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cute_koala's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, Self harm, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Cancer, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Rape, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Mental illness, and Emotional abuse
dracovulpini's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Rape, Self harm, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Bullying, Death of parent, Cancer, Physical abuse, and Cursing
nataliebootlah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
With online support groups, remote work, deliveries, her cat, jigsaw puzzles, and her best friend regularly popping in, Meredith has no reason to leave the comfort of her home. In fact, she hasn’t crossed the threshold of her front door in over three years. Through an alternating timeline of past and present, we see the abuse Meredith withstood as a child, how she became estranged from her mother and sister as a young adult, and the two friends she makes from the safety of her home in her late thirties. It’s a delicate look at what it takes to work through trauma and finding a path towards recovery.
This is quite the debut novel. And, thankfully, has nothing to do with covid.
Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for the complimentary copy. ✨
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Rape, Self harm, and Child abuse
Moderate: Domestic abuse
Minor: Death of parent and Cancer
readingwithaddi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Rape, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Miscarriage
Minor: Fatphobia, Death of parent, Terminal illness, and Cancer
brokenbodybitch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Mental illness, Rape, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Cancer, Miscarriage, and Ableism
chaptersofchase's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Genre: Fiction
Format: 🎧
Pub Date: 10.18.2022
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆.5
“For better or for worse, life can change in a matter of seconds; people take their first and last breaths, cars crash, and planes plunge into oceans. The healing process after decades of hurt can begin with a simple gesture or a question, are you alright.”
Meredith, Alone is one of those books that will stay with me for a long time. I loved Meredith, her eccentricities, her truthfulness, and all the steps she took to care of herself. I commend the author, Claire Alexander, for taking such care to portray Meredith in the way that she did.
Not only did the author do a spectacular job with Meredith's character, but she also showed what a support system could and should look like for someone in Meredith's shoes. The book also showed that therapy isn't scary (it's not, trust me) and that finding a professional to talk to can be helpful. None of Meredith's friends put pressure on her to change or "get over" what happened, but it was more about being there for her and encouraging Meredith to keep trying.
Throughout the book, I celebrated Meredith's steps forward and even her steps backward (because it's not always easy). Everything about Meredith, Alone felt realistic, and I highly recommend reading this book (or listening to it).
🏡 Agoraphobia
🥰 What a support system should look like
🥺 Heavy read
👍🏼 Realistic
🎧 Loved the audiobook & audiobook narrator
As I mentioned, Meredith, Alone is a very heavy book - it circles around rape, sexual assault, parental abuse/neglect/abandonment, cancer, and pregnancy loss. If you have any questions or concerns, please DM me.
I recommend reading Meredith, Alone if you enjoyed reading All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle.
______
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Graphic: Sexual assault and Rape
Moderate: Cancer
srk_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Such a heartfelt (and heartbreaking and uplifting and all the emotions) story. The writing really pulled me in and the main character, Meredith, felt like a friend. The more I learned about her, the more I was rooting for her. Meredith has been inside for over 1,000 days, due to panic attacks after a childhood and young adult-hood of different aspects of emotional trauma. A social service sends a person, Tom, over each week to talk with her, whom she befriends and begins to trust her story with. Over time, with therapy, her best friend Sadie, and new friend Tom, she begins to feel stronger and more confident about being in the world. I thought the nuances around sisterhood with Fee and her friendship with Sadie and Tom were well done. The only friendship that I didn't totally believe was with Celeste, and I can't pinpoint why. Maybe it felt like it progressed too quickly for what I knew about Meredith and trusting people? Overall, an important story of self-growth, self-acceptance, love and friendship. And Fred the cat. Trigger warning for emotion abuse from a parent, physical abuse from a spouse, and a parts of the storyline including conversations and actions of r*pe.
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Rape
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Self harm, and Child abuse
Minor: Cancer
katiewhocanread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Rape, and Bullying
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Alcoholism
Minor: Car accident and Cancer
bookbeforeuleap's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Self harm, Mental illness, and Rape
Moderate: Cancer, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Alcoholism