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The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

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The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

By: Jonas Jonasson
Narrated by: Peter Kenny
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Summary

SUNDAY TIMES NO 1 FICTION BESTSELLER

FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE HUNDRED-YEAR-OLD MAN WHO CLIMBED OUT OF THE WINDOW AND DISAPPEARED

Just because the world ignores you, doesn’t mean you can’t save it . . .

Nombeko Mayeki was never meant to be a hero. Born in a Soweto shack, she seemed destined for a short, hard life. But now she is on the run from the world ‘s most ruthless secret service, with three Chinese sisters, twins who are officially one person and an elderly potato farmer. Oh, and the fate of the King of Sweden – and the world – rests on her shoulders.

As uproariously funny as Jonas Jonasson’s bestselling debut, this is an entrancing tale of luck, love and international relations.

‘A comic delight of love, luck and mathematics’ Daily Express

‘It’s “feel-good” set to stun level’ Guardian

‘As unlikely and funny as The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared’ Observer

Action & Adventure Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Mathematics Racism & Discrimination Social Sciences Fiction Witty Funny Feel-Good Thought-Provoking Africa
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Critic reviews

‘A comic delight of love, luck and mathematics’ Daily Express

‘As unlikely and funny as Jonas Jonasson's 2012 debut bestseller, “The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared”’ Observer

‘Excellent. A drily satirical tour of the world [taking in] Swedish liberals, Colonel Gaddafi and of course, apartheid and the South African Prime Minister B J Vorster’ The Times

‘’Feel-good’ set to stun level’ Guardian

‘A funny and completely implausible farce about a woman, a bomb and a man’s frustrated ambition to overthrow the king of Sweden … The rest of the world will chuckle all the way through it’ Kirkus
All stars
Most relevant

If you could sum up The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden in three words, what would they be?

Clever funny improbable

What other book might you compare The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden to, and why?

Similar humour to the hundred year man.

What about Peter Kenny’s performance did you like?

The matter of fact style of delivery

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Modern history wrapped in a black comedy

Any additional comments?

Cannot get enough of this author

Great book really appealed to my sense of humour

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Where does The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This has to be one of my favourite - smart, intelligent, witty and chock full of charm

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden?

The moment that I realised the story had taken us from the slums of South Africa cleaning out toilets, to sitting in the back of a potato truck with the King and Prime Minister of Sweden and a 3-mega-tonne nuclear bomb. Absolutely brilliant.

What does Peter Kenny bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

He manages to perfectly capture the dry wit of the book and is a pleasure to listen to.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Many a time, despite the dry humour this was a book that definitely has a heart. (But to give too much away would spoil the fun of those who haven't yet read it.)

Any additional comments?

If you like The 100 Year Old Man who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared then you'll love this

Fantastic - put a massive smile on my face

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If you enjoyed 'The 100 Year-old Man...' then this is basically more of the same - potted twentieth (and twenty-first) century social and political history as seen through the tangled, implausible lives of joyously wacky fictional characters - not easy to pull off, but so well executed by Mr Jonasson (works for me, anyway). Uplifting, satirical, and essentially sympathetic humour which makes the complexities of our difficult world a little more palatable. Told at a very satisfying pace, which ties up all loose threads. I must credit the narrator who does an excellent job of capturing the light tone, and is just brilliant at each of the varied accents, seamlessly switching from one to the next (I love the way he uses regional British accents for the Swedish characters - in this, and the '100 Year-Old Man'). I'm now looking forward to reading 'Hitman Anders'.

More of the same clever, comic plotting

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Another cracking listen/ read from Jonas Jonasson . I selected this title because I had previously listened to 'The 100 year old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared' and liked how the author had mixed historical fact into fiction in an exciting and amusing way. This book does the same and was an enjoyable listen.
Peter Kenny is at the helm once again as narrator and his range of accents are believable . His style of narration is different and takes a while to get into at first but once the story hooks you , you're on your way. Recommend .

History meets fiction

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This has been a rare treat for me, listening to this book over the past week, exploring longer journeys in order to hear more.

The book is full of humour and is narrated perfectly, each character plays out wonderfully that this really had been the highlight of the audible service this far.

I don't want to say anything of the story as I think it will take away the entertainment, but to me this is what a book should be like.

An excellent amusing story

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