Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
Ratings621
Average rating4.1
Oh god I loved this.
This book is like getting to know a person. And I truly couldn't stand Eleanor at the beginning, but then you kinda uncover why she is the way she is and start to empathise with her. It's about the safety of routines, rationalising, importance of friendship (bless Raymond honestly), how little things can change your life, acceptance, therapy and change.
This is a book for anybody who has experience with family trauma or trauma in general or is patient enough to get to know a person stuck with their own demons, unknowingly. She is after all, completely fine.
There have been times when I felt that I might die of loneliness. People sometimes say they might die of boredom, that they're dying for a cup of tea, but for me, dying of loneliness is not hyperbole. When I feel like that, my head drops and my shoulders slump and I ache, I physically ache, for human contact–I truly feel that I might tumble to the ground and pass away if someone doesn't hold me, touch me. I don't mean a lover–this recent madness aside, I had long since given up on any notion that another person might love me that way– but simply as a human being. The scalp massage at the hairdressers, the flu jab I had last winter–the only time I experience touch is from people whom I am paying, and they are almost always wearing disposable gloves at the time. I'm merely stating the facts. People don't like these facts, but I can't help that.
Definitely one of the best books I've read in a long time. I felt comforted and uncomfortable, called out and understood. I was laughing and I did cry a little (at the end), and, perhaps most importantly, I was reading it very fast!
I'm always pleased when a book that is heavily adored by (it seems like) everybody and their mother actually turns out to be great, and worthy of the praise.
Few lines into the book, I was racking my brains, as I absent mindedly read through a few more lines, trying to put a face to Elinor Oliphant, who seemed really familiar. And then all of a sudden she fell into place. This is Amy from the Big Bang Theory. Though I do not have vivid enough imagination to read a whole story with an image of a character in my head, at certain moments her face pops in; it fits just right.
I am pretty sure, the number of high ratings this book has a direct correlation to readers who can relate.
“If someone asks you how you are, you are meant to say FINE. You are not meant to say that you cried yourself to sleep last night because you hadn't spoken to another person for two consecutive days. FINE is what you say.”
Loneliness has certainly had its share of portrayal in many books. This is the first one I read where it takes the center stage. Every moment I am struggling, to not make this review personal. Precisely because there isn't a ‘Loners' club', none of the loners know what their kindred feel. This is a brave attempt(given how completely Eleanor disregards the conventions of polite society, thereby creating a character slightly leaning over to the area of ‘unlikability') to unite the loners at some level, to remind that we are not alone in being lonely.
Eleanor holds one her hands in the other to feel how it feels when someone holds your hand. Eleanor realizes that there is no Eleanor shaped slot in the society for her to fit in. Standing alone staring into the middle distance, is a ‘familiar social scenario' for Eleanor. It was ‘absolutely fine'. And she means it.
The whole thing is all too familiar. I feel too close to this that I can't analytically review. I can see only what I want to see, and there's plenty for me to look at here. There are metaphors and word plays, it's all very nice. That said, it's not a sob story. Eleanor is funny, rudely pragmatic often upto a point of hilarity and a woman of her mind, who finds her way in the world, with little acts of kindness from people surrounding.
Raymond, like a ray of sunshine, tenderly opens the shy and obscure little bud into
a beautiful flower, confident and proud.
(Okay maybe that was a little over the top.)
If you feel lonely too often, read it.
A good audiobook and a good story after a while!
Although Eleanor Oliphant is deeply flawed, her alarmingly plain life is interesting beyond measure.
Perfectly paced and well executed.
Somehow my original review of this got deleted but if I remember anything about this book it's that I loved it. It's the kind of book that stays with you and comes back to mind every once in a while. Eleanor is interesting and funny and damaged and both likeable and unlikeable at the same time. The writing is excellent and does more showing than telling. I sped through it for my book club.
4:
Back in 2021, I picked up this book for the first time. Due to events that are later explained in the story, Eleanor has many oddities to herself. I didn't get very far that time: pretty early on she started to refer to her mother as “mommy”, and I was completely put off. Immediately after, I hit a reading slump that lasted almost a full year.
When I got back into my groove again this year, I decided to bite the bullet and give it another go, and boy was 2021 me stupid.
I think deep down I felt I related too much to Eleanor, and that put me off. I haven't gone through a traumatic event as gruesome as the one she did, but I've experienced life through similar lenses, and at the time I finally read the book, I was at a point where it helped to read a story that showed that sometimes, things for people like us can turn out okay.
Eleanor was endearing, and it was a joy to see her coming out of her shell. I liked her friends with Raymond and his mom, and with the elderly gentleman and his family (I forget his name, but it was all very sweet).
I did hope, though, that the whole extreme makeover thingy had been more of a sidenote, or an afterthought, instead of being basically what brings people to seeing her in a different light.
Overall, it was a very cozy read!
I struggled to connect with Eleanor in the first few chapters, but I realized that's the point. She CAN'T connect with people. This book made me laugh and cry. I was horrified and inspired by it.
I won't say this is an easy read... it's really hard but I'm glad I read it.
