Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine review

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


"Human mating rituals are unbelievably tedious to observe. At least in the animal kingdom you are occasionally treated to a flash of bright feathers or a display of spectacular violence. Hair flicking and play fights don't quite cut the mustard."

This is only a small sample of what it was like to be in Eleanor Oliphant's head, and I loved every second of it.
I stayed up really, really late to finish this book. My bleary-eyed, zombie-like appearance today was so worth it!

Eleanor is a thirty-year-old working woman with the social graces of a kid still in school. She was incredibly forthright, did not care what others thought of her, or what they whispered behind her back, or, sometimes, right to her face. Considering it was human nature to dissemble in an effort to fit in, Eleanor was a true anomaly. It was very refreshing.
Eleanor's past is shrouded in mystery; she revealed it in bits and pieces throughout the book until you get a full picture of why she is the way she is. Calling her relationship with her mother unhealthy would be a huge understatement.
Her relationship with Raymond, on the other hand, was downright hilarious and sweet. Raymond is the kind of guy who is usually overlooked or friend-zoned, so having him as a central character here was wonderful, in my opinion.

I recommend this book to everyone, really. You'll laugh out loud multiple times, you'll be touched by the way Eleanor has managed to live her life by her standards, and the way she changed it when it became necessary.
If I could give this book 10 stars, I would.





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