Review of THE LITTLE OLD LADY WHO BROKE ALL THE RULES by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg

2.5 Stars

I’ve been reading some serious books so decided I needed something more light-hearted.  I picked up this title which I've been seeing everywhere.  It is the first  of a series; I think there are four so far. 

Martha Anderson, 79, lives in Diamond House, a retirement home in Stockholm.  She and four friends are unhappy with the living conditions.  The manager, Nurse Barbara, because she is in love with the owner, enforces his cost-saving measures which include medication to suppress clients’ appetites and make them lethargic.  The five decide that they’d be better off in jail where they believe they will receive better food, more outdoor exercise, and more leisure activities.  They escape the home and register at the luxurious Grand Hotel where they devise a plot to kidnap two masterpieces from the Swedish National Museum and demand ransom, money which they will hide to improve their lifestyles after they’ve served their prison sentences.

The book is advertised as a comic caper, but it is not especially funny.  There is some humourous dialogue but there aren't any laugh-out-loud episodes.  As the novel progresses, more and more silliness occurs which just becomes irritating after a while. 

The plot relies on coincidence too much.  For instance, the League of Pensioners is able to escape because Nurse Barbara is absent.  Then they encounter her on a cruise ship.  The plot also depends on the incompetence of the police.  Again and again, the seniors are able to get away with things because the police are so inept.  The heists are rather simplistic so it is unbelievable that the quintet is able to succeed.

“Old people can do things too” (165) is the theme of the novel.  There is a condemnation of ageism and society’s treatment of the elderly.  Seniors are placed in underfunded retirement facilities where they are treated as if they are totally incapable of doing things and making decisions.  In society, they are almost invisible and so not taken seriously; therefore, the five senior criminals are able to escape detection. 

As I was reading the book, I kept thinking that it would perhaps make a better movie.  The book is too long; it has too much repetition and is slow-paced.  By removing extraneous information and focusing on action, a film version might be more enjoyable.  I won’t be reading the other books in the series because I fear they would be much the same and any charm has already worn off.