Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

423 reviews

vagrantheather's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Murder, Mental illness, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Fatphobia

Minor: Stalking, Vomit, Sexual violence, and Self harm

kathrynok's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Addiction, Child death, Medical content, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Death

emilybruck's review against another edition

dark hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse and Mental illness

booksinbed23's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Reading this was like eating a bowl of chicken. Comforting and healing. It's almost a slice of life story that slowly delves into our FL on why she is the way she is, and how she slowly but surely evolves. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Child abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Mental illness

melli29_'s review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

didn't expect to enjoy this book so much

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child death, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Vomit, Alcohol, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, and Grief

Minor: Cancer

chelsea_shelves's review against another edition

This was initially too silly for me and then much too dark especially when the blurb describes it as “smart, warm and uplifting.” I found it bleak, traumatic and flat. I looked up the content warnings about 40% through and realized it was only spiraling to harrowing. Thought I could do it, but after reading the synopsis I am so glad I put it down. This book was not for me at this point in my life. I also didn’t find the writing beautiful enough to balance out the darkness. I think the subplot of pursuing the singer and having a makeover were supposed to add levity but I found it disjointed and ridiculous. The new friendships would have been enough instead. Overall though it was all a bit dull and uncomfortable and I found it a chore to read that always left me sad. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Rape

mjenae's review

hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The title makes this book seem a little like comedy—touching, but lighthearted.

It's… quite heavy. If you want an easy read, this isn't for you. But if you want a spectacular survival story with anguish enough to empty you out and bravery enough to fill you to the top, you've come to the right place.

Something the potential reader needs to understand: Eleanor has gone through intense, repeated trauma—physical and emotional abuse, the latter of which is still happening throughout the book. And that's just part of it. I thought at first she might have autism—and I don't know, maybe she does—because of her inability to pick up on social cues or read humor. But now I think at least some of that was due to her chaotic and unhealthy upbringing. To be fair, I haven't read a lot of books dealing with trauma so upfront and firsthand like this, but this seemed very heavy on the sorrow.

There's healing, too, though. There has to be. Go travel down that path with Eleanor. She's a fascinating character, and she meets a lot of interesting people on the way, people who pop out of the page and shove new perspectives into your hands. I hope you come away with something you didn't have before—hope, at the very least. I have.

I'd give it more stars if I could. Possibly the best book I've read so far this year.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, and Mental illness

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Child death, and Physical abuse

carlar's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Very well-paced. You learn about Eleanor without having to hear every detail of everything she thinks or does. Ending was a bit weak for me but I didn’t mind because the character development was solid.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Child abuse, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Rape, Cancer, Murder, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Grief, and Death

sgrunwald96's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Expected this to be lightweight and a bit throwaway but it really caught me off guard. Much more emotional and gut wrenching than I was ready for. Also, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, every depressed person should be issued a pet. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Rape, and Death

phantomgecko's review against another edition

funny sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A friend recommended this to me because she thought I'd think it was funny. Unfortunately, I suffered from too much secondhand embarrassment to be very amused.

This is a story about a very unwell woman. Who does outrageously inappropriate things because she is unwell.

Tbh, she turned out to be much more unwell than I originally assumed what with all the mommy issues and hallucinations etc etc

My greatest quibble is Eleanor purports to be very good at crosswords, particularly cryptic (the best kind) and yet she is lacking in so much pop culture knowledge that this cannot possibly be true. Even cryptics, which rely heavily on wordplay, necessitate a basic foundation of cultural knowledge. Like, girlie doesn't know who the Grinch is. She is not completing crosswords.

Otherwise, it is an interesting if uncomfortable novel.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Alcohol