Gail Honeyman book review of the fantastic novel – Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine.
Over the last few months, i’ve been trying to reduce my amount of screen time, especially in the evenings. It’s so easy to waste away an entire evening watching TickTok videos, endlessly scrolling through Instagram photos or watching YouTube videos. Then at the end of the night, you wonder where on earth you evening has gone. Not to mention that fact you can’t actually remember anything you’ve just spent hours watching! I wanted to change my mindset in the evenings. Do something more productive and actually make the most of my evenings. So, i decided i would start to read again. A few chapters a night, after dinner once the tv was turned off. The first book i had heard was a really good read was Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine – so that’s where i began!
When i was younger i used to read a lot – mainly the Harry Potter books or perhaps a Famous Five novel here and there. However, that was about it. So, i decided i was going to use this opportunity to open my mind to different genres and try something totally different.
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is a 383 pages long, which to me, a new reader, seemed quite daunting. I thought there’s no way i’m going to be able to finish this book before Christmas! However, i enjoyed it so much, i actually finished it in just under 3 weeks – reading only in the evenings.
Normally i find books quite hard to get into. The chapters seem long and nothing ever really seems to happen. However, i found this book grabbed me from the get go. I loved how Gail Honeyman (author) introduced Eleanor to the reader. In quite a drip feed kind of way but somehow that made me more intrigued. This loner character who seemed to have her life perfectly set out.
“Unforgettable, brilliant, funny and life-affirming.” – Daily Mail
Obviously you’ll have to read the book if you want to know more, and i certainly don’t want to ruin it for anyone who hasn’t read it yet. However, i loved how it got me thinking about people in general.
My Unexpected Thoughts
From the outside they may look totally put together and confident, yet we never really know what’s going on inside their mind. Or even if we see some one who looks a little different. We notice them instantly, and perhaps make a fleeting comment on how different or weird they seem. Why do we do this? Just because some one looks or acts a little differently to how we might, why does this make them weird?
“An outstanding debut about loneliness and the power of a little kindness.” – Mail On Sunday
We are all such different people, with different personalities. So why would/should we all act the same way? Because magazines or ‘celebrities’ tell us we should?!
How a little kindness from a total stranger saved a life without even realising. Kindness from some one who didn’t judge or ridicule a young woman for being different. Who didn’t follow the crowd and laugh at her for not fitting in. When you think about it – what are we meant to be fitting in with any way?
I never thought reading a book would make me have such a strong opinion on something i didn’t even realise i had an opinion on!
We hope you enjoyed reading this Gail Honeyman book review of her amazing novel – Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine. What did you think of it?
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