Some snort-out-your-drink moments, a lot of the parenting advice/stories rings true. The audiobook highlights the hilarity of the author's compositions, the narrator bringing his work to life with gusto. I laughed aloud while walking and driving at times

Praise for Fredrik Backman

Evident in all [Backman] novels is an apparent ability to state a truth about humanity with breathtaking elegance

Praise for Things My Son Needs To Know About The World

A letter in book format, executed with humor and a nostalgic insight . . The perfect gift for all new parents, not only fathers - because even if Backman loves to do his "Dad was right, Mom wasn't"- dance in front of strangers, it's the mothers who will be amused by his efforts most of all.

Excellent and touching, but most of all full of funny and silly comments and observations . . . Fredrik Backman has once again written something absolutely wonderful and remarkable.

I have said it before, and I'll say it again: I don't know anyone who writes as beautifully and lucidly about love as Fredrik Backman. He writes so that I can understand what he means - what he feels. That's an accomplishment.

He writes about football, God, the baggage claim at the airport, and other things that need a real walk-through. At times insightful, an unexpectedly humble and breathlessly funny book with spot-on reflections of family situations at IKEA, the changing table and other places. I laugh out loud at this laddish declaration of love that encourages play, the pursuit of one's passion, finding love, being kind when you can, and tough when you must . . . Wonderful!

The prose is driven, catchy and flows easily. One can tell that Fredrik Backman is an experienced writer and I laugh out loud multiple times during the reading

It's in the depictions of upbringing, social heritage and spending time together with loved ones that Fredrik Backman's prose turns clear and soulful

What a book! Once again I'm totally in love with Fredrik Backman's writing. He employs words in such a wonderful way that makes me never want to stop reading.

A truly fantastic book! Several times I laughed out loud while reading it. And many times I found myself with tears in my eyes and warmth in my heart

The book contains everything I love about Fredrik Backman's authorship. [The book] has humor, warmth and is full of hilarious and silly nonsense. It's a complete bullseye

A superb and shining achievement . . . Heavy Light is an odyssey for our times, full of hope in an uncertain future . . . a life-changing experience

I tore through Heavy Light, and haven't been able to stop thinking about it

Unforgettable

Horatio Clare, whose adventures in the Black Mountains, the Gulf of Bothnia, the Ethiopian Highlands, and the point in the Pacific Ocean furthest on earth from land, have made him one of the most brilliant travel writers of our day, takes us us now to that most challenging country, severe mental illness; and does so with such wit, warmth, and humanity, that, better acquainted with its terrors, we may better face our own

A remarkable tribute both to the depths of human compassion and Clare's extraordinary gifts as an author, witness and guide

Lucid, fluent, utterly unembarrassed . . . a forensic, yet tender account of a plummet into insanity, treatment at the - frequently gentle - hands of the government health service, and eventual redemption . . . a sad, uplifting, timely book

Horatio Clare is a true adventurer and an English original - as vital as Chatwin, as endearing as Withnail. Even when writing about his own breakdown he does so with a poet's ear, brave journalistic insight and, crucially, no shortage of humour. Heavy Light is a white-knuckle descent whose transcendent theme of mania is timeless and universal

The heart of the book is sincere and the linguistic skill exemplary. I can't think of a more astute way to begin the discussions about mental health that must begin than his analysis of how phrases like "I cracked up" or "I broke down"...can have very different meanings in different contexts

A fearless dive into the darks of the mind -- fiercely moving, ruthlessly honest and written with an exquisite care. It is a call for understanding that we all need to hear

Clare takes us inside his head in this profound, compelling account of acute mental illness, which is also a love letter to those who cared for and supported him. And as he recovers, Heavy Light turns into a heartfelt quest to understand what happened to him, and how we can heal those similarly afflicted. This book must have been terribly hard to write, but it feels so important he's done so

Really moving... a call to reconsider treatment options for people who've had breakdowns

Clare... recounts his recovery from that low ebb of mania with acute self-awareness, and in gentle, witty prose

A harrowing, deeply moving and hugely informative story... it's powerful, unsettling and often shocking