Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - Someday, Maybe

Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Someday, Maybe by Onyi Nwabineli

18 reviews

florenceassetto's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

there is a hole in my heart that is the size of this book and i fear it might be there forever. this book was so so so so powerful and i haven't read anything even relating to suicide since charlotte but it was so real in it's portrayal of grief and anger and sadness and hope and hatred and i think it was something so necessary for me to read. the family dynamic is so powerful and so real and so traditionally african, and the friendships in here were so real. it has been so long since i have read a more honest portrayal of love and i think this book is so so special!

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rhubarbpi3's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I liked this book much more than I thought I would, but the pacing was inconsistent, the writing felt fan fiction-y at times, and I wish that it hadn’t felt so locked up in Eve’s head. The dialogue was also generally stilted. I thought the questions it brought up were interesting, however.

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asjolico's review against another edition

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inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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suzquinn97's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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sarikinss's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I - wow. This book is a book everyone should read once, and maybe once again when they are experiencing any type of grief from loss of a loved one. Onyi Nwabineli somehow put indescribable feelings into the words that could closest describe them and that in and of itself is a gift to the world, and I truly believe it will be a comfort to those in similar situations.

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ttnnllrr's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

This book is about our main character, Eve, and her life after discovering her husband’s dead body after he took his own life on New Year’s Eve. Nwabineli really shows the reader the true, raw grief of losing a loved one, in ways I’ve never seen before. It’s horrible, awful, and gut wrenching, but so incredibly insightful into one of many ways grief can transform us.

At the beginning of the book, Eve spends much of her time in bed and the rest throwing up in the toilet. She binge drinks and takes pills to keep her from the waking world, only to be haunted with nightmares about her husband Q, and her guilt for being unable to save him.
We witness a loving, close knit family surrounding and supporting Eve every step of the way, no matter how many times she tries to push them away or cling too close.

Eve’s mother in law, Aspen, who had already shown hatred for her simply because she is Nigerian and not the ‘rich white girl’ Aspen always wanted Q to marry, blames Q’s death on Eve and will not rest until what remains of Eve’s life is set aflame.

Then, everything changes.

Eve gets in an accident and discovers that she is pregnant with Q’s baby. She must now come to terms with her future as a widow and a single mother, and get her shit together for her kid.

This book was hard to read at times, the grief truly just oozed off the page and Eve’s decision were sometimes hard to get behind. Another reason was the fighting between Eve and her sister, Gloria, because while I understand, I also don’t know how you get mad at someone who had just lost the love of their life to something so brutal as suicide. Like I said, it was frustrating at times, but I also think that’s what makes it a great representation of grief. It’s never meant to be light and easy, it’s hard and ugly and at times violent.

I really appreciated the ending as well, because while it’s not quite a happy ending, per se, it’s clear that it’s headed in that direction at a realistic pace.

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