Beartown
Now an HBO Original Series “You’ll love this engrossing novel.” —People Named a Best Book of the Year by LibraryReads, BookBrowse, and Goodreads From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anxious People, a dazzling and profound novel about a small town with a big dream—and the...
- Pages
- 475
- First published
- April 25, 2017
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Ebook
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Shelved by 8 Litcadians
Reviews
Finished January 4, 2026
- challengingdarksadtenseSlow-paced
Started February 25, 2026 · Finished March 2, 2026
A story about how a small town thinks everything will be saved by children playing sport. I think I would have enjoyed this more if I actually liked ice hockey. A lot of the book was talking about ice hockey and I think if I lived in Bear Town no one would speak to me. Definitely read the trigger warnings before dipping in. There are a lot of things covered but they are done well. The cover-up of a rape of a teenage girl because the boy is the best hockey player in the town is well written and very believable. How the adults react is very uncomfortable but also very real. I was constantly angry at the adults being idiots and people not stepping forward. The characters were likeable and the relationships between the different families and how they were related to the hockey team was dense but easy to follow. I especially liked how the relationships between best friends didn't change at all while the relationships between parents and children developed ( and not always in a positive way) depending on the family. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was good but I'm not sure why the people of Beartown had south west English accents... That was sometimes a little distracting considering the book is set in the US. The ending was satisfying and I'm glad the characters got what they deserved. I would recommend this book, especially if you like sport, or want an easy read.
Started December 18, 2025 · Finished December 21, 2025 · Read 5 times