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tayrabe's review against another edition
lighthearted
sad
fast-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
1.0
DNF at 26%. It's A Wonderful Midlife Crisis is in DESPERATE need of a sensitivity reader, or at the very least for an editor or a friend who could've said "Hey, maybe take it easy on the jokes about being mentally ill."
I want to specify that, as a person with my own mental illnesses, I don't think the topic is off the table when it comes to comedy. Dark humor makes the world go 'round. However, the sheer volume of crazy-as-an-insult within the first quarter of the book made the schtick get old fast, and it ended up being the only thing I could focus on.
I ended up so bothered by the flagrant, derogatory use of mental illness as a "joke" that I backtracked, took a note of all the different synonyms I could find, and then did a word-count on Kindle.
• Crazy: 34
• Coo-coo: 4
• Loon/Looney/Looney Bin: 7
• Cray cray: 2
• Certifiable: 4
• Off her rocker: 3
• Nuts: 24
• Insane/Sanity: 30
• Out of [x] mind: 2
• Screwy/Screw loose: 2
• Deranged: 2
• Lunatic: 1
• Needing a Shrink/Psychiatrist: 3
• Psycho/Psychotic: 3
• Psych/Mental ward: 4
• Mentally ill/unbalanced: 3
Number counted in 7 chapters: 55
Total number of 'jokes' used: 128
Pages read: 96
Total pages: 364
Honorable mention: The word 'spastic' is used twice (once to describe someone's gesturing and once to describe a dog's tail wagging). Although many people aren't aware that this term is derogatory, I may as well add it to the pile.
The worst part about it is that this book is otherwise well written, and is incredibly funny. It easily would've been a 4-5 star rating from me, and that's probably why this review is so long. I laughed out loud SEVERAL times, and even read "Deja poo: the distinct feeling that I've heard this crap before" out loud to somebody! I wanted to keep reading.
I actually put the book down a few pages before the end of chapter 7. However, I told myself that I was being sensitive and convinced myself to keep going... only for one of the last sentences of the chapter to be Daisy saying she needs a "head-shrinker" in response to something totally normal happening.
At that point, the joke was so dead that Daisy would be able to see it. Let's be real here:
Daisy wondering if she's "crazy" because she can see dead people? Legitimate.
Daisy referring to her boss as a "psycho team leader" and her love interest as "certifiable" for LIKING her? Questionable, but even I talk like this occasionally.
Daisy referring to someone's unwell mental state 128 (ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY EIGHT) times in a 364 page book? Unacceptable.
Please do better.
I want to specify that, as a person with my own mental illnesses, I don't think the topic is off the table when it comes to comedy. Dark humor makes the world go 'round. However, the sheer volume of crazy-as-an-insult within the first quarter of the book made the schtick get old fast, and it ended up being the only thing I could focus on.
I ended up so bothered by the flagrant, derogatory use of mental illness as a "joke" that I backtracked, took a note of all the different synonyms I could find, and then did a word-count on Kindle.
• Crazy: 34
• Coo-coo: 4
• Loon/Looney/Looney Bin: 7
• Cray cray: 2
• Certifiable: 4
• Off her rocker: 3
• Nuts: 24
• Insane/Sanity: 30
• Out of [x] mind: 2
• Screwy/Screw loose: 2
• Deranged: 2
• Lunatic: 1
• Needing a Shrink/Psychiatrist: 3
• Psycho/Psychotic: 3
• Psych/Mental ward: 4
• Mentally ill/unbalanced: 3
Number counted in 7 chapters: 55
Total number of 'jokes' used: 128
Pages read: 96
Total pages: 364
Honorable mention: The word 'spastic' is used twice (once to describe someone's gesturing and once to describe a dog's tail wagging). Although many people aren't aware that this term is derogatory, I may as well add it to the pile.
The worst part about it is that this book is otherwise well written, and is incredibly funny. It easily would've been a 4-5 star rating from me, and that's probably why this review is so long. I laughed out loud SEVERAL times, and even read "Deja poo: the distinct feeling that I've heard this crap before" out loud to somebody! I wanted to keep reading.
I actually put the book down a few pages before the end of chapter 7. However, I told myself that I was being sensitive and convinced myself to keep going... only for one of the last sentences of the chapter to be Daisy saying she needs a "head-shrinker" in response to something totally normal happening.
At that point, the joke was so dead that Daisy would be able to see it. Let's be real here:
Daisy wondering if she's "crazy" because she can see dead people? Legitimate.
Daisy referring to her boss as a "psycho team leader" and her love interest as "certifiable" for LIKING her? Questionable, but even I talk like this occasionally.
Daisy referring to someone's unwell mental state 128 (ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY EIGHT) times in a 364 page book? Unacceptable.
Please do better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Body horror
Moderate: Mental illness and Body shaming
Stigma of mental illness
More...