Boon's Bookcase

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

by

Gail Honeyman

I can't believe that it has taken me so long to read this book. My son read it a few weeks ago and badgered me to read it. Also my boss told me about it too, so I dived in and oh my goodness what an absolutely fabulous read it was! If you have this book sitting on your bookshelf, please read it. It will make you laugh, cry and everything in between!

Review

Eleanor does the same thing, wears the same clothes day in, day out, but that's the way she likes it. Until one day at work she meets Raymond, an IT technician who seems to understand Eleanor and takes her as she is (unlike others). They go for lunch and exchange emails throughout their working week. (Eleanor is very exact and to the point in her emails!).

One day whilst going for lunch they come across a man who has fallen in the street and is unconscious. Whilst Raymond calls and ambulance, Eleanor is told to keep talking to him. Once you get to know Eleanor, you will realise that this is easier said than done!

Eleanor is a very complex character, but also simple in her way of life. She has had the same job for nearly 10 years, wears the same type of clothes every day for work, but when the weekend comes, she sits alone in her flat and drinks vodka, lots of it. Is this to stop the loneliness she feels? or is it to blot out all the events from her past?

When she has good days it will make you laugh out loud, but when the bad days come, I felt myself welling up with sympathy and sadness for her.

This is a beautiful story of ultimately loneliness and how one woman comes to terms with her past to not let it define her future. There were some severe bumps along the way, but meeting Raymond gave Eleanor a lifeline to a future, but will Eleanor be able to see past the blinkers that have partially covered her eyes for so many years and let everyone know that she is completely fine, or will memories from her childhood take their toll?

I truly think this is one of the best books I have ever read and it certainly gave me a "book hangover". I'm not going to lie, but I had a weep at the end, just because it had finished and I really didn't want it to be. Just stunning.