Football.
Sexist jokes.
Pizza on Sundays.
Beer. Sexist jokes.
A White Russian. Sexist jokes. More pizza.
Robin.
Kim is growing increasingly tired of his life in the small, rural town of Sölvesborg in Sweden. The glory days of high school when he and his friends were the most popular guys in school have passed. Instead, he finds himself with an incomplete high school education and friends who often make him question any possible future in this shithole of a town.
He wants to write. He wants to get out. Instead, he spends his days finishing his education and drinking, and the nights drinking some more. Until he meets Robin. Robin, who discusses politics and music, who spends his weekdays in his parents’ villa and his weekends in Malmö sipping wine while analyzing philosophical theories, who is the exact opposite of Kim’s friends and their working class life.
Kim is drawn towards the alternative life that Robin presents but is constantly torn between the two separate worlds. Who is he without those who made him? Can he be more without them?
The Wankers is an acute portrayal of small-town life with its intertwined communities, depicted with both warmth and despair. Lundberg captures the complex thoughts of longing to break free, while being pulled back before having the chance to leave. It is not only a story about coming of age, but also that of a crumbling society and the complexities of a journey, yet with a hopeful sprinkle in all the right places.
Author
Reviews
“A vigorous and humorous story about our age”
Svenska Dagbladet (SE)
“Patrik Lundberg writes good dialogue extremely well and has an exceptional flow.”
Göteborgs-Posten (SE)
“It is fantastic!”
Vi Läser (SE)
“An absolute privilege to read.”
Norran (SE)
“Strong and thought-provoking.”
Borås Tidning (SE)
“Patrik Lundberg makes me hopeful, as he shows that stiff postions are less stiff and locked in than we might believe. He makes it perfectly clear that life can be bigger than that.”
Helsingfors Dagblad (SE)
“An excellent story of today’s Sölvesborg, Blekinge, Sweden.”
Blekinge Läns Tidning (SE)
“It would be extraordinary on the big screen.”
Sydöstran (SE)