My Friends: A Novel

#1 New York Times bestseller, more than 1 million copies sold!

Winner of the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Fiction * A Fallon Book Club Pick * USA TODAY Best Books of the Year * NPR Best Books of the Year * Marie Claire 25 Best Novels of the Year * BookPage Best Fiction of the Year * Real Simple Best Books of the Year * Libby Audiobook of the Year

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anxious People returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger’s life twenty-five years later.

Most people don’t even notice them—three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it’s just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an aspiring artist herself, knows otherwise, and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures.

Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant seaside town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their bruising home lives by spending long summer days on an abandoned pier, telling silly jokes, sharing secrets, and committing small acts of rebellion. These lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream, a reason to love.

Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be placed into eighteen-year-old Louisa’s care. She embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn how the painting came to be and to decide what to do with it. The closer she gets to the painting’s birthplace, the more nervous she becomes about what she’ll find. Louisa is proof that happy endings don’t always take the form we expect in this stunning testament to the transformative, timeless power of friendship and art.

Fredrik Backman is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, Beartown, Us Against You, The Winners, Anxious People, My Friends, and two novellas, And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer and The Deal of a Lifetime, as well as one work of nonfiction, Things My Son Needs to Know About the World. His books are published in more than forty countries. He lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife and two children. Connect with him on Facebook and Twitter @BackmanLand or on Instagram @Backmansk.

“A sweeping saga about young people, art and the way creativity connects friends and strangers across generations. . . . If you’ve read A Man Called Ove, you know Backman can be depended on to show how small the world is, and how fragile. He does it again here, this time with Stand by Me vibes.” —The New York Times

“This is Fredrik Backman at the height of his empathy and resonance. . . I frequently paused to marvel at the way Backman captured the rebellion of joy, the ferocity of devotion, and the cruelty of indifference. Every Backman book should come with the warning that your heart will be split in two, but also, more importantly, with the assurance that it will be repaired with restored faith in the small miracles of being human.” —NPR, Favorite Fiction Reads of 2025

“[A] moving ode to friendship and creativity, in Backman’s signature striking style.” —People

“Irrepressible humor, boundless grief, and eternal loyalty coalesce in Backman’s tribute to youthful imagination and unfettered faith in art’s power to heal and nurture.” —Booklist (starred review)

“Humorous, poignant, and always life-affirming.” —Kirkus (starred review)

“In My Friends, Backman again pays tribute to the forces that make an ordinary life extraordinary. By focusing his tremendous empathy on the power of art and friendship, he has created a novel that celebrates the beauty of being alive.” —BookPage (starred review)

“Backman delivers a wistful story about the power of friendships. . . . The author is at the top of his game.” —Publisher’s Weekly

My Friends by Fredrik Backman is a deeply emotional novel about friendship, grief, memory, and the extraordinary ways ordinary people shape one another's lives. Known for his heartfelt storytelling and memorable characters, Backman explores how the bonds we form during our most vulnerable moments can stay with us forever. The novel follows individuals whose lives become connected through a shared past, revealing how acts of kindness, loyalty, and sacrifice continue to echo long after the moments themselves have passed. Blending humor with heartbreak, the story celebrates the idea that friendship is often the force that helps people survive life's darkest chapters.

The novel begins by introducing a young person who encounters a famous painting that captures a seemingly ordinary group of teenagers sitting together near the sea. While most people admire the artwork for its technical beauty, the protagonist becomes fascinated by the story hidden behind it. Who were these young people? What brought them together? Why did the artist choose this particular moment to preserve forever? These questions set the story in motion, leading to an emotional journey that uncovers the lives behind the painting and the friendships that inspired it.

As the narrative shifts between past and present, readers meet a small group of teenagers who come from very different backgrounds but are united by difficult circumstances. Each of them carries emotional wounds shaped by family struggles, poverty, loneliness, neglect, or personal loss. They are not perfect heroes but ordinary young people trying to find a place where they belong. Their friendship develops gradually through shared experiences rather than dramatic events, showing how trust is built through countless small acts of understanding and support. Together, they create a safe space where they can be themselves without fear of judgment.

Backman explores the idea that friendship often becomes a chosen family. While some of the characters lack stable or loving homes, they discover comfort and acceptance in one another's company. They learn to celebrate small victories, laugh during difficult times, and carry one another through moments of despair. Their conversations are filled with humor, teasing, and affection, balancing the emotional weight of their circumstances. The novel suggests that the people who truly change our lives are not always those connected to us by blood but those who choose to remain beside us when life becomes overwhelming.

One of the book's central themes is the healing power of art. The painting at the center of the story becomes much more than a valuable masterpiece. It represents memory, hope, and the desire to preserve a fleeting moment of happiness before time inevitably changes everything. Through the artist's work, Backman reflects on why people create art in the first place. Paintings, stories, music, and photographs allow emotions to survive long after individual moments have disappeared. They become bridges between generations, enabling strangers to connect with experiences they never personally witnessed.

Memory plays an equally important role throughout the novel. The characters frequently reflect on how people remember the past differently, with each person carrying their own version of the same events. Some memories are comforting, while others remain painful despite the passage of time. Backman illustrates that memory is rarely perfect or complete, yet it continues to shape identity and influence future decisions. Even when details fade, the emotions connected to meaningful relationships often remain vivid. The novel encourages readers to appreciate the moments they share with others because they may later become the memories that define a lifetime.

Loss and grief are explored with great sensitivity. Rather than presenting grief as something that can simply be overcome, Backman portrays it as an ongoing part of life that changes people in different ways. His characters struggle with absence, regret, and unanswered questions, yet they gradually discover that love does not disappear simply because someone is gone. The memories people leave behind continue to influence those who remain, often providing strength during future hardships. The novel emphasizes that grief and love are deeply connected, and that mourning is ultimately a reflection of how deeply people have cared for one another.

Another important theme is resilience. Despite facing hardships that might seem impossible to overcome, the characters continue moving forward through determination and mutual support. They make mistakes, experience disappointment, and sometimes lose faith in themselves, but their friendships remind them that they are never completely alone. Backman avoids presenting resilience as constant strength. Instead, he shows that courage often means allowing others to help, admitting vulnerability, and continuing to hope even when circumstances appear hopeless. This realistic portrayal makes the characters feel authentic and deeply relatable.

Throughout the novel, Backman balances emotional depth with warmth and humor. Even in scenes dealing with painful subjects, moments of laughter, awkwardness, and everyday joy prevent the story from becoming overwhelmingly heavy. His dialogue captures the natural rhythm of close friendships, where serious conversations exist alongside playful jokes and shared silences. These lighter moments highlight the resilience of the human spirit and demonstrate that happiness and sorrow frequently coexist. The novel reminds readers that some of life's most meaningful experiences are found not in extraordinary achievements but in ordinary moments shared with people who truly understand us.

Ultimately, My Friends is a moving celebration of human connection and the lasting impact people have on one another's lives. Fredrik Backman explores how friendship can provide hope, healing, and purpose even during the most difficult times, while also reflecting on the ways memories and art preserve moments that might otherwise be forgotten. Through richly developed characters and emotionally honest storytelling, the novel encourages readers to value compassion, loyalty, and the quiet acts of kindness that often go unnoticed. Its central message is that while life is filled with change, loss, and uncertainty, the love and friendship we share leave lasting impressions that continue to shape the lives of others long after the moment itself has passed.