Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Published: May 9th, 2017 by (originally) Viking
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages, Own
Rating: 4 stars
Publisher's Summary:
No one’s ever told Eleanor that life should be better than fine
Meet Eleanor Oliphant: she struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding unnecessary human contact, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.
But everything changes when Eleanor meets Raymond, the bumbling and deeply unhygienic IT guy from her office. When she and Raymond together save Sammy, an elderly gentleman who has fallen, the three rescue one another from the lives of isolation that they had been living. Ultimately, it is Raymond’s big heart that will help Eleanor find the way to repair her own profoundly damaged one. If she does, she'll learn that she, too, is capable of finding friendship—and even love—after all.
Smart, warm, uplifting, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is the story of an out-of-the-ordinary heroine whose deadpan weirdness and unconscious wit make for an irresistible journey as she realizes. . .
the only way to survive is to open your heart.
Meet Eleanor Oliphant: she struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding unnecessary human contact, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.
But everything changes when Eleanor meets Raymond, the bumbling and deeply unhygienic IT guy from her office. When she and Raymond together save Sammy, an elderly gentleman who has fallen, the three rescue one another from the lives of isolation that they had been living. Ultimately, it is Raymond’s big heart that will help Eleanor find the way to repair her own profoundly damaged one. If she does, she'll learn that she, too, is capable of finding friendship—and even love—after all.
Smart, warm, uplifting, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is the story of an out-of-the-ordinary heroine whose deadpan weirdness and unconscious wit make for an irresistible journey as she realizes. . .
the only way to survive is to open your heart.
My Thoughts:
I kept hearing how this was a great book to read for the quarantine. It had been sitting on my shelf for a while so I decided to finally pick it up and read it! But as with all my reading lately, I haven't been able to focus as much as I'd like to. So it took me a couple of weeks to get into this one. It started off a lot darker than I was expecting.
Eleanor is messed up. Her past is horrific and we only get bits and pieces at first. But she's also endearing and child-like. So we care and we hope, well, I hoped she could finally get rid of her mum. I loved seeing the friendship develop between her and Raymond. I was hoping they didn't try to bring a romance into it. Thanks the gods, no. So by the last third of the book I was hooked and finished it quickly because Eleanor needed a good ending and she got one! I'd love to see another book to see how she's getting on and finding her place in the world.
Children of the Longhouse by Joseph Bruchac
Published: June 1st, 1996 by Dial Books
Genre: Juvenile, Historical Fiction
Format: Paperback, 160 Pages, Own
Rating: 5 stars
Publisher's Summary:
When Ohkwa'ri overhears a group of older boys planning a raid on a neighboring village, he immediately tells his Mohawk elders. He has done the right thing—but he has also made enemies. Grabber and his friends will do anything they can to hurt him, especially during the village-wide game of Tekwaarathon (lacrosse). Ohkwa'ri believes in the path of peace, but can peaceful ways work against Grabber's wrath?
My Thoughts:
I really really enjoyed reading this one a loud to G. We're doing a bit of history reading and learning and this is a great book. It's well-written. We learned a lot about the Mohawk people and other nations lived before white people invaded. I had no idea Lacrosse was invented that long ago and has been a great tradition. No clue. We got to watch a video on how a traditional stick is made. Even DH while working from home loved listening in on this book!
When Ohkwa'ri overhears a group of older boys planning a raid on a neighboring village, he immediately tells his Mohawk elders. He has done the right thing—but he has also made enemies. Grabber and his friends will do anything they can to hurt him, especially during the village-wide game of Tekwaarathon (lacrosse). Ohkwa'ri believes in the path of peace, but can peaceful ways work against Grabber's wrath?
My Thoughts:
I really really enjoyed reading this one a loud to G. We're doing a bit of history reading and learning and this is a great book. It's well-written. We learned a lot about the Mohawk people and other nations lived before white people invaded. I had no idea Lacrosse was invented that long ago and has been a great tradition. No clue. We got to watch a video on how a traditional stick is made. Even DH while working from home loved listening in on this book!
Children of the Long House looks great to read with my kids! I keep seeing Eleanor Oliphant is completely Fine Everywhere. I love your review. This sounds like a good book to pick for my book club!
ReplyDeleteI think you would all love it! I hope you read it with them soon. Eleanor would be a good book club fit. It's a relatively easy read but with some deep topics to talk about.
DeleteDidn't you just find the way Eleanor evolved to be entirely believable? And how heartbreaking was her life?!
ReplyDeleteYes. It was a great surprise to see how it all came together. Loved it.
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