The Deal of a Lifetime: A Novella
Written by Fredrik Backman
Narrated by Santino Fontana
4/5
()
About this audiobook
A father and a son are seeing each other for the first time in years. The father has a story to share before it’s too late. He tells his son about a courageous little girl lying in a hospital bed a few miles away. 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 he talks about this plucky little girl, the father also reveals more about himself: his triumphs in business, his failures as a parent, his past regrets, his hopes for the future.
Now, on a cold winter’s night, the father has been given an unexpected chance to do something remarkable that could change the destiny of a little girl he hardly knows. But before he can make the deal of a lifetime, he must find out what his own life has actually been worth, and only his son can reveal that answer.
With humor and compassion, Fredrik Backman’s The Deal of a Lifetime reminds us that life is a fleeting gift, and our legacy rests in how we share that gift with others.
Fredrik Backman
Fredrik Backman is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Britt-Marie Was Here, Beartown, Us Against You, and Anxious People, as well as two novellas and one work of nonfiction. His books are published in more than forty countries. He lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife and two children. Connect with him on Facebook and Twitter @BackmanLand and on Instagram @Backmansk.
More audiobooks from Fredrik Backman
A Man Called Ove: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Britt-Marie Was Here: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Things My Son Needs to Know about the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to The Deal of a Lifetime
Related audiobooks
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: A Novella Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beartown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Color of Bee Larkham's Murder: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anxious People: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Reason You're Alive: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5When We Were Vikings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ask Again, Yes: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Labrador Pact Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Radleys: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lido Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stationery Shop Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Queenie Malone's Paradise Hotel: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Luck of Right Now Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dead Fathers Club Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Together We Will Go Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Baby, You're Gonna Be Mine: Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Keeper of Lost Things: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Temptation to Be Happy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The People We Keep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nothing to See Here Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How To Find Your Way In The Dark Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Duffy and Son Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You, Me, and the Colors of Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Literary Fiction For You
The Road Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alchemist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Song of Achilles: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of The Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Name of the Wind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The House in the Cerulean Sea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: A Hunger Games Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Yellowface: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All the Sinners Bleed: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bright Young Women: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Flowers for Algernon Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Demon Copperhead: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dutch House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hate U Give Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Bell Jar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tom Lake: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Parable of the Sower Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stardust Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Measure: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Overstory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Picture of Dorian Gray: Classic Tales Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Their Eyes Were Watching God Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The It Girl Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beneath a Scarlet Sky: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for The Deal of a Lifetime
912 ratings53 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I don’t know why exactly, but I love this author. He makes me cry every single time. I like A man called Ove and Britt-Marie was here the b st
2 people found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I LOVED that short story! Really, it's less than an hour long but still..the characters are alive.. I felt sucked into the story, and it was moving.. how can such a short novella be moving??? This was my first encounter with Backman and won't be my last! I'm not a big fan of short stories, I picked that one because it's nearly Christmas but it's not really a Christmas story except maybe for some reminders of Dickens.. but it's something to read with your heart, so still ok for that festive time.. and also very very well written! A big thank-you to the author for that little treasure!
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A deep, lovely look inside at what we actually live for.
A light into what one life might be worth.
I loved this short read, and would recommend listening while wrapping gifts for the holidays to offer a bit of perspective. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Amazing narration and novella! Bittersweet but makes you wonder what would you give.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It was moving for being a short story. I am glad I took the time to listen to it
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Do you know Backnan for Beartown and A man called Ove, two books which are rooted in reality and the stories of ordinary working people. This book is more twilight zone. He throws out some surprising possibilities about angels and death. And he writes with almost the same sense of humor that he brings to his other books. A year ago I would have given this four stars, but I have become more liberal in my old age and I’m giving this five, because I really can’t see anything wrong with the book to downgrade it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Frederick Backman is an amazing story teller. This simple, heartfelt story is wonderful.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Short and thought provoking, great to listen to while cleaning
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brief and beautiful. So touching beyond words. Loved every bit of it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Deep and rewarding short listen/read. Thought provoking and sweet. Read it
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A short and enjoyable novela perfect for the Christmas season.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beautiful story showing how benevolent, altruistic love gives human life its ultimate purpose.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5not the best work by Fredrik, but still beautiful. Always a pleasure to read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This was an amazing novel. I really enjoyed this story
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Enquanto lia a história não percebi o fim... até chegar e eu chorar de modo instantâneo. É lindo!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I would not doubt this book was written by Bachman. It is a character study of such depth. You have given me hours and hours of lovely reading. But more valuable are the hours of contemplation following your books, exploring what I just read. You are an artist of words, Mr. Bachman.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Excellent! He is a great storyteller! I really loved it!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This was a short and beautifully written story. Very emotional.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5An enjoyable quick read. I suggest the audio version.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5No words needed except Backman is amazing. Everything he writes is just wow.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5WOW. The depth of love, only a parent can understand.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This author is wonderful. I love love all his books. Thanks so much for writing. Jo Ann
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5So unexpected. Great listen.
Try and Strive to be kind. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5So sweet, but too short. It's hopeful, bittersweet, and moving, and the writing makes me want to read Backman's novels.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5... cos at the end it remains only one question “ it was loved?”
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The story and how it was written. Short, sad and sweet.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A cute little story, was very tropey at first for this genre (inspirational short story about profundity of life), but then had some unique spins on that model.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Well, even a novella from Backman can make you cry, so there's not much to say, is there?
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Backman knows how to pull one’s heartstrings every single time! I loved it.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5While battling cancer, a deadbeat dad contemplates his life spent building a business empire and not being a father to his son. One night while smoking out on the fire escape, he meets a little girl with cancer who knows she’s going to die.Fredrik Backman is one of my favorite authors. I usually read his books as they come out, but this one was not only hard to find a copy of, but also, since it said it was Christmas-y I wanted to wait to read it until Christmas.I’ve read another of Backman’s novella, And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer, and I cried pools of tears during that read. This one though… wasn’t the case? I just didn’t get the emotional connection that I usually do with Backman’s works. This felt like it was more telling than it was showing and connecting. I’m not saying it wasn’t a good book, just not as in depth as most of his other works.That all being said, this is still a good, quick read you could enjoy in one setting during the holidays. Will still recommend this to anyone who likes Backman and their stories.