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alykat_reads's review against another edition
medium-paced
4.0
~30% of the way in I wasn't sure if I was going to like this.. But I ended up loving this book.
"Time only blunts the pain of loss. It doesn’t erase it."
It never ceases to amaze me how much real life can mirror lines or sentiments in the book I'm currently reading. I was chatting with my friend the other day who's sister has recently been killed in Palestine, and he asked me 'How can a person overcome the pain of loss? I'm tired'. And this is the exact sentiment I told him - that the pain never really goes away, it merely gets less sharp as time goes on. Then I read this book 2 days later.
It's okay to not be okay, and I'm hoping that becomes more 'normalized' so when people ask us how we are, we don't feel obligated to say "I'm fine".
"Time only blunts the pain of loss. It doesn’t erase it."
It never ceases to amaze me how much real life can mirror lines or sentiments in the book I'm currently reading. I was chatting with my friend the other day who's sister has recently been killed in Palestine, and he asked me 'How can a person overcome the pain of loss? I'm tired'. And this is the exact sentiment I told him - that the pain never really goes away, it merely gets less sharp as time goes on. Then I read this book 2 days later.
It's okay to not be okay, and I'm hoping that becomes more 'normalized' so when people ask us how we are, we don't feel obligated to say "I'm fine".
totessarah's review against another edition
4.0
I wasn’t too sure about this book when I first started it. Once I got the feel of the humor and writing style, I absolutely loved it! It was heartwarming, but also so real. Although Eleanor is a “bit of a nutter”, I found that I was able to relate to her in some ways. The insights this book provided were also great.
sophie_gray's review against another edition
4.0
i found this book so easy to get into, and found the first half so funny i was laughing out loud, but by the end i felt like i really cared for eleanor (spoiler alert - she is not absolutely fine). although she was nearly fine by the end, i am now not fine because it was a really emotional read and i would have loved it to continue so i could see the rest of her life.
alice_harp's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I wasn't expecting to love this book as much as I did! The main character is a bit spiky and judgemental, but somehow still loveable and she becomes more loveable as she grows through the book. The story is gripping and I loved the ending.
bdlin101's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
abbysimon12's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
blueberry31's review against another edition
3.0
Most reviews I've read about this book have talked about how funny it is, how hilarious it is... for some reason that is very strange to me, the focus has been on the book being a "comedy".
I really have to wonder why that would be.
This book, while it does have some witty comebacks and a few amusing parts, struck me mostly as a tragedy. I thought it was very sad, and very dark in many ways. My main takeaway was more despair than laughs, I felt the character's deep solitude and desperate cries for help much more than her comical remarks. That's why all the "lol hahah what a hoot" reviews on here are SO surprising to me - is that really all that people take away from this (overall) heartbreaking story?!
All this aside, this book was a bit too repetitive for me, it solely relied on the character's quirks (and depressive state) and the mysterious secret past that still haunts her as only plot elements. Yes, it kept me reading, but it got to a point where it was pretty much JUST to get to the revelation. Eleanor's sudden ability to make a friend and socialize comes a bit out of the blue and hardly feels credible, despite being pretty central to the book... which is a shame. I did role my eyes a few times at some of the "too easy fixes" that the author put in. I mean, a cat, flowers from colleagues... all very nice but isn't it more complex than that when you're a deeply traumatized and depressive individual prone to alcoholism...? I have my doubts.
I really have to wonder why that would be.
This book, while it does have some witty comebacks and a few amusing parts, struck me mostly as a tragedy. I thought it was very sad, and very dark in many ways. My main takeaway was more despair than laughs, I felt the character's deep solitude and desperate cries for help much more than her comical remarks. That's why all the "lol hahah what a hoot" reviews on here are SO surprising to me - is that really all that people take away from this (overall) heartbreaking story?!
All this aside, this book was a bit too repetitive for me, it solely relied on the character's quirks (and depressive state) and the mysterious secret past that still haunts her as only plot elements. Yes, it kept me reading, but it got to a point where it was pretty much JUST to get to the revelation. Eleanor's sudden ability to make a friend and socialize comes a bit out of the blue and hardly feels credible, despite being pretty central to the book... which is a shame. I did role my eyes a few times at some of the "too easy fixes" that the author put in. I mean, a cat, flowers from colleagues... all very nice but isn't it more complex than that when you're a deeply traumatized and depressive individual prone to alcoholism...? I have my doubts.
hy1536's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
emkplatts's review against another edition
dark
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was such an interesting read! I wish there was more of the story because I didn't want it to end.