetime: A Novella*](http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Deal-of-a-Lifetime/Fredrik-Backman/9781501193491). [Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster). 31 October 2017. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781501193491](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781501193491). Retrieved 21 December 2017.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-17)** ["Sebastian and the Troll"](https://web.archive.org/web/20210125075957/http://www.fredrikbackman.com/2018/01/08/sebastian-and-the-troll/). *Fredrik Backman*. 8 January 2018. Archived from [the original](http://www.fredrikbackman.com/2018/01/08/sebastian-and-the-troll/) on 25 January 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-18)** [*The Answer is No*](https://www.amazon.ca/Answer-No-Short-Story-ebook/dp/B0D5JLH3RJ). Amazon Original Stories. 1 December 2024.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-19)** *Things My Son Needs to Know About the World*. worldcat.org. [OCLC](/source/OCLC_(identifier)) [1061304451](https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/1061304451).

## External links

- [Fredrik Backman's Website](http://www.fredrikbackman.com/) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20160221020724/http://www.fredrikbackman.com/) 21 February 2016 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine)

- [Fredrik Backman](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7554519/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier))

- ["Fredrik Backman on Creative Anxiety and Procrastination"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSuSyZ92Cjg). *YouTube*. Simon & Schuster Books. 1 May 2024.

v t e Works by Fredrik Backman Novels A Man Called Ove (2012) My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry (2013) Britt-Marie Was Here (2014) Beartown (2016) Anxious People (2019) Adaptations A Man Called Ove (2015 film) Britt-Marie Was Here (2019 film) Beartown (2020 TV series) Anxious People (2021 TV series) A Man Called Otto (2022 film) Anxious People (upcoming film)

Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND WorldCat National United States France BnF data Japan Italy Czech Republic Spain Portugal Netherlands Norway Latvia Korea Sweden Poland Israel Catalonia Croatia Academics CiNii Artists MusicBrainz People Trove Other IdRef Open Library 2 Yale LUX

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Fredrik Backman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredrik_Backman) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredrik_Backman?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.