Cassi Cassi
Cassi hadn’t always been drinking instant coffee from a PET bottle for breakfast, or numbed her evenings with a bag-in-box. She had gone from being successful, popular and happy, to being frustrated, depressed and wine-soaked in less than a year.
In an impulsive attempt to escape her life, she accidentally buys a secluded cottage in the countryside. But when she moves in, rumours have already spread that Cassi is an experienced self-help guru.
Instead of explaining the misunderstanding, she decides to embrace her new role and begins guiding the locals through their various problems. She creates a new existence with improvised forms of therapy, makeshift yoga and magical stones, and, to her surprise, a few really good friends.
But when has a life built on lies ever been a good idea?
Cassi is a book about hitting rock bottom and finding your way back, written with both humor and darkness.
“It is clever, it is funny, but above all, it is a tender portrayal of the one thing all humans truly have in common: Loneliness.”
– Fredrik Backman.
Reviews
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“Johanna Swanberg debuts with a clever feelgood novel. /…/ [In which she] also succeeds with the remarkable task of evoking sympathy for Cassi’s shifty healing-business (…). It’s funny and very moving.”
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“[Cassi is] a thought-provoking page-turner – and it’s funny too!”
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“In many ways, Cassi is a classic feelgood novel centered around a career woman who moves from the big city to a small town to find herself. But Johanna Swanberg’s novel also has a touch of darkness which offers a good balance. It is an entertaining read, suitable for both the classic feelgood reader and one who usually wouldn’t pick up a book like this.”
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“The story about Cassi, (…) has great energy and takes unexpected turns. Despite Cassi being a fraud, she becomes a positive catalyst in many people’s lives. Lovely about relationships that get a chance to grow and evolve.”
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“Johanna Swanberg’s debut Cassi delivers both darkness and humour.”
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“The story about Cassi (…) has great momentum and takes unexpected turns. /…/ Beautiful about relationships that get the chance to grow and transform.”
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“A strong narrative about a somewhat destructive woman and her trials and tribulations in achieving a functioning life.”
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“[Cassi is] an incredibly good and funny book. /…/ It is absurd, in a good way. You love Cassi. /…/ The language is really good. /…/ A very entertaining read. I laughed out loud a number of times and cried at the end. /…/ [Cassi] is amazing.”
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“I have always been impressed by (and a bit jealous of) journalists who dare to write a novel. Read Johanna Swanberg’s bittersweet debut Cassi, a novel about sinking to the bottom and getting back on your feet. Funny, tender, and human!”
- Author
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- Published
- 2024
- Genre
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- Fiction
- Pages
- 300
- Reading material
Swedish edition
English translation
- Rights sold
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Czech Republic, Euromedia
Germany, Hoffmann und Campe
Norway, Gyldendal
Poland, Wielka Litera
Sweden, Albert Bonniers
UK, Hutchinson Heinemann (World English)
Ukraine, KM Books
