The Little Old Lady Who Broke All The Rules

The Little Old Lady Who Broke All The Rules
by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg

First published in Great Britain in 2014.

The Little Old Lady Who Broke All The Rules caught my eye because of the bright purple cover.  The illustration of a 'little old lady' with a zimmer frame piqued my interest and upon reading the blurb, I bought the book.

79 year old Martha Andersson lives at a care home but dreams of escaping the plasticky meals and strict early bedtimes.  Along with her four friends - who call themselves the League Of Pensioners (I love this name) - she comes up with a plan to get them all arrested and put in prison, where they know they will be more comfortable and better looked after than in their cost-cutting care home.  Thus begins the friends embark on adventures to art galleries, hotels, prisons, banks and cruise ships.  The story is a lighthearted, funny and at times touching look at how the older generation live in our modern world.

Martha is a strong character who cares deeply about her friends.  She reminded me of my grandma with her adventurous spirit and straight-talking attitude.  As the ringleader she regularly holds meetings in her room with her friends and shares her secret stash of cloudberry liqueur.
Brains, so nicknamed for his ingenuity, is an older gentleman who becomes close to Martha.  I really enjoyed reading their relationship, as it slowly developed.  It was not rushed or corny, rather it was sweet and believable.
The three others, Christina, Rake and Anna-Greta all play their parts in the story convincingly.  I particularly liked Anna-Greta, who uses the internet for online shopping and banking, much to the surprise and confusion of the others.

Plot-wise, I felt the story began strongly, and I was reading eagerly, until about two thirds of the way through.  It then lost its pace a bit for me, but got back on track for a great ending.  It did make me think about getting old and imagine what I'll be like - hopefully a part of my grandma's spirit will come out in me.

The story was a funny one but with a slightly serious undertone.  It may have been a bit of a joke in the book that the Swedish prison was comfier than the care home, but it did make me think about the care we give our elderly.  Although the story was set in Sweden it translated well and there was nothing which only Swedish readers would understand - infact a lot of the time I forgot it wasn't set in England.

I laughed, I cried and I thought about life - what more could you want from a book?  For a sweet, funny look at growing old disgracefully, read this and look forward to old age.