My Friends

My Friends continues Backman’s exploration of trauma and mental health, themes that have been central to much of his work. In earlier novels, such as A Man Called Ove (2012), Beartown (2016), and Anxious People (2019), Backman consistently demonstrates a focused attention to the psychological burdens people carry and the complex, often messy ways they cope with them. Backman explores how survivors live with the aftermath of tragedy and how trauma can fester in silence as communities either fail or come together to support healing. 

Through the lens of intergenerational and systemic trauma, My Friends explores how art can be a refuge for those in pain. The artist and his friends are children caught in cycles of abuse, neglect, and poverty. In the past timeline, through their friendship and appreciation for artistic expression, the friends find ways to survive in a world that seems set to silence and destroy them. In the present, Louisa’s connection to a single piece of art alters her entire life, setting her on a path toward discovering her identity and belonging.

Backman states that before meeting his wife, he didn’t have an appreciation for works of art. After she took him to an art gallery and they found a painting they both loved, he began to understand the power art can have to connect people. In the dedication for My Friends, Backman dedicates the book “To anyone who is young and wants to create something. Do it” (i), asserting the necessity of community and friendship in fostering creativity and survival. In My Friends, the artist would not have become who he was without his loyal band of friends who nurtured his gift, defended him, sacrificed for him, and saw value in his vision long before the world did. Similarly, Louisa’s journey is only possible because people like Ted and Christian’s mother offer her a safe place to express herself and imagine a future where she is a creator. Backman says that together, the dedication and epigraph frame the novel as a love letter to the young, the misunderstood, and the brave people who dare to make something out of pain, as well as those who help others do the same and to those who believe that art, like friendship, is a radical act of hope (Blitman, Jason. “Fredrik Backman & My Friends feat. Erika J. Simpson, Guest Gay Reader.” Gays Reading, 6 May 2025).

The exploration of the meaning of art in My Friends comes full circle in Backman’s admission that he was dealing with impostor syndrome before writing this novel. The last line of the book, from Ted, reads, “What would someone like me write a book about?” (434), a meta-commentary on how Backman wrote the book as he was considering retiring from writing. After rewriting an earlier draft of the story, Backman drew inspiration from thinking about the people he addresses in the dedication and his desire to be an inspiration for those who have yet to find their voice (Blitman). 

In revealing his connection to the story, Backman offers this novel as a gift to the next generation of storytellers—those who, like him, process the world through art. Backman writes a bit of himself into Kimkim and Louisa, as they are both reluctant to see themselves as artists. Like his audience, the characters struggle to express their truth in a world that doesn’t always welcome new voices, especially those who are young or different. Joar says to Kimkim in the museum, “[Y]our art belongs in a place like this. And […] you belong here…too” (401). Kimkim’s work, Louisa’s graffiti, and Ted’s storytelling all become forms of emotional survival and creative testimony. Backman’s message to himself and others is that art and stories matter, and those brave enough to create them need encouragement, safe spaces, and friendship.