Reviews tagging 'Death'

Friendaholic: Confessions of a Friendship Addict by Elizabeth Day

9 reviews

sakisreads's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

This was the book I didn’t know I NEEDED 😂

This was recommended to me by a friend I admire and adore ❤️ I also decided to read this because I like Elizabeth Day’s podcast but had never explored her writing before!

Anyway, wow, what a book! I loved the Friendship Tapes, with Day’s friends ranging in ages and holding many nuggets of wisdom. I also loved the candour with which uncomfortable friendships (e.g. friends who had ghosted, friends who did not celebrate your successes) were explored. When we met Becca for the first time, I gasped because I had a friend who also ghosted me and never explained why!

When Sathnam said ‘I’m so glad you’re not going back to being friends with her […] It shows you’ve got no standards. If you’re friends with her again, what does that mean about our friendship? It means you’ll be friends with anyone who’ll have you, no matter how badly they treated you’ made me feel SICK 😫 But it also made me realise that it’s okay not to be friends with everyone and that the people I DO cherish, cherish me back 🥹

Loved this so much. 4.5 out of 5 stars for me, thank you ✨

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

ocornon's review against another edition

lighthearted reflective medium-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Infertility

Minor: Death and Domestic abuse

kalbalde's review against another edition

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage

Moderate: Death

milliebluecapon's review against another edition

informative reflective slow-paced

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Miscarriage

Minor: Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

sorcha's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Grief, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Addiction, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Blood, and Alcohol

sedgewren's review against another edition

funny hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

Although I wouldn't describe myself as a friendaholic, I found this book incredibly thought-provoking and insightful. Elizabeth Day's compassionate, empathetic approach to her friends and others, as well as her candour about her own personal struggles, makes this book uniquely reflective without being navel-gazing, and personal but still somewhat universal. This book helped me reflect on my own friendships and figure out why I felt the way I do about some of them, explained certain behaviours, and helped me let go of friendships that were no longer serving me.

I found it an interesting exploration of female friendships, and it doesn't shy away from difficult topics like infertility or death. I wish there were more of an exploration of male friendships, and how to maintain them.

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Cancer, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy

mads_jpg's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

3.75

Love seeing friendships being seen as valuable in their own right alongside romantic relationships, rather than inherently beneath them. Part of me wishes I'd read a physical copy rather than the audiobook because I think I would've appreciated certain passages better, so will definitely be one I revisit.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Sexual harassment

leontyna's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

4.0

I liked some points the book makes but I vehemently disagree that nonverbal boundaries are acceptable form of finishing friendships. I really hope my current friends would have more guts than just ghost me and consider it a boundary.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage

Moderate: Cancer and Death

balfies's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.5

A treatise on the interpersonal politics of friendship. Some interesting stuff in here about bad friendships, friendships that end, peripheral friendships, and how best friends achieve this indescribable, intangible relational depth. Really enjoyed this one, a very accessible but thoughtful read that I picked up on holiday.

Stand out quote on empathy: "This, I think, is the key to ensuring friendships survive and thrive through different life phases. You do not have to travel the same path at the same time. But if you value your friend enough, you can leave a room for their pain in the home of your own imagination."

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Domestic abuse