Try free for 30 days

1 credit a month to use on any title, yours to keep (you’ll use your first credit on this title).
Stream or download thousands of included titles.
Access to exclusive deals and discounts.
$16.45 a month after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
Beartown cover art

Beartown

By: Fredrik Backman
Narrated by: John Sackville
Try for $0.00

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $23.99

Buy Now for $23.99

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Beartown by Fredik Backman, read by John Sackville. 

Beartown is a small town in a large Swedish forest.

For most of the year it is under a thick blanket of snow, experiencing the kind of cold and dark that brings people closer together - or pulls them apart.

Its isolation means that Beartown has been slowly shrinking with each passing year. But now the town is on the verge of an astonishing revival. A bright new future is just around the corner.

Until the day it is all put in jeopardy by a single, brutal act. 

It divides the town into those who think it should be hushed up and forgotten, and those who'll risk the future to see justice done. At last, it falls to one young man to find the courage to speak the truth that it seems no one else wants to hear.

With the town's future at stake, no one can stand by or stay silent. Everyone is on one side or the other.

Which side would you be on?

Previously published as The Scandal.

©2017 Fredrik Backman (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

"As popular Swedish exports go, Backman is up there with ABBA and Stieg Larsson." (The New York Times Book Review)

What listeners say about Beartown

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    379
  • 4 Stars
    121
  • 3 Stars
    42
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    363
  • 4 Stars
    94
  • 3 Stars
    31
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    351
  • 4 Stars
    100
  • 3 Stars
    40
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    5

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Sound check

Loud volume from guest voice-overs which varies greatly from the narrator. Very off-putting.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

I guess I had high expectations

Well written, enjoyable - but I was always waiting for the climax which I felt never real came.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Beyond disappointing!

After seeing so many positive reviews I thought I had the wrong book for a second. I am not sure how this could have been written by the same incredibly talented author. I tried to persist, I took breaks and then I tried again and again repeating the same cycle and then feeling depressed and bored beyond belief I decided to give in.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Deb
  • 24-11-2017

Layers

Ostensibly a story about a hockey team but soon you find yourself caught up in a complex community.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Compelling

Touched on so many aspects of life and how society behaves and responds.
I would recommend this book to everyone and think it should be on school book lists because it addresses such a wide range of behaviours and would encourage discussion.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Great writing, really needs a better editor.

Backman writes really well and Sackville narrates beautifully. Unfortunately the story tends to over-explain and reiterate itself repeatedly. If I were reading I would probably skim all the "yeah yeah you said this before" paragraphs and really enjoy this, but in audio format it got quite frustrating.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant, weekday a story teller.

The final chapter had my goosebumps up for six minutes. So very well written. Loved it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A well written tale

I was slowly dragged into the lives of this small ferocious community. Felt sad to say goodbye to the many well-drawn characters .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it

There is a lot of time spent building up the background to the story. Stick with it because once the event at the centre of the story occurs, it is vital. As always with this wonderful author, a superb story, rich in characterisation.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Bit of a boring story.

At times, you lose interest due to the story being dragged out. The story goes back over it’s self a few to many times.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.