The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

Jonasson, Jonas. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. New York: Hyperion. 2009. Print

First Sentences:

You might think he could have made up his mind earlier, and been man enough to inform his surroundings of his decision.

But Allan Karlsson had never been given to pondering things too long. So the idea had barely taken hold in the old man's head before he opened the window of his room on the ground floor of the Old Folks' Home in the town of Malmkoping, and stepped out -- into the flower bed. 

Description:

Here is an unexpected gem of a book. Who could want more that a story of an elderly (OK, very old) man who flees his nursing home to embark on one final adventure in his life, with no plan in mind, wearing bedroom slippers, and only a few dollars in his pocket. 

But Allan Karlsson, the title character in The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson, is no ordinary centenarian. At the bus stop trying to decide what to do with his new freedom, on a whim he steals the suitcase of a tough-looking motorcycle gang member before jumping onto the bus heading to whatever destination his limited funds will take him. Only later does he discover the suitcase is filled with money. 

Of course, he is pursued by the gang member, but he is able to deal with this young hood by casually locking him in a meat locker, then forgetting to release him. Disposing of the frozen body onto a crate headed to Addis Ababa proves fairly easy (don't ask how), and so Allan and Julius, his newly-acquired partner in crime and money, continue the journey to fulfill their own dreams.

Along the way they encounter: 

• Benny, the hot dog vendor who joins their entourage because he owns a Mercedes (and they accidentally let slip they had a suitcase full of money);
• The Beauty (the woman Benny falls for), and her elephant Sophie;
• The Boss, Caracas, Bucket, and Bolt, the last members of the dastardly, incompetent gang of would-be money-launderers, out to re-claim their suitcase
• Detective Chief Inspector Aaronson, always just minutes behind in his well-calculated but hapless pursuit.

Confused yet? But wait. In bits and pieces we learn of Allan's history and believe me, he's led a doozy of a life. Allan turns out to be a cross between Arthur Dent (in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Forrest Gump, leading a life of entangling episodes that just happen to involve world leaders, criminals, police, murder, submarines, and explosives.

At a young age Allan worked in his family's dynamite factory and became an expert on "blowing things up," a skill he employed with success in World War II, including resistance movements in Europe and his contribution to work on the atomic bomb.

His skills led him to meet Churchill, Madame Chiang Kai-Shek, Harry Truman, Albert Einstein, the Iranian Chief of Intelligence, a Russian submarine commander, and a host of others. Each person contributes to the fantastic past experiences of Allan, his current journey, and the history of the world in the most peculiar and unexpected ways.

There isn't a more entertaining, quirky, and funny book than this. It is everything you want in a book: ordinary characters who achieve victories by wit and pluck; criminals with bad intentions and rotten luck; police who can never quite get a grip on exactly whether they are protecting a geriatric man from criminals on his trail or protecting the criminals from the geriatric, witty and unexpected writing. And, of course, there is an elephant.

It's simply delightful reading. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared hooks you immediately and doesn't let go until the final paragraph. It is an unknown treasure that I cannot recommend highly enough to anyone looking for humor, cleverness, and an adventure of twists and turns like no other.

Happy reading. 

Fred

www.firstsentencereader.blogspot.com

____________________

If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Miller, Derek B.. Norwegian by Night

A more serious adventure of an elderly man who rescues a child from men trying to kill him and together they flee to ... where? But this man, old as he is, might have special skills since he was either a filing clerk (as he tells his family) or a sharpshooter in the Korean War. The boy and man's struggles are breathtakingly dangerous and loaded with narrow escapes.

Adams, Douglas. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Zany exploits and explorations of a common man turned interstellar hitchhiker in the future facing all the unusual people and challenges of a world turned screwy. Don't forget your towel.