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Craigslist Confessional: A Collection of Secrets from Anonymous Strangers by Helena Dea Bala
mjcglz's review
3.0
I didn’t enjoy this as much as i thought i would. Primarily, because there weren’t any funny or heartwarming stories (it almost felt as a dictionary of tragedy and sadness). But most of all, it was one separate story after the other, without a voice to connect them all. It’s a lovely project and idea, the themes are important and it surely makes you stop and think. So idk, really.
for an articulate review, containing everything I’m feeling but couldn’t say: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3162738437
for an articulate review, containing everything I’m feeling but couldn’t say: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3162738437
ws_bookclub's review
3.0
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest opinion. This book will be available on July seventh.
I was originally intrigued by this book because it was described as appealing to readers of Postsecrets. For those who don’t know, the concept behind Postsecrets is this: people write their secret, whatever it may be, on a postcard and mail it anonymously to an address. The postcards are collected and printed. The secrets range from sad to uplifting. Craigslist Confessional feels like a longhand version.
First of all, people like the author of this book are rare. To be able to just listen to someone tell a story, without offering advice or judgement, is a skill that not everyone has. It’s apparent throughout that author Helena Dea Bala really cares about the people she speaks with, and it makes the book even better.
This book is really, really good. It’s also really sad. Often, the stories not shared by people are left untold because they’re so hard to tell. The book contains tales of drug use, death, and regret. However, there are also stories of triumph and encouragement. Five minutes in, I was tearing up. I don’t often cry at books (although when I do, I completely fall apart), but this book got to me.
That being said, this book will not be for everyone. Parts of it are incredibly harsh. To be honest, I skipped a couple of the stories, once I realized where they were going. I did that to avoid things that might upset my mental well being. Even though I had to skip a few of the stories, I loved the rest of the book. It is a reminder that, even though we don’t all share the same experiences, we all share the same emotions. We can all relate.
If you can handle reading about the tougher subjects, I recommend this book.
I was originally intrigued by this book because it was described as appealing to readers of Postsecrets. For those who don’t know, the concept behind Postsecrets is this: people write their secret, whatever it may be, on a postcard and mail it anonymously to an address. The postcards are collected and printed. The secrets range from sad to uplifting. Craigslist Confessional feels like a longhand version.
First of all, people like the author of this book are rare. To be able to just listen to someone tell a story, without offering advice or judgement, is a skill that not everyone has. It’s apparent throughout that author Helena Dea Bala really cares about the people she speaks with, and it makes the book even better.
This book is really, really good. It’s also really sad. Often, the stories not shared by people are left untold because they’re so hard to tell. The book contains tales of drug use, death, and regret. However, there are also stories of triumph and encouragement. Five minutes in, I was tearing up. I don’t often cry at books (although when I do, I completely fall apart), but this book got to me.
That being said, this book will not be for everyone. Parts of it are incredibly harsh. To be honest, I skipped a couple of the stories, once I realized where they were going. I did that to avoid things that might upset my mental well being. Even though I had to skip a few of the stories, I loved the rest of the book. It is a reminder that, even though we don’t all share the same experiences, we all share the same emotions. We can all relate.
If you can handle reading about the tougher subjects, I recommend this book.
miacasey16's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
5.0
kate404's review
3.0
I don't know how I feel about this book still, I may update this after I've had time to let it settle in. The stories in here are raw and mostly gut-wrenchingly sad. At times the life stories are beautiful and inspiring and other times vile and painful to read. I think the bigger reason I feel disappointed is that they just weren't this author's stories to tell and it sort of reads like that to me.
lauriebwhite's review against another edition
3.0
This was just so so. I was excited to read it, but the stories were not long enough to hook me nor did they really resonate with me.
kellyb24's review
4.0
Well-written collection of short personal stories told anonymously, gathered together and grouped by theme. These brief glimpses into people’s lives illustrate the diversity of experience in our country and how you never know what’s going on behind the scenes when people present as “doing well” and “normal”. It also reveals many aspects of our broken system, and lithe lack of support our country provides people in need.
leslielu67's review
3.0
Interesting premise - anonymous confessions to a stranger. Warning: there are a lot of messed up people out there, from no-fault to faulty.