The Hundred Year Old Man who Jumped Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

Welcome to the paperback trails. Today we have on the shelf, an extremely entertaining book by the Swedish author Jonas Jonasson. The Hundred-year-old man who jumped out of the window and disappeared is a book which right from its title to its plot, to it's writing, is guaranteed to make you chuckle.

As is customary on the trail, first let me briefly summarise the author for you. Jonas Jonasson is a Swedish author and achieved worldwide acclaim, with his book The Hundred Year Old man who Jumped out of the window and disappeared. He has also written a sequel titled The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred Year Old Man, which too was very well received. Jona's characters have an air of relatability to them. This holds true with this book too as we shall soon see.

Now let's answer the 3 most important questions of Why, What and How, to get a better insight on the book

Why did I pick up this book: I had come across the movie adaptation (more on this later) of the movie and on further plodding, found out the book on which the entertaining movie was based. I decided to finish the book before watching the movie. The title as expected was pretty captivating and sparked a sort of intrigue in me. Unconventional plot points have always been my guilty pleasure and having come across one, I just had to pick up the book

What was the book all about: Well the book is exactly and pretty much all that it' s rubric says. It deals with the adventures of a 100-year-old Swedish man Alan Karlsson. The book chronicles his adventures as he decides to run away from his old age home on his 100th birthday. Alan, as we are shown, has had a pretty exciting life, and the sedentary lifestyle of the old age home was got too much for him. Once on the run, he meets a motley crew of people and an elephant Sonya. This band of misfits manage to entangle themselves with dangerous people and what follows is a hilarious cat and mouse chase. As the book progresses it also throws ample light on Alan's yesteryears (for there were many). We are shown how Alan developed a penchant for explosives as a young boy. and how that led him to help Oppenheimer in Project Manhattan, his (mis)adventures with Stalin, his unexpected friendship with General Franco, and all this with an evergreen love for vodka. To say that Alan's youth was wild would have been an understatement. The book shuttles between past and present and progresses at a fast pace, with the band of misfit's misadventures with the police and the underworld interspersed with anecdotes from Alan's young years. What happens eventually, is something I'll leave for you to find out yourself.

How was this book to read: Alan Karlsson's past anecdotes and his adventures with his strange friends make for an extremely fun read. The author's prose is extremely lucid and ensures an engaging read. The format of the book, while not new, has been implemented very well with alternative chapters dealing with the past and present respectively. The author, by placing Alan in the midst of some of the most important events of the 20th century, has ensured that the reader is hooked and perpetually in anticipation as to which adventure would Alan be embarking upon next. In the present narrative, the simplicity with which luck favours the 100-year-old man as he and his friends manage to come out on top every single time is extremely funny. The friends, themselves are very relatable characters. Each eccentric in their own way, they add a lot to the story. The style of comedy here ranges from slapstick to extremely witty, which only goes to show the adeptness of the author.

So do I recommend this book - Yes. This is one of those books which will genuinely destress you. It is devoid of any overtly complex plot points or any brooding undertones. It is light and quick read which is bound to make you smile and laugh

Can this be your first book - This is one of the perfect books to pick up if you're looking to start your reading journey. The vocabulary and phraseology used are neither too complex no too simplistic. The theme of the book and the unconventional plot points are sure to get you hooked to this book and add this to your empty bookshelf as your first.

You might not like this book: If light and non-serious books are not your things. There are a lot of people who view books are sources of learning and would always prefer to pick up non-fiction or plump books about serious things. For them, this book might not be the perfect fit. This book doesn't really answer pressing existentialistic questions of the 21st century or give you an insight on the history of the world or anything like that. However, this book does one thing, which every book is supposed to do in some way, it tells a really good story really well and for that this book deserves praise.

With this, we come to end our second trail stop. Hope you will read the book and have as much fun watching Alan Karlsson's journey as I did. Until next time, keep reading, keep recommending and keep sharing the love, for more the fellow passengers in the paperback trail, more the fun

"Whatever is is, and whatever will be will be"

- Alan Karlsson