The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson
Author:
Jonas Jonasson
Published:
2013
Blurb on the Back:
It all starts on the one-hundredth birthday of Allan Karlsson. Sitting quietly in his room in an old people's home, he is waiting for the party he-never-wanted-anyway to begin. The mayor is going to be there. The press is going to be there. But, as it turns out, Allan is not...Slowly but surely Allan climbs out of his bedroom window, into the flowerbed (in his slippers) and makes his getaway. And so begins his picaresque and unlikely journey involving criminals, several murders, a suitcase full of cash, and incompetent police. As his escapades unfold, we learn something of Allan's earlier life in which - remarkably - he helped to make the atom bomb, became friends with American presidents, Russian tyrants, and Chinese leaders, and was a participant behind the scenes in many key events of the twentieth century. Already a huge bestseller across Europe, The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared is a fun, feel-good book for all ages.
Review:
This is part of my 2014 reading challenge.You can compare this book to Forrest Gump in a lot of ways, Karlsson has the knack of being in the right place at the right time and although not being that educated helps Franco, Stalin, Regan throughout his life. This is told in a series of flashbacks while in the present day he is involved in a gang plot on his 100th birthday
The book is wonderfully bright and funny and makes a refreshing change of pace from other Scandinavian novels, from the likes of Nesbo and Larsson. It features so bizarre characters and alot of plot twists that keep the main plot running nicely. However it is the flashbacks that I found provided the most entertaining material.
A charming crime novel which will leave you with a smile.
10 out of 10.
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