The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

 I had heard of this book, so when I saw it at Deseret Industries, I picked it up for a dollar. A good mystery, it seemed. And it was, but I had no idea it was going to be so violent and so full of sadism. Yuck. Which is too bad, because the whole first third of the book gave no indication it was going to go that direction.

I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, and I'm sorry I'll never be rid of the violent images. On the other hand, it was an exciting mystery to uncover and follow; very cerebral, with very interesting and likable characters.

One of the main characters, Lisbeth Salander, has Asberger's Syndrome, and reading and understanding her traits were enlightening. A brilliant mind with few social skills...

It's set in Sweden, and a lot of the Swedish culture comes through, most particularly their casual attitude about casual sex. Marriage didn't mean fidelity and it wasn't expected in the main characters. That was interesting...Okay, that's about all I can say about this one. Not going down this road again. 

The 100-Year-Old Man by Jonas Jonasson

Subtitle is..."Who climbed out the window and disappeared."

This book is a hoot. Very subtle and intricate with fascinating characters. I bought it when I saw it referred to somewhere and read it as we planned my dad's 99th birthday party!

This old man climbs out his window the day of his birthday party in the old folks' home and disappears. The story unfolds from there, and flips back and forth between his current adventure, and the earlier ones in his life. As the two points in time get ever closer, the story comes together in a very satisfying way.

Basically, the old man is amoral. This bothers me. And somehow he hooks up with both criminals and "good" people and has curious and hilarious adventures with them all. Oh, did I mention he interacts with world leaders like Chairman Mao, his wife, Churchill, Truman, and others??? And Einstein's brother plays a role as well. The humor is very dry as history is recounted with Allan constantly altering its course! Politics is definitely a theme, and Allan's aversion to it while creating solutions is telling, somehow.

The cast of characters is a little large for my brain and the events were such that I promptly read it a second time to get it all sorted out. I enjoyed it even more the second time around. The cleverness of this author to have preposterous events all come together is admirable. Such an enjoyable read. Not the best role model, yet Allan's carefree life and willingness to help out is fun to hang out with...

Another aspect I enjoyed were the backdrops of modern-day Sweden, World War II Russia, and Los Alamos during the development of the bomb...and other sites as well. The modern day Swedish police inspector and system were also very entertaining and revealed a lot of cultural tidbits.

A Man Called Ove: A Novel by Fredrik Backman

My friend Amberly recommended this book. I bought it at the airport during the end of the hectic period of moving and moving Irene in with us. May 2016. I was in need of something light-hearted, and this wasn't it! I knew there was humor there, but it just wasn't reaching me! I may have to try it again, because Mary found it hilarious.

What I did appreciate was the way the story unfolded...it wasn't clear at first why Ove was so negative and anti-social, but that became clear as I read of his life and experiences. It was a heart-rending story...of his losing a wonderful wife whom he cherished. I enjoyed the way his neighbors reached out and gave him something to live for... but otherwise, it was not a joyful or fulfilling read for me.