Beartown

 Beartown by Frederik Backman (2016, translation 2017) 418 pages

Even if you don't especially care for hockey, this book, set in wintery Sweden, will draw you in with its superbly believable characters and compelling storytelling. The Andersson family is shown in depth: Peter, the dad, was a professional hockey player whose injuries aborted his NHL career. He and his wife Kira, an attorney, are raising their two children in the small town of Beartown, where Peter grew up and is now general manager of the Beartown Ice Hockey Club. The town and the Club are both struggling as store closings and factory layoffs reduce the population. The junior hockey team has been thriving, though, and it is the fervent hope that a win in the upcoming semifinals and then finals will help put Beartown back on the map. 

Kevin, seventeen and a top player, has been single-mindedly honing his hockey skills for over a decade, in spite of‒or because of‒his rich parents' lack of attention. Benji's seventeen, smokes a lot of weed and is late for school, but he's forgiven because he spends his ice time protecting Kevin from hits. Amat is fifteen and poor, a player on the slightly younger boys team. He skates his heart out every morning before school after helping his mother clean in the arena, and is one of the fastest skaters around. Peter's daughter, Maya, fifteen, has little interest in hockey; she wants only to play her guitar and spend time with her best friend Ana, while dreaming about Kevin, while Amat, in turn, pines for her. The Club Board now wants Peter to replace his mentor, the coach for the A-Team, with the Junior coach, which he's finding a difficult task. All of these pieces, and many more, shape a riveting storyline. When Peter's daughter Maya is raped by a hockey player, the town chooses up sides. Serious topics are handled with realism and compassion, and kept me on edge until the last page.