Was it creepy when the great poet Billie Eilish waxed, “Let me hold you like a hostage”? Some folks are about that hostage life. So, what happens when your captor is totally chill, and all you can think about is going to see a movie with them before enjoying a long walk and watching the sunset together, but they have you locked in a bank vault at gunpoint? Stockholm Syndrome happens, that’s what. 

After we discuss real-life cases of hostages turned homies, we’ll dive into a story about idiots. Yes, idiots. In a way, this is a story about all of us because we’re all idiots at times. But this is also a story about a bridge. Also, it’s a story about people and how people need people. Actually, this is a crime novel about a bank robber and a room full of terrible captives who each have something in common. More than anything, though, this is a story about kindness. 

The book? Anxious People by Fredrik Backman. 

Let’s get LIT!

Favorite quote: “This book is dedicated to the voices inside my head, the most remarkable of my friends. And to my wife, who lives with us.”