Reviews Without Spoilers is a series in which I review the books I've read without giving away any more than the inside cover plot summary would.
It seemed like practically everyone was reading Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman. For some reason, perhaps the overwhelming popularity of the book or the silly-sounding title, I'd assumed this was a light, maybe even humorous novel.
While there are certainly laugh-out-loud funny parts, my assumptions of this book were most definitely wrong. I'd gone in totally blind, not even reading a single synopsis before I started it. All I knew was that it was part of Reese's Book Club...which was likely another reason I thought it'd be a light story, considering the Hallmark-y-ness of the last Reese book I read, One Day in December (you can see my review on that book here). I didn't even have the more-telling white version of the book's cover to go off of.
So, if you'd like to be a bit more in the know than I was, let's start with this...
It doesn't sound so light and cheery anymore, does it?
This is a serious book. It's still a good book, but it's not one you should pick up if you're simply looking for a giggly beach read.
So, now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's get down to business. While I was initially thrown off by this story, I grew to love Eleanor and the people around her. Honeyman does an incredible job of making each person in this story feel human, from Eleanor's first friend to the owner of the store down the street. Everyone she encounters has a real personality, whether they take a starring role in the story or not.
Speaking of the people Eleanor meets, I listened to this book on Audible, which was both a blessing and a curse. I'm not sure what the print version looks like, but those Scottish accents can be quite a struggle to understand if you're not ready for it. Eleanor herself, who narrates the novel, is originally from England, and her narration was easy to understand. Whenever Eleanor encounters a true Scot, though, the voice actor does an incredible job of making it (somewhat realistically) near impossible to understand the first few times you hear it. Don't worry, though: the main characters have much more manageable accents.
This book is about a woman learning how to live. Her journey, despite its abundant difficulties, brings a message of hope. One of my absolute favorite scenes (don't worry, no spoilers) is when she starts to notice the details of the world around her. Reading through her discovery of the simple joys in life had me doing the same: I was newly mesmerized by the way the light hit the snow or the steam billowed from my teacup.
Further, Eleanor's process of discovery, her struggles and her successes, were realistic. She sought help from the right avenues, which could encourage readers with similar struggles to feel reassured by Eleanor's experience. However, I will also say that I found her healing process a bit too quick to believe. Granted, that's probably for the sake of narrative flow, but still.
All things considered, Eleanor gave me hope for the world. And, for that, I'm giving her 5/5 stars.
Book: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Author: Gail Honeyman
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Release Date: 2017
Genre: general fiction
Length: 336 pages, 11 hrs 2 mins in audiobook format
Setting: modern day Scotland
It seemed like practically everyone was reading Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman. For some reason, perhaps the overwhelming popularity of the book or the silly-sounding title, I'd assumed this was a light, maybe even humorous novel.
While there are certainly laugh-out-loud funny parts, my assumptions of this book were most definitely wrong. I'd gone in totally blind, not even reading a single synopsis before I started it. All I knew was that it was part of Reese's Book Club...which was likely another reason I thought it'd be a light story, considering the Hallmark-y-ness of the last Reese book I read, One Day in December (you can see my review on that book here). I didn't even have the more-telling white version of the book's cover to go off of.
So, if you'd like to be a bit more in the know than I was, let's start with this...
CONTENT WARNING: physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault, self harm, alcoholism.
It doesn't sound so light and cheery anymore, does it?
This is a serious book. It's still a good book, but it's not one you should pick up if you're simply looking for a giggly beach read.
So, now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's get down to business. While I was initially thrown off by this story, I grew to love Eleanor and the people around her. Honeyman does an incredible job of making each person in this story feel human, from Eleanor's first friend to the owner of the store down the street. Everyone she encounters has a real personality, whether they take a starring role in the story or not.
Speaking of the people Eleanor meets, I listened to this book on Audible, which was both a blessing and a curse. I'm not sure what the print version looks like, but those Scottish accents can be quite a struggle to understand if you're not ready for it. Eleanor herself, who narrates the novel, is originally from England, and her narration was easy to understand. Whenever Eleanor encounters a true Scot, though, the voice actor does an incredible job of making it (somewhat realistically) near impossible to understand the first few times you hear it. Don't worry, though: the main characters have much more manageable accents.
This book is about a woman learning how to live. Her journey, despite its abundant difficulties, brings a message of hope. One of my absolute favorite scenes (don't worry, no spoilers) is when she starts to notice the details of the world around her. Reading through her discovery of the simple joys in life had me doing the same: I was newly mesmerized by the way the light hit the snow or the steam billowed from my teacup.
Further, Eleanor's process of discovery, her struggles and her successes, were realistic. She sought help from the right avenues, which could encourage readers with similar struggles to feel reassured by Eleanor's experience. However, I will also say that I found her healing process a bit too quick to believe. Granted, that's probably for the sake of narrative flow, but still.
All things considered, Eleanor gave me hope for the world. And, for that, I'm giving her 5/5 stars.
Book: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Author: Gail Honeyman
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Release Date: 2017
Genre: general fiction
Length: 336 pages, 11 hrs 2 mins in audiobook format
Setting: modern day Scotland
Comments
Post a Comment