Looking back on this year, I've read good, bad and mediocre books. Mostly mediocre, really. But I've also read a handful of truly amazing books that I'll remember for years to come. This is one of them.
I found Eleanor funny and relatable, and I thought her process of coming out of her shell was realistic and encouraging. I also loved her friendship with Raymond, and even though it was left open at the end I felt that they both genuinely loved and cared for one another and that it would result in a real relationship.
It's interesting, I picked up this book a few months ago, and I read the first chapter or two, and I thought it was too stereotypical and dropped it. But then, it appeared on the buddy read, and I told myself: “Why not?”. I had just finished East of Eden, and I think I needed a light-hearted novel, like a romance. Well, I read the first 5 chapters and I am not sure it is going to be a light-hearted novel... More like a sad and dark one. There are already parts that I don't like, but writing a comment on each chapter and reading people's impressions makes it quite pleasant. I know I have many physical books I also want to read, now that I have actually started to create my own collection, but yes, this one will be read at this end of July.
Six Pieces Op. 51, TH 143: 6 Valse sentimentale Tempo di Valse - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Update: I just finished it! I would give it 3 or 3.5 stars. It took me a long time to read it because it was quite triggering, but I'm happy I finished it. I like that Raymond and Eleanor are friends in the end, and that there was no need to create a romance. But I feel like the plot was quite linear and predictable. Also, Raymond was such a stereotypical IT guy, that annoyed and irritated me profusely! And I couldn't believe that Laura and Raymond would be dating, even for a short period of time. I feel like it was just to stir some emotions in Eleanor, just for the plot. The fact that the mother was actually dead and that the phone calls were a ritual organized by Eleanor was a plot twist that surprised me, but I understand. A way to connect and not be fully alone. I don't know, I feel like only Eleanor was a complex character. And the ending dragged for too long. 3 stars. 8/7/21
started really strong, then slipped into melodrama and wrapped up a bit too quickly. still, it kept me reading, in a good way. despite its flaws it's a very kind-hearted book, well-researched and meditated. if it's a little on the nose sometimes, at least it's on the nose of something human and real - eleanor feels so painfully real, and i understand her.
really, my main complaint is that a certain... revelation... toward the end should have been explored a bit more. the second half was definitely rushed. still, it's not a deal breaker because by the time it goes a bit off, honeyman has already done the most important part. she gave us eleanor, in all her glory - she made her human and not an insipid caricature of somebody traumatized or abused or neurodivergent. and if there's a clumsy potted plant or too-appropriate cat along the way, then so be it.
I enjoyed this book - but the 4 star review is largely thanks to the audiobook read by Cathleen McCarron. There are some elements of the book which I think I may have found less captivating without the excellent narration. The ending of the book was a little bit disappointing/felt rushed and a bit reliant on tropes, but I would still recommend this book if you want something fun and heartwarming. I did appreciate the main character as being fairly unique and compelling: quirky and often even annoying, and yet still very likeable.
Eleanor's story made me sad, laugh, curious to know what happen to her. This book is amazing. And Raymond, sweet Raymond, love this book so much.
Do you ever start a book because you've seen so much hype around it and you're sure you'll love it? And then you read it and... you really didn't like it at all? This was my experience with Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.
I've seen such praise for this book. However, I thought it was very boring. There were only around 100 pages left once anything interesting/worthwhile happened. Then, even with this interesting and important psychological aspect introduced (far too late) to the sto
Loveddddd it!
I would love to read about eleanors life, no matter how “boring” it is, for hours and hours.
I liked the plot twist and I liked the plot but I just reaaaally liked Eleanor as a character and she kinda reminded me of Lou from Me Before You, a character I would also love to read about for hours!
I LOVED THIS BOOK. It had just the right amount of mystery and character development. Eleanor moved from being a quirky character in a book to my best friend. I'm impressed with the author's storytelling chops. The more I read, the more my mouth dropped open, until I finally had to finish the book in one fell swoop, just to know what happened. I thought it all made sense and the writer left just the right amount of clues. Not enough that I could guess the ending, but enough to be believable. I will probably read this again at some point, and I rarely do that. The book deals with some very serious subject matter, but uses humor to keep it an enjoyable read over all.
So lovely. I wasn't sure I would like it at the start, but Eleanor won me over and I just wanted all the best for her. It made me think of things that happened during my own childhood, and though remembering them wasn't exactly lovely, it brought my connection to Eleanor closer – and for the first time in a long time, I felt like I wasn't alone. There was someone (even if fictional) who shared similar memories. We understood each other.
Such a heartwarming and thought provoking story; you never know what goes on with a person behind closed doors. You root for Eleanor the entire journey and empathise with her quirks. Gail Honeyman has created a beautifully complex character. There's light humour mixed in with the poignant moments. I smiled through most of this story.
When I read the teaser for this book, I expected it to be a book about an incredibly social awkward girl who stumbles her way through life and then falls in love with her coworker.
In actuality, this book is an incredibly intense journey through Eleanor's psyche and personal growth. While there are many other side stories, Eleanor's growth is the true main character of this story. She is funny, and clever, and very strong person. By the end of this book, you'll be wanting to meet her as well.