My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry

I always read books from the library but this one I bought after I finished it. Yes, I loved it that much and am confident I will read it again and again. In fact, I immediately started re-reading it after it ended, something I never do. “My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry” is the story of a precocious seven year old girl named Elsa and her slightly wacky and eccentric grandmother who creates the make-believe “Land of Almost Awake.” This world consists of a multitude of fairytales which help connect Elsa and her grandmother as well as Elsa and her neighbors. Elsa is “different” and this imaginary world helps her cope. This quote helps to show how Elsa learns about the power of being different “All fairy stories take their life from the fact of being different. ‘Only different people change the world,’ Granny used to say. ‘No one normal has ever changed a crapping thing.” The fairytales ultimately connects all the people that live around Elsa. She gets to know each one of them and their fairytale via letters her grandmother leaves for her in a treasure hunt of sorts after Granny passes away. “At first when Elsa’s Granny started telling her stories from Miamas, they only seemed like disconnected fairy tales without a context, told by someone who needed her head examined. It took years before Elsa understood that they belonged together All really good stories work like this.” The creativity and imagination contained within the pages is captivating as well as entertaining and the writing is superb. “Elsa is the sort of child who learned early in life that it’s easier to make your way if you get to choose your own soundtrack.” I enjoyed reading this book and laughed many times and felt sad on a few pages. I loved getting to know Elsa and the fairytales that connect her world. I now want to read every book by Frederick Backman and plan to do just that!

When I read some of the other reviews, I will admit I was skeptical about "My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry." After reading it in two nights, I'm glad I picked up this book! I loved it. I truly loved it. When it first started, I wasn't sure, but then it turned into a real page-turner that made me laugh, cry, and feel frustrated. First, I enjoyed the characters immensely! Elsa, the main character, did get on my nerves a bit because she is a bit of a brat, but then I understood her more as she's a smart child who's lost in a world of divorce, death, and strange housemates. She is a product of her environment, so I started to warm up to her, especially her relationship with her grandmother. Each character is different and quirky, but not in an unbelievable way. I loved how the author explored the reasons behind each character's personality and actions. Character descriptions were just right and not-over-the-top. They are relatable and memorable. This is one of the reasons why this book was such a page-turner for me. The other part I LOVED about the story is how fantasy and reality come together to help paint Elsa's world. There are complexities within the story's threads that may be over some readers' heads, so if you don't like fantasy, can't think beyond the simplistic, and can't compartmentalize, this book isn't for you. A reader will have to think while reading in order to see the connections between real life and fantasy. Additionally, the writing style may not be everyone's cup-of-tea because it does have a seven (almost eight) year-old's perspective. It meanders at times, but that's part of the fun and realism in the story because it is about a child and the world around her. There are a few things I didn't like, thus the four-star rating. While it's believable the grandmother touched many lives, it's not wholly believable that the ones she touched the most live under the same roof. This bothered me a little. What also bothered me is how one of the characters had a heart attack and later showed up with crutches. The two aren't related, but okay. I also didn't like how the ending felt a bit rushed and too tidy. However, I will accept the ending and the nit-picky issues because the story was so good. After reading the book, I had to pick up "Britt-Marie Was Here." I want to see how her character develops since the close of "Grandmother." I will admit that the entire time I read "Grandmother," I imagined Britt-Marie as Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) from "Harry Potter" (and there are many HP references in "Grandmother," which is funny). It'll be great to see if "Umbridge" becomes a sympathetic character. ;) "Grandmother" was an awesome read and among one of my top favorite books. Give it a chance!

This audio CD was a gift for my mother along with a new "boom box". I gave it a 5 rating based on reading the book. It is a wonderful story that I highly recommend. It was one of my favorite books I read in 2025.

These characters got into my mind and stated there. So comfortably written. I am sad to close the book. Somehow I feel called to be a better elder to the young in my life.

I loved how Granny is such a character, the experiences that formed her, but must of all, her irreverent sense of humor. How she used her imagination to teach Elsa about life, how to experience it, and deal with the bad or sad bits. So glad I purchased the ebook immediately after it was recommendation to me. I will be purchasing 2 hard copies as well. One to keep and read when there is no longer a way to charge my Kindle, and one to share in hopes it will be read, enjoyed and passed on and on and on...

This is the story of a little girl who is different, but in a good way! She must navigate her way through the death of her granny and uses her grannies fairy tales to help her!

I am a regular reader (I tend to read several books a week) and still I have to say that this is the best work of fiction I've read in ages. I laughed out loud on almost every page of this book, but also sobbed periodically as this precocious little girl learns to deal with the reality of life. I fell in love with Elsa- her voice was so strong and true. She reminded me a lot of myself as a child- too large a vocabulary and understanding of the world for children to enjoy her, but not "cutesy" enough for adults to be able to wrap their minds around, and as such often left feeling lost and alone in a world that doesn't know what to do with her. As I cheered for her to find herself and her place in the world, I felt as though I was doing the same for my childhood self. The characters were both extremely real and larger-than-life all at the same time. Through an almost-8-year-old's mind we see their struggles and extreme humanity, but with a touch of humor as the somewhat strange ways of adults are viewed through the eyes of a pragmatic child. I found myself examining my own habits and wondering how Elsa would describe me, what she would find strange about my life and of those around me. And her grandmother has joned the ranks of my all-time favorite characters. She's exactly the kind of woman that I would probably struggle to get along with in real life, but is enchantingly amusing to read about. Her antics on one hand are completely barmy, and yet somehow the author makes her relatable. She's the kind of character you want to see win battles- and seen through the eyes of an imaginative (however rational and hard-nosed) little girl, she's nothing short of a superhero. I listened to the audiobook as well and found it to be simply delightful. The reader, though being older herself, embodied Elsa's voice perfectly- just the right amount of snark mixed in with an innocent quality. And the grandmother, too, was perfect. She exemplified a gloriously bonkers old lady- the kind of woman you want in your army when you go to battle. I loved the author's style. Novel reading for me is all about the characters, and he has characterization down to a tee. I greatly look forward to reading anything else he produces.

A beautiful, tender and hopeful story of humans and all their beauty and frailties. I highly recommend this for anybody.