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A review by slippy_underfoot
The Seven Imperfect Rules of Elvira Carr by Frances Maynard
4.0
Shows how wrong you can be…
This is our current book group book. We had Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine recently and this had a sticker saying “Perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant…”. That’s a sales technique which enrages me, so I had my nose turned up from the off.
I didn’t want to not read it, as it’s a book group book and I reserve the “not reading of book group books” solely for hopeless thrillers. I decided, loftily, to keep valuable reading time for other books and use an Audible credit to listen while driving.
Although the narrative voice felt quite similar initially to “Eleanor…” I was soon engaged with the particulars of Elvira’s story and found myself reading on my Kindle when I couldn’t find a reasonable excuse to be driving.
It’s the tale of a neuro-diverse woman picking her way through life after her widowed mother is hospitalised. Fearful of being placed into care because of her “condition” Elvira, with the help of her neighbour Sylvia, draws up a spreadsheet of seven rules to help her “manage”. As human life is not as scientific and predictable as Elvira would like, these rules need constant revision with footnotes and additions.
Elvira’s difficulties with the contradictions of human nature become particularly exhausting when trying to unravel the complexities of her parents’ marriage and all the things in her past which were done for “her own good.”
As her world expands Elvira’s ability to cope is tested, but her self-confidence grows with each step forward she takes through this landscape of increasing change and uncertainty.
I did have a problem with the portrayal of Elvira’s difficulty with figures of speech. Given her age and the kind of life she’s had it is unlikely that this can be the first time she’s come across so many of them and it sometimes felt like cheap laughs at her expense.
Otherwise Elvira’s “condition” is handled with warmth and empathy and she’s never depicted as trying to achieve “normality”. Rather her friends embrace her differences and aid her efforts to adapt by modifying their own behaviours to be more inclusive and supportive.
Really enjoyed this one.
This is our current book group book. We had Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine recently and this had a sticker saying “Perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant…”. That’s a sales technique which enrages me, so I had my nose turned up from the off.
I didn’t want to not read it, as it’s a book group book and I reserve the “not reading of book group books” solely for hopeless thrillers. I decided, loftily, to keep valuable reading time for other books and use an Audible credit to listen while driving.
Although the narrative voice felt quite similar initially to “Eleanor…” I was soon engaged with the particulars of Elvira’s story and found myself reading on my Kindle when I couldn’t find a reasonable excuse to be driving.
It’s the tale of a neuro-diverse woman picking her way through life after her widowed mother is hospitalised. Fearful of being placed into care because of her “condition” Elvira, with the help of her neighbour Sylvia, draws up a spreadsheet of seven rules to help her “manage”. As human life is not as scientific and predictable as Elvira would like, these rules need constant revision with footnotes and additions.
Elvira’s difficulties with the contradictions of human nature become particularly exhausting when trying to unravel the complexities of her parents’ marriage and all the things in her past which were done for “her own good.”
As her world expands Elvira’s ability to cope is tested, but her self-confidence grows with each step forward she takes through this landscape of increasing change and uncertainty.
I did have a problem with the portrayal of Elvira’s difficulty with figures of speech. Given her age and the kind of life she’s had it is unlikely that this can be the first time she’s come across so many of them and it sometimes felt like cheap laughs at her expense.
Otherwise Elvira’s “condition” is handled with warmth and empathy and she’s never depicted as trying to achieve “normality”. Rather her friends embrace her differences and aid her efforts to adapt by modifying their own behaviours to be more inclusive and supportive.
Really enjoyed this one.