The Hundred-year-old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared - Softcover

Jonas Jonasson

3.82

277,838 ratings by Goodreads

9781843914822: The Hundred-year-old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1843914824 ISBN 13: 9781843914822

Publisher: Hesperus Press Limited, 2014

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The international publishing sensation—over two million copies sold.

A reluctant centenarian much like Forrest Gump (if Gump were an explosives expert with a fondness for vodka) decides it’s not too late to start over ...

After a long and eventful life, Allan Karlsson ends up in a nursing home, believing it to be his last stop. The only problem is that he’s still in good health, and in one day, he turns 100. A big celebration is in the works, but Allan really isn’t interested (and he’d like a bit more control over his vodka consumption). So he decides to escape. He climbs out the window in his slippers and embarks on a hilarious and entirely unexpected journey, involving, among other surprises, a suitcase stuffed with cash, some unpleasant criminals, a friendly hot-dog stand operator, and an elephant (not to mention a death by elephant).

It would be the adventure of a lifetime for anyone else, but Allan has a larger-than-life backstory: Not only has he witnessed some of the most important events of the twentieth century, but he has actually played a key role in them. Starting out in munitions as a boy, he somehow finds himselfinvolved in many of the key explosions of the twentieth century and travels the world, sharing meals and more with everyone from Stalin, Churchill, and Truman to Mao, Franco, and de Gaulle. Quirky and utterly unique, The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared has charmed readers across the world.

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About the Author:

Jonas Jonasson was a journalist for the Expressen newspaper for many years. He became a media consultant and later set up a company producing sports and events for Swedish television before selling it and moving abroad to work on his first novel. He is the author of the internationally bestselling novels The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared and The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden. He lives on the Swedish island Gotland in the Baltic Sea.

Review:

“[A] witty caper. ★★★1/2” (People)

“[A] silly and wonderful novel. [The scenes] will just keep readers amused almost non-stop, and that’s a feat few writers achieve. A great cure for the blues, especially for anyone who might feel bad about growing older.” (Kirkus Reviews (starred review))

“The anti Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. . . . Jonasson’s lighthearted novel shows the softer side of Sweden. . . . hilarious.” (Marie Claire)

“Scandi-crime’s signature darkness is here dispelled by Allan Karlsson, the eponymous centenarian, who with unlikely sprightliness hops out of the window of his old people’s home one afternoon. . . . Fast-moving and relentlessly sunny.” (The Guardian)

[A] laugh-out-loud debut. . . . Historical figures like Mao’s third wife, Vice President Truman, and Stalin appear, to great comic effect. Other characters—most notably Albert Einstein’s hapless half-brother—are cleverly spun into the raucous yarn, and all help drive this gentle lampoon of procedurals and thrillers.” (Publishers Weekly (starred review))

“Eccentric, unusual and far-fetched in the best possible way.” (The Bookseller)

“This quirky novel is a sly, satirical look back at international relations in the 20th century through the eyes of an old man who has seen it all.” (Library Journal)

“Imaginative, laugh-out-loud . . . a brilliant satire on the foibles of mankind.” (The Telegraph)

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