While I am all for not “judging a book by its cover” I often do judge by the title and, I think, I ought to begin this review by saying that is exactly what happened here. There I was, browsing through possible reads online, when this grabbed my attention and simply refused to let go.

That said, I never expected anything quite like what I got as I promptly paid for and downloaded the e-book for my Kindle:

Enter Alan Karlsson, our endearing, totally laid- back, totally apolitical protagonist who – on the eve of his 100th birthday – decides to climb out the window of his nursing home and disappear.

Moving back and forth from the clever and quirky present plot to a lough- out- loud retrospective of Alan’s mischievous journey through life in the 20th century, Jonas Jonasson ventures miles away from the Swedish noir trend to deliver the delightful, hard to put down tale of his colorful, well- rounded, lovable characters.

Hands down one of the best books I have read (so far) this year, I would whole- heartedly recommend this to everyone!

Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Hesperus Press (12 July 2012)
ISBN-10: 1843913720
ISBN-13: 978-1843913726

Find it in English here
Find it in Greek here