beartown
@beartownbot.bsky.social
— quotes from “beartown”, “us against you”, and “the winners” by fredrik backman ; pfp credit:
@painacotta.bsky.social
@painacotta.bsky.social
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beartown
@beartownbot.bsky.social
· Jan 2
Late one evening toward the end of March, a teenager picked up a double-barreled shotgun, walked into the forest, put the gun to someone else’s forehead, and pulled the trigger. This is the story of how we got there.
'Can I come back again tomorrow and do some more?' the four-and-a-half-year-old asks. Sune promises that she can.
December 5, 2025 at 12:00 PM
'Can I come back again tomorrow and do some more?' the four-and-a-half-year-old asks. Sune promises that she can.
Culture is as much about what we encourage as what we permit.
December 5, 2025 at 8:02 AM
Culture is as much about what we encourage as what we permit.
Teemu has never had a real parent, and there was no way in hell that Ramona was going to try to be one either, but insofar as she could express feelings and he could express them back, they did so by her laying down a few rules, and him sticking to them.
December 5, 2025 at 4:01 AM
Teemu has never had a real parent, and there was no way in hell that Ramona was going to try to be one either, but insofar as she could express feelings and he could express them back, they did so by her laying down a few rules, and him sticking to them.
But every cell in Benji’s body hears the oxygen being sucked out of the room. He stands still. The very fact that he’s come here might seem crazy, but he was never the sort of child who lay in bed afraid of ghosts and monsters.
December 5, 2025 at 12:00 AM
But every cell in Benji’s body hears the oxygen being sucked out of the room. He stands still. The very fact that he’s come here might seem crazy, but he was never the sort of child who lay in bed afraid of ghosts and monsters.
For two years they’ve wanted to know more about her, and now they know everything. Now she’s shown them what sort of animal she is.
December 4, 2025 at 8:01 PM
For two years they’ve wanted to know more about her, and now they know everything. Now she’s shown them what sort of animal she is.
The hard core, the central unit within the Pack, the most dangerous of them all.
December 4, 2025 at 4:01 PM
The hard core, the central unit within the Pack, the most dangerous of them all.
'My baby, my baby,' his mom sings happily to herself over the stove.
December 4, 2025 at 12:00 PM
'My baby, my baby,' his mom sings happily to herself over the stove.
The town wakes early, like it does every day; small towns need a head start if they’re going to have any chance in the world.
December 4, 2025 at 8:01 AM
The town wakes early, like it does every day; small towns need a head start if they’re going to have any chance in the world.
The only thing you have an excess of when you’re locked up is time, so Vidar started to experiment with different lengths and types of tape on his stick. He ended up taping it without leaving a lump at the end, the way most goalies do, which made his grip better.
December 4, 2025 at 4:01 AM
The only thing you have an excess of when you’re locked up is time, so Vidar started to experiment with different lengths and types of tape on his stick. He ended up taping it without leaving a lump at the end, the way most goalies do, which made his grip better.
How important can something like that be? In most places, not so important, of course. But Beartown isn’t most places.
December 4, 2025 at 12:00 AM
How important can something like that be? In most places, not so important, of course. But Beartown isn’t most places.
Vidar doesn't say a word. It's the finest thing anyone has ever done for Ana.
December 3, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Vidar doesn't say a word. It's the finest thing anyone has ever done for Ana.
You want to understand hockey towns? Then you need to understand that here, sport is about much more than sport.
December 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM
You want to understand hockey towns? Then you need to understand that here, sport is about much more than sport.
Love and hate. Joy and sorrow. Anger and forgiveness. Sports carry the promise that we can have everything tonight. Only sports can do that.
December 3, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Love and hate. Joy and sorrow. Anger and forgiveness. Sports carry the promise that we can have everything tonight. Only sports can do that.
Have you ever seen a town fall? Ours did. We’ll end up saying that violence came to Beartown this summer, but that will be a lie; the violence was already here. Because sometimes hating one another is so easy that it seems incomprehensible that we ever do anything else.
December 3, 2025 at 8:01 AM
Have you ever seen a town fall? Ours did. We’ll end up saying that violence came to Beartown this summer, but that will be a lie; the violence was already here. Because sometimes hating one another is so easy that it seems incomprehensible that we ever do anything else.
It's only a hockey club. Only a game. Only pretened.
December 3, 2025 at 4:01 AM
It's only a hockey club. Only a game. Only pretened.
Teemu grins. So does she, eventually. Because she knows what he means. Win. That’s all anyone ever asks of you around here.
December 3, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Teemu grins. So does she, eventually. Because she knows what he means. Win. That’s all anyone ever asks of you around here.
From the corner of his eyes he sees a boy, no more than twelve years old, swinging something wildly and indiscriminately around him in terror.
December 2, 2025 at 8:01 PM
From the corner of his eyes he sees a boy, no more than twelve years old, swinging something wildly and indiscriminately around him in terror.
None of them asks Peter about his. He has no scars, he never lost any teeth, never got into any fights. He has never been a violent man.
December 2, 2025 at 4:01 PM
None of them asks Peter about his. He has no scars, he never lost any teeth, never got into any fights. He has never been a violent man.
So the Pack chooses its response, for its own survival.
December 2, 2025 at 12:00 PM
So the Pack chooses its response, for its own survival.
'Never love a hockey club. It can never love you back.'
December 2, 2025 at 8:01 AM
'Never love a hockey club. It can never love you back.'
But every cell in Benji’s body hears the oxygen being sucked out of the room. He stands still. The very fact that he’s come here might seem crazy, but he was never the sort of child who lay in bed afraid of ghosts and monsters.
December 2, 2025 at 4:01 AM
But every cell in Benji’s body hears the oxygen being sucked out of the room. He stands still. The very fact that he’s come here might seem crazy, but he was never the sort of child who lay in bed afraid of ghosts and monsters.
This story doesn’t start today, it’s been going on for two years, because that was when Maya Andersson moved away from here.
December 2, 2025 at 12:00 AM
This story doesn’t start today, it’s been going on for two years, because that was when Maya Andersson moved away from here.
He doesn’t say anything, just stands there with his eyes half open and his hair a mess, as if they’d started the fight next to the bench he’d spent the night sleeping under.
December 1, 2025 at 8:01 PM
He doesn’t say anything, just stands there with his eyes half open and his hair a mess, as if they’d started the fight next to the bench he’d spent the night sleeping under.
It's so easy to place your hope in people. To think that the world can change overnight.
December 1, 2025 at 4:01 PM
It's so easy to place your hope in people. To think that the world can change overnight.
The days blur together in Beartown this year; perhaps we can't bear to keep track of either time or our feelings. At some point the autumn comes to an end and winter arrives, but we barely notice.
December 1, 2025 at 12:00 PM
The days blur together in Beartown this year; perhaps we can't bear to keep track of either time or our feelings. At some point the autumn comes to an end and winter arrives, but we barely notice.