Reviews

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

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katiejean12's review against another edition

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3.0

I felt as if Eleanor’s character was unrealistic

raj_c94's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

heatherinthenether's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This was an incredibly well-written book with what begins as a decidedly unlikable character. Throughout the story you get to follow along as Eleanor quite literally comes to life, and the change is gratifying to behold. The characters are messy and flawed and lovely in their fragile humanity. It took a little for me to get into the story, but once I did I was properly hooked, and the end was worth it.

ginaparrish's review against another edition

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5.0

Somehow my original review of this got deleted but if I remember anything about this book it’s that I loved it. It’s the kind of book that stays with you and comes back to mind every once in a while. Eleanor is interesting and funny and damaged and both likeable and unlikeable at the same time. The writing is excellent and does more showing than telling. I sped through it for my book club.

lostinfrance's review against another edition

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5.0

I was cautious at the beginning of this book because I was aware that Eleanor was different and I didn't want to delve into a brain and narrator I didn't totally know the rules for....but quickly the narrator won me over and I was routing for her to figure her shit out. She was surviving in life- but definitely not enjoying it- and relying on vodka and social rules to get through the day. Then she befriends the IT guy and she falls for a musician. She helps an elderly man who takes a tumble- and starts to slowly allow people into her life. She learns what it means to have people care for you- and she realizes she deserves to be someone.
I really enjoyed reading her story- how she learned to be her own advocate. A cat, a nerdy friend- and a mini makeover. It was a lovely story that had me glued to my spot reading rather than Netflix....or goof off.

Read if you need something to make you smile.

liz_mcc's review against another edition

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4.0

In the beginning, I found Eleanor to be a tough narrator to listen to. I wanted to shake her and explain basic social cues to her and give her pep-talks about self-worth. But as the story continues and you understand more about why Eleanor is the way she is, you really start to root for her. The back-of-the-book description made me worried Eleanor and Raymond would be thin character tropes we've all seen before, but they had so much more depth than I was anticipating, and I ended up truly caring about how their stories would end. I didn't immediately realize I cared, but I found myself practically unable to put this book down! By the end, I loved Eleanor's unique, touching, funny voice as a narrator.

A satisfying, often-amusing (though surprisingly dark at times) read that kept me engaged all the way through. And one plot point toward the end really surprised me, just as I was starting to think this was an enjoyable but predictable story!

Spoiler

Also, shout out to the healthy, positive portrayal of therapy in this book! It made me so happy to read such an effective series of therapy sessions.