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  • Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine: A Novel
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4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
6,218 customer ratings
5 star
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4 star
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3 star
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Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine: A Novel

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine: A Novel

byGail Honeyman
Format: PaperbackChange
Price:$9.69+ Free shipping with Amazon Prime
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Top positive review

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Mary Ward
5.0 out of 5 starsYou will fall in love with Miss Oliphant
May 29, 2017
Eleanor Oliphant is one of the most interesting characters that I have read in a while. She is blunt. Very blunt. She lacks social skills and tends to spout off facts to people just having conversations. She likes her routine. Every Friday, stop and buy pizza and vodka. And every Wednesday, she talks to her mother. Those are never very good for Eleanor. Her mother is mean and angry and leaves her feeling less than. Something happened to Eleanor when she was a child. Something that left her with a scar on her face and moving from foster home to foster home. Does she remember it all or is it her coping mechanism? Things start to change in her life when her company’s IT guy, Raymond, and Eleanor help an old man who has passed out in the street. Family is the one thing that she has been missing.

There is so much to Eleanor. In the beginning, I thought that I didn’t care too much for her but as time went on and she opened up, well, I fell in love with her. I would venture to say that she is on the autism spectrum. What a sad story she had lived and what a wonderful world opening up for her. Beautifully written and just a lovely story, you will fall in love with Eleanor too.
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Top critical review

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Eric Drasin
1.0 out of 5 starsA story of abuse and trauma/Empaths Beware!
October 25, 2018
At first I was interested by the idea of seeing the world through the perspective of someone on the Autism Spectrum, but then it becomes apparent that this is a human in excruciating psychological pain. How anyone could actually read this and refer to it as funny is beyond me. As the picture of the abuse and trauma that Eleanor suffered at the hands of a mentally ill mother unfolded, I felt emotionally assaulted by the author. Finally, we are supposed to believe that a few therapy sessions and a nice man will quickly undo all the damage and Eleanor will be healed, instantly stop drinking, and start living like a 'normal' person.
I read it to the end for book club, but it left me feeling like crawling into the back of a dark closet and sitting there for a day or two. (I went outside and tried to recover with some therapeutic gardening instead)
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Eric Drasin
1.0 out of 5 starsA story of abuse and trauma/Empaths Beware!
October 25, 2018
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
At first I was interested by the idea of seeing the world through the perspective of someone on the Autism Spectrum, but then it becomes apparent that this is a human in excruciating psychological pain. How anyone could actually read this and refer to it as funny is beyond me. As the picture of the abuse and trauma that Eleanor suffered at the hands of a mentally ill mother unfolded, I felt emotionally assaulted by the author. Finally, we are supposed to believe that a few therapy sessions and a nice man will quickly undo all the damage and Eleanor will be healed, instantly stop drinking, and start living like a 'normal' person.
I read it to the end for book club, but it left me feeling like crawling into the back of a dark closet and sitting there for a day or two. (I went outside and tried to recover with some therapeutic gardening instead)
708 people found this helpful
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Caitlin N
2.0 out of 5 starsNothing funny about childhood abuse
October 2, 2018
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
This book was marketed as quirky and ‘wildly funny,’ but I had a hard time finding the humor in this book. The main character is socially awkward because of her extreme childhood abuse. I fail to find the humor in a person who has been forever mentally messed up because they were abused and neglected. It’s not funny. It’s terribly sad. I only finished the book because it was for book club.
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Mary Ward
5.0 out of 5 starsYou will fall in love with Miss Oliphant
May 29, 2017
Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
Eleanor Oliphant is one of the most interesting characters that I have read in a while. She is blunt. Very blunt. She lacks social skills and tends to spout off facts to people just having conversations. She likes her routine. Every Friday, stop and buy pizza and vodka. And every Wednesday, she talks to her mother. Those are never very good for Eleanor. Her mother is mean and angry and leaves her feeling less than. Something happened to Eleanor when she was a child. Something that left her with a scar on her face and moving from foster home to foster home. Does she remember it all or is it her coping mechanism? Things start to change in her life when her company’s IT guy, Raymond, and Eleanor help an old man who has passed out in the street. Family is the one thing that she has been missing.

There is so much to Eleanor. In the beginning, I thought that I didn’t care too much for her but as time went on and she opened up, well, I fell in love with her. I would venture to say that she is on the autism spectrum. What a sad story she had lived and what a wonderful world opening up for her. Beautifully written and just a lovely story, you will fall in love with Eleanor too.
560 people found this helpful
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TA48
5.0 out of 5 starsWonderful read
May 31, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
So this book sweeps you right into quirky but sad Eleanor's life and for me, I was glad of it. I loved the way the book has just the right amount of detail and let's Eleanor's ways reveal moments of humor, sadness, strength, and vulnerability. I laughed and cried and cherished the journey with her to the end.
217 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars5 STARS!!!!!!!
December 4, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
I wish there were words for how much I loved this contemporary fiction/ chick-lit / Brit-lit novel.

