A Man Called Ove

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2012

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Chapters 34-36Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 34 Summary: “A Man Called Ove and a Boy in the House Next Door”

Chapter 34 opens with Ove bringing a plastic deckchair to Sonja’s grave: He has so much to tell her that it’s going to take a while. He reflects on the changes in the neighborhood over the past years. Once a landlord rented a house to some young people who partied and were rude to the elderly residents. When Sonja tried to get them to be quiet, they insulted her condition, and when Anita shouted at them, they threw a brick through the living room window.

Ove acted by investigating the landlord, but then Rune delivered the ultimate revenge: He planted drugs in the shed belonging to the home of the young party people, called the cops on them, and got them arrested. This is one of the few moments, looking back, that Ove and Rune got along—but it didn't last. There was always a new altercation.

The chapter also tells how Jimmy came to live in the neighborhood as a child, along with his mother and her abusive boyfriend. The neighbors could all hear the man beating up the mother. One day, Ove and Rune went over and beat the man up. The boyfriend left soon after.

Now Ove must take action in the neighborhood again, and he explains this to Sonja: “I know how you feel about causing trouble, Sonja. But this time you have to understand. One can’t reason with these people” (255). He’s referring to thwarting the government’s attempts to relocate Rune.

It’s Anders, the 40-something divorced man (who has also now ended his relationship with Blonde Weed), who unexpectedly helps Ove in his battle against the council. Parvaneh and Patrick’s trailer is still blocking in the white Škoda. Anders owns a towing company, so when nobody is looking, he has the Škoda removed. The councilman is extremely angry, and Ove denies knowing anything about the disappearing car. One hour later, Anita receives a letter from the government saying that she should transfer Rune to care. According to Ove, “there’s a bloody war on” (259) now.

Chapter 35 Summary: “A Man Called Ove and Social Incompetence”

Ove is on the warpath—and the neighborhood is rallying behind him. The man from the council shows up with three white-clad nurses to pick up Rune. Anita answers the door and makes it clear that she is still willing to take care of Rune. What’s more, she has support: Ove, Parvaneh, Patrick, Jimmy, Anders, Adrian, and Mirsad are all there at Rune and Anita’s home. They all volunteer their services to help Anita care for Rune.

Then the group delivers their final blow: Lena, the journalist, comes forward. She has done some research on the particular councilman who is trying to have Rune moved to a care home. She subtly threatens the man with bank statements, internet search histories, and more. Lena suggests he simply leave—which, “to Ove’s sincere surprise” (265), he does. It appears they have won not only the battle, but the war.

The others leave, but Ove stays behind “because he and Rune need to ‘talk without disruption’” (265). It seems Ove is finally willing to forgive and forget their past arguments—which, as the reader knows, were always about silly minutiae. This experience may have reminded both men of what’s important: “And if Anita hadn’t known better, she could have sworn that in the minutes that followed she heard Rune laughing out loud several times” (265).

Chapter 36 Summary: “A Man Called Ove and a Whiskey”

Chapter 36 opens and closes with the same line: “It’s difficult to admit that one is wrong. Particularly when one has been wrong for a very long time” (266). This seems directed at Amel, Mirsad’s father. In this chapter, Ove goes to visit Amel at his café: “I wouldn’t be averse to that whiskey now if it’s still on offer” (266), he tells Amel, referring to the drink the man had offered him after he repaired the fan heater.

The two men are described thusly: “One of them a man who can’t bring himself to turf out a homosexual youth from his house, and the other who couldn’t stop himself” (269). The narrative does not reveal the ensuing conversation, but the topic is clearly Mirsad.

Parvaneh drove Ove to the café for this meeting. On the way, she says that she was glad Ove came over for dinner the previous night. He is spending more time with her and her family. The night prior, Ove even read little Nasanin a bedtime story and then played a computer game with the 7-year-old for hours on end. She was showing him a game where the player builds houses and said, “I like houses” (269)—just like Ove. Then she shows him a drawing she made of his house. He concludes, “Maybe they weren’t totally worthless after all, those two kids” (269).

Chapters 34-36 Analysis

In these chapters, it’s clear that suicide is no longer part of Ove’s immediate plans, as he has changed. As he tells Sonja, “You’ll just have to wait a bit longer for me up there. I don’t have time to die right now” (258). Ove has his war to fight on behalf of Anita and Rune. This also speaks to the many other battles he has waged with bureaucratic officials in this life, for instance after the bus accident. This is Ove’s last great fight.

Another thing that has changed is Ove’s interconnectedness to the people around him. He is no longer isolated and living in solitude. The neighbors are joining him in the fight, which has brought everyone closer together. Ove can even consider Anders, now that he’s gotten rid of “Blonde Weed” and “Mutt,” an ally. Compared to the disdain Ove initially had for most of his neighbors, including Rune, this is a huge transition.

Ove’s connection to Parvaneh and her family has also deepened immensely. A touching scene in Chapter 35 reveals just how invested Ove is in their lives: He repaints an old crib left over from his and Sonja’s distant past and gives it to Parvaneh for her soon-to-arrive baby. She cries when he gives it to her despite his gruff warning, “If you start crying now you’re not having it” (261).