Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

"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."

Rating

Review

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is about a woman named Eleanor, and she's completely fine. She has very bad social skills and tends to say whatever comes to mind. She goes to work during the week, and on the weekends gets frozen pizza and vodka. With phone calls from Mummy in the middle of the week, nothing is missing from Eleanor's schedule. But once Eleanor meets IT guy Raymond, everything changes. They both save an elder man named Sammy and soon they become sort of friends, to save each other from the isolation they all have been living. Only with Raymond's big heart will he end up saving Eleanor from her own damaged heart.

This book is just way too real, and pretty sad. While it was mildly funny when Eleanor was being clueless about normal social situations, the rest of the story was just so damn heartbreaking. Eleanor has a troubled past, and a distant but abusive mother. She lives her life but she is completely isolated and alone. She ends up falling in love with the idea of a person and not the real thing.

While in the beginning of the book I was annoyed by how judgemental and bizarre Eleanor was, her character growth was pretty good. Once she becomes friends with Raymond, things change. Raymond is such a pure guy who genuinely wanted to be friends with Eleanor and I loved their friendship so much. Instead of it being a romance, it's just a really good friendship that leads her into a better place and let me tell you, that speaks to me on so many levels. While there was a hint at romance and what could be, it was just a hint.

This book and Eleanor just put me through so many emotions but I enjoyed it so much anyway.