Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

50 reviews

tigerkind's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Vomit, and Violence

thirdtimesacharm's review

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Child death

Moderate: Cursing, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Stalking, and Suicidal thoughts

jadehusdanhicks's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit

sjr's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The first hundred pages or so were difficult to plod through but once I did, I was glad to have done so. Eleanor is a tribute and testament to how those of us who have survived traumatic experiences adapt and evolve in order to go through the rigors of daily life. A book that reminds us that we should always be kind to others, for we don’t know what they’re going through, Eleanor Oliphant truly is completely fine. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Grief, Bullying, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Child death, Physical abuse, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Rape

quirkychaos's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I absolutely devoured this book. To be honest, the first few chapters left me struggling, (and slightly triggered as a city-living single 30yo) but after a while, I couldn't help but fall in love with Eleanor and the rest. A devastating but ultimately hopeful, charming book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Animal cruelty, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Vomit, and Child death

100x darker than I'd thought, but personally nothing that read as excessive or was dealt with in an unhealthy way. Tagged everything that stood out to me.

podanotherjessi's review

emotional sad medium-paced

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

2.75

I liked this book, but that's the strongest emotion I can manage for it. It was good, but not great. I found the plot predictable, but I honestly don't think that would be the normal experience. I also cannot speak to the representation in this book. There were times it felt almost like a gimick, but it's safe to say Eleanor struggles with mental illness.

Edit: rating changed to reflect reviews I've read discussing the representation in the novel. Explanation under spoilers:

I thought that Eleanor was coded to be autistic. The author has said this is not the case, but she does read like a bad autism stereotype. She is also very poorly representative of a survivor of abuse, and the portrayal of the foster care system was innaccurate. This blog post goes into this all in further detail: https://penchant.blog/2019/08/19/eleanor-oliphants-story-and-why-it-doesnt-belong-to-the-author-who-wrote-it/

Characters: 3
Plot: 7
Setting: 5
General appeal: 7
Writing style: 4
Originality: 7
Ending: 9

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Vomit

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

5.0

If you're an awkward young adult who has a big heart, but struggles to connect with your peer group as well as with childhood trauma, then this is the book for you. It's the good, the bad, and the ugly of recovery and self-discovery. Minor spoiler: Eleanor has a well-deserved happy ending, one of which we all deserve. ♡

This book contains nearly every possible trigger Story Graph provides. Please read with caution!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, and Self harm

Moderate: Medical content and Rape

cnohero's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 I struggled to connect with Eleanor in the first few chapters, but I realized that's the point. She CAN'T connect with people. This book made me laugh and cry. I was horrified and inspired by it.

I won't say this is an easy read... it's really hard but I'm glad I read it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Cursing

Minor: Child death, Addiction, and Alcoholism

bribreads's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine is one of the best books I've read this year. The story follows that of the nominal character Eleanor, a 30-year-old Scottish woman floating through life in resolute solitude. That all changes when Raymond, an awkward and oddly charming IT tech from her office, shows her that life is meant to be shared with others. 

This book was admittedly hard for me to get into at first- Eleanor initially comes off as rude, clinical, and severely lacking in self-awareness. While all of this is true, I've now come to recognize that this depiction of the character was not only intentional but brilliant on the part of the author. By the end of the story (no spoilers), we come to realize that Eleanor has suffered immense traumas in her life. So, while odd, there's an explanation for her seemingly offputting behavior. One of the greatest lessons of this story is that we can't possibly know what others are going through. My initial distaste for Eleanor was because I looked at her one-dimensionally: once I learned more, I immediately felt bad for my judgment, and resolutely wanted the best for her character. 

Another strength of this novel was the deeply insightful depiction of loneliness and the way that it causes people to turn in on themselves. Eleanor is dying of loneliness- her solitude and inability to escape it is absolutely eating her alive. Having read this in the midst of a global pandemic, this message resonated strongly with me as millions of people across the world suddenly find themselves forced into isolation and grappling with the pangs of unwilling distance. We all, ultimately, need each other. That's the beauty of being human. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

Minor: Body shaming