The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (original 2009; edição 2012)

I really liked this novel because it pushed the idea that 100 year old people have lived a full life. We sometimes push our elderly into a "they are old" camp. But this 100 year old man's story was interlaced with his current hijinks with he did some really good stuff in his life. A little Forrest Gump echoes, and really enjoyed it. ( )

This was a bit of fun as a break from my usual stuff. It was an easy, quirky read, but not a laugh out loud one. (Although I can imagine the author chuckling to himself as he wrote.) If we could rate books on a scale of 1-10, this would have been a 7 for me. ( )

I could not be bothered with this. Not sure if it is the fault of the translation but this kind of whimsical approach does not charm me, and none of the people I encountered in the book had any life in them at all so I did not care.
However Colin says the film is great fun so I look forward to that..... ( )

A reluctant centenarian much like Forrest Gump (if Gump were an explosives expert) 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 himself involved 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.

A rollicking story through the 20th century that starts with an old man escaping through a window and twists its way across decades of history and historical figures. Whimsical, with plenty of sass and skepticism. Truly unique characters and plenty of surprises throughout the plot. ( )