tifflovesbooks80's review against another edition
4.0
I started reading this book while I was on vacation at Disney World. Definitely not a read for the Happiest Place on Earth! Though it is not the type pf book I would have chosen myself (This was part of a Round Robin Reading Group), I was hooked from the start.
The story follows Dahila Finger as she goes from being a lazy couch potato, to a cancer patient who has been told she has an inoperable brain tumor. The book is told in a flashback/present day form so at times the switching back and forth was exhausting.
After finishing it I was glad that I stuck with it because it was such a different type of story for me and definitely took me out of my comfort zone. I do think that the themes from this book will stay with me for a long time and in my life experiences I will probably think back to this book.
The story follows Dahila Finger as she goes from being a lazy couch potato, to a cancer patient who has been told she has an inoperable brain tumor. The book is told in a flashback/present day form so at times the switching back and forth was exhausting.
After finishing it I was glad that I stuck with it because it was such a different type of story for me and definitely took me out of my comfort zone. I do think that the themes from this book will stay with me for a long time and in my life experiences I will probably think back to this book.
kricketa's review against another edition
4.0
29-year-old dahlia finger keeps meaning to get her life in order, but somehow always ends up floundering. then, a terminal brain tumor puts her life in order for her.
one might be surprised to see a book shelved as both "death & dying" and "hilarious." this sums up why i liked the book so much. albert strikes a perfect balance between gravity and bullshit and in the end everything rang so perfectly true. highly recommended for those who don't mind irreverence and profanity.
one might be surprised to see a book shelved as both "death & dying" and "hilarious." this sums up why i liked the book so much. albert strikes a perfect balance between gravity and bullshit and in the end everything rang so perfectly true. highly recommended for those who don't mind irreverence and profanity.
minvanwin's review against another edition
4.0
This book--about a 29-year-old ne'er-do-well cancer victim--is certainly not for everyone. But I loved it.
magdon's review against another edition
4.0
oh my gosh: sad and funny and depressing and lovely and wow. A great job of weaving the narratives, current and past. Dahlia is a fabulous "loser" heroine. The pain. But she is so herself. Loved it.
enbybooklove's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Mehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
I really expected to love this book. Illness, bad family relationships, suicidal ideation - those themes are some of my absolute faves. But a book with no likable or intriguing characters? What’s the point?
I really expected to love this book. Illness, bad family relationships, suicidal ideation - those themes are some of my absolute faves. But a book with no likable or intriguing characters? What’s the point?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer and Suicidal thoughts
jessieadamczyk's review against another edition
4.0
I almost stopped reading, but I'm so glad I didn't. What an awesome book.
falconerreader's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the narrative voice a lot more than I liked Dahlia herself. Part of the point may be that the death of a loser pothead matters as much as any death, that Dahlia didn't deserve to die young of cancer (this is not a spoiler--there's never any doubt as to the outcome). Really, Dahlia didn't deserve to have such a crummy family. Dying young is just adding insult to injury.
amysbrittain's review against another edition
3.0
So, I haven't recently--ever?--wanted to read a book about a young woman with cancer, but I heard the author on NPR and thought it might be interesting fiction. I read it on two short plane rides, so I obviously found it compelling. The protagonist is sassy, cynical, and not doing anything with her life when she's diagnosed and has to face life and death. I liked.
maedo's review against another edition
4.0
If you are currently miserable or struck with the sense that you are wasting your life, this book will hit uncomfortably close to home. Beautifully written, especially the metaphysical life-and-death passages. Having just come off of Portnoy's Complaint, I can see the Philip Roth influence in Elisa Albert. But Albert's full of heart, in a not tacky or trite way.
Yeah, this one got to me.
Yeah, this one got to me.
jorayne35's review against another edition
5.0
Very well written, I've been waiting a long time to find a book that actually makes me feel something. Yes, the character is selfish and all you want is for her to get up and do something. But the thing is in real life everyone has flaws. We all want to be the "perfect" person who reacts to situtations in the "correct" way, but sometimes (most often) that doesn't happen.It reminded me little of Six Feet Under, everyone wants life to be tied up--that by the end of it you left things in a good place, but sometimes things happen abruptly. Dahlia is real and by the end of the book you feel sorry for her wasted time....mostly because you know you've wasted some time yourself.