The Deal of a Lifetime, Fredrik Backman
  • $3.99
    • Facebook Share
    • Twitter Share
    • Pinterest Share

Details

The Deal of a Lifetime

Author: Fredrik Backman

Narrator: Santino Fontana

Unabridged: 0 hr 48 min

Format: Digital Audiobook

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Published: 10/31/2017

Genre: Fiction - Literary

Synopsis

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and Beartown delivers an insightful and poignant tale about finding out what is truly important in life.It all begins with a father telling a story to his son on Christmas Eve. But this isn’t your typical Christmas story. The father admits to his son that he’s taken a life but he won’t say whose—not yet. One week earlier, in a hospital late at night, the man met a five-year-old girl with cancer. She’s a smart kid—smart enough to know that she won’t beat cancer by drawing with crayons all day, but it seems to make the adults happy, so she keeps doing it. As the man tells his son about this plucky little girl, he slowly reveals more about himself: while he may be a successful businessman, idolized by the media and his peers, he knows he failed as a parent. Overwhelmed by the responsibility of fatherhood, he took the easy way out and left his wife and little boy twenty years ago to pursue professional success. Now he is left wondering if it’s too late to forge a relationship with his son, who seems to be his opposite in every way—prizing happiness over money, surrounded by loving friends in a cozy town where he feels right at home. Face to face with the idea that something is missing, the man is given the unexpected chance to do something selfless that could change the destiny of the little girl in the hospital bed. But before he can make the deal of a lifetime, he needs to find out what his own life has actually been worth in the eyes of his son. And so, he seeks him out and tells him this story… Written with Fredrik Backman’s signature humor, compassion, and “knack for weaving tales that are believable and fanciful” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), The Deal of a Lifetime reminds us that life is a fleeting gift, and our only legacy is how we share that gift with those we love.

Recommended

To Build a Fire Classic Tales Edition
To Build a Fire
by Jack London

A man with no name follows a wandering path into the frozen Klondike. And here, deep in the heart of God’s country, he is forced to pit his will, mind and spirit against the forces of Mother Nature, herself.

Narrator: B.J. Harrison
Published: 06/12/2010

Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain
by Annie Proulx

WINNER OF THE VENICE FILM FESTIVAL GOLDEN LION AWARD Annie Proulx has written some of the most original and brilliant short stories in contemporary literature, and for many, Brokeback Mountain is her masterpiece. Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, ...

Narrator: Campbell Scott
Published: 12/02/2005

The Enchanted April Classic Tales Edition
The Enchanted April
by Elizabeth von Arnim

To Those who Appreciate Wisteria and Sunshine. Small medieval Italian Castle on the shores of the Mediterranean to be Let Furnished for the month of April. This small advertisement sparks something long dormant in the reluctant hearts of two downca...

Narrator: B.J. Harrison
Published: 07/19/2016

Behind a Mask Classic Tales Edition
Behind a Mask
by Louisa May Alcott

In the years before Little Women, Louisa May Alcott anonymously wrote several thrillers in order to make ends meet. Dubbed as her “blood and thunder tales”, they reveal a bright, inventive and passionate writer driven to keep the reader ...

Narrator: B.J. Harrison
Published: 11/06/2020

The Sound and the Fury
The Sound and the Fury
by William Faulkner

The Sound and the Fury is the tragedy of the Compson family, featuring some of the most memorable characters in literature: beautiful, rebellious Caddy; the manchild Benjy; haunted, neurotic Quentin; Jason, the brutal cynic; and Dilsey, their black ...

Narrator: Grover Gardner
Published: 07/12/2005

One of Ours
One of Ours
by Willa Cather

A Nebraska native, Claude Wheeler wants to attend the State University but instead lives a typical college life as a Temple College student. However, when his successful father decides to expand the family farm, Claude's reality is changed forever a...

Narrator: Joel Richards
Published: 08/02/2022

Madam, Will You Talk? The modern classic by the queen of romantic suspense
Madam, Will You Talk?
by Mary Stewart

The pioneer of romantic suspense, Mary Stewart leads listeners on a thrilling journey through a dangerous and deadly Provence in this tale perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Barbara Pym. It sounds idyllic: a leisurely drive through the sun-dre...

Narrator: Emilia Fox
Published: 11/01/2018

The Enchanted April
The Enchanted April
by Elizabeth Von Arnim

When four women leave their drab lives behind to go on holiday in Italy, their lives are changed forever by the Mediterranean. Mrs. Arbuthnot and Mrs. Wilkins, while part of the same ladies' club, have never spoken. Lady Caroline Dester and the elde...

Narrator: Robin Siegerman
Published: 11/01/2022

The Bluest Eye
The Bluest Eye
by Toni Morrison

The Bluest Eye, published in 1970, is the first novel written by Toni Morrison, winner of the 1993 Nobel Prize in Literature.It is the story of eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove -- a black girl in an America whose love for its blond, blue-eyed childr...

Narrator: Toni Morrison
Published: 04/25/2000

About the Author

It is always interesting to me to hear the answers given by authors when they are asked questions such as........how did you know you wanted to be a writer or author, or how do you begin to construct a new novel? There are many who try their hand at writing, but very few actually become successful authors. Swedish author, Fredrik Backman made a huge leap in changing careers when he became an author after earning a living as a fork lift driver. The two do not appear compatible, but having a blue collar job probably added a degree of realism to the books written by Backman.

Backman is a solid story teller, but does not consider himself to be a good technical writer. He gives credit to his wife and to his publisher and editors for assisting in that department. But, it is the storyline that sells books, not technical writing skills, and Backman has had much success along those lines. His books such as, A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry, and Britt-Marie Was Here are published in many different countries, and several different languages. There seems to be a true, honest, humorous tone to each of his books.

Backman has a very easy way of structuring his novels, usually setting the beginning and the ending first, then he is free to fill in the middle with his storytelling ability. For example, Britt-Marie Was Here became a separate novel after she was a seven year old character in My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry. As he completed that book, he said that it seemed only natural to him that Britt-Marie have her own book. The book follows her as she goes on a quest, gets challenged, meets new friends, overcomes adversity, stands up to injustice, all to eventually learn important facts about herself. He says that writing about this character is like writing about hero types, minus the swords, lasers, and fire-breathing dragons. It is a very interesting way of explaining his concept.

In his newest book, the emphasis will be on ice hockey, for as he says.....I am Swedish, and that's what we do. It will be about a town....not one specific character......and ice hockey will be the center of the story. He says that is all he has as an idea about the book at this point. He sums up his future in writing in this way........ I plan to write until people tell me I can't anymore.

{"id":"1908937","ean":"9781508253433","abr":"Unabridged","title":"The Deal of a Lifetime","subtitle":"","author":"Fredrik Backman","rating_average":"4","narrator":"Santino Fontana","ubr_id":"1908937","abr_id":"0","ubr_price":"5.99","abr_price":"0.00","ubr_memprice":"3.59","abr_memprice":"0.00","ubr_narrator":"Santino Fontana","abr_narrator":"","ubr_length":"Unabridged: 0 hr 48 min","abr_length":"Abridged: "}