Beartown by Fredrik Backman

There is a small town that exists for the love of hockey and that is about all the town has to offer. The goal is to win the big game and end the season the big winners to gain recognition for the Bears of Beartown.  There are hotheads and kind neighbors - jealousies and rivalries like any town.  Beartown doesn't have to exist in Sweden and we recognize ourselves in the sage old coach, the new replacement, the rabid fans and the protective parents who have given their everything for the kids and love of the game.  So when the unthinkable happens,as it always does, Beartown will fall to pieces and it is unsure if they and the reader will ever be able to recover the innocence of the past.  This is a marked departure for Backman whose lovable curmudgeons have enchanted us in previous books.  This tells an important story and will make an everlasting impression on you.  Beartown gives us a glimpse of ourselves - the good, bad and the ugly side of humanity and what happens when a town has to deal with an unspeakable act against one of their own.