SUMMARY
Eleanor Oliphant is the definition of 'socially awkward.' Think Sheldon from Big Bang Theory minus his little band of nerds and giant ego. Awkward!!! She is never sure if people are being sarcastic or serious. She gives a lot of unsolicited advice, thinking she is being helpful when she's really being obnoxious, then she mentally (and occasionally orally) notes what she perceives as others poor manners or stupidity in said person. She's hilarious without meaning to be.

From the very beginning, the reader knows that things are not 100% right for Eleanor. She has serious "Mummy Issues" (love the British Speak, mummy issues sound so much more sophisticated than mommy issues!), her coworkers blatantly make fun of her, she has no friends, she relies on vodka to get her through the weekend and has these mysterious scars on her face which are significant enough to cause people to stare.

On a very rare night out, she goes to a concert and completely falls for one of the musicians without even so much as exchanging a single word with him.

Eleanor begins a journey of physical self improvement in order to prep herself to meet this musician. Her journey includes a hilarious visit to a waxing salon, a couple extremely uncomfortable "practice" social outings and a few lol worthy shopping trips.

In addition to the outward improvements, Eleanor decides to open herself to new experiences so she will be ready when she meets her musician in person. Her newfound openness comes in handy when, after years of loneliness, she accidentally stumbles into two new unlikely friendships.
Although there are many truly amusing parts in this story, it also has a very serious side, particularly when the reader learns of Eleanor's past and the origins of her scars. Author, Gail Honeyman, slowly doles out the details of Eleanor's heartbreaking backstory leaving the reader 100% on Team Eleanor. I, for one, was cheering her on and celebrating her growth as though she were my real life friend.

WHAT I LOVED
Since I gave this book 5 Stars, and I rarely ever do, clearly I loved EVERYTHING about it. But here are just a few specific things which I loved:

The whole thing with Bobbie Brown makeup. She was soooooo clueless that she had no idea who Bobbie Brown is and at one point she 'questioned Ms Brown's work ethic' since Bobbie never seemed to be at her makeup counter.

I LOVED Eleanor's observations on other people and how she often missed the point so significantly and then she thought everyone but her was crazy. Super entertaining.

I loved how Eleanor just spoke her mind without concern for social convention. That was funny enough, but reading others reactions to her comment was the icing on the cake. Some people laughed and found her refreshing, others thought she was crazy or rude.

The story itself was just so darn good!!! In my opinion, a good book in this genre is one which makes the reader laugh, think deeply, feel significant empathy for the characters and stays with the reader long after completing the story. For me, this book did that, and more. I was so sad to see it end. I miss her already.

WHAT I DIDN'T LOVE
This book got my 5 star rating which means that if there was something I didn't love about the book, the good outweighed the bad so heavily that I forgot anything I didn't like.

OVERALL
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!
275 people found this helpful
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HG
4.0 out of 5 starsFairly Meh. Really sad story. Well edited.
July 30, 2018
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
First things first: this is a heart-wrenching novel that will make any empathetic person cry. I feel the need to point that out because of all those blurbs (like Reese Witherspoon's) describing the book as so funny. Sure, you might get a laugh or too. But the genre of this story is solidly tragedy, not comedy, and it's a little sick to mislead folks about that because Eleanor Oliphant is not fine, she is utterly crippled by horrific childhood abuse.

Her character is interesting, though, and well written. One of the most refreshing things about this novel is that it is well-edited. One or two slips, but on the whole, adequately prepared for sale (as opposed to, say, The Girl With All the Gifts, the publishers of which owe us all an apology - which, I am positive that Eleanor Oliphant would demand).

Nonetheless, the storyline is not altogether strong. The final 100 pages I was - as one review said - pushing to finish in a single sitting, but only because I had thoroughly lost interest and wanted to finish. It starts strong, with some nice surprises and lovely background details, but then the next steps become entirely predictable. Before reading the last 100 pages, I effectively had finished the story. The author seems to throw in the final surprise as a last ditch attempt to avoid this predictability, but it falls flat. The final surprise of the story contributes nothing to the tale, and feels like an amateur device intended to save the book, but in truth - if the author had left it out, I don't think it would have made an ounce of difference.

One the whole, this was a decent book, but not one I would pass along. Indeed, I accidentally ordered 2 copies and will be returning the second copy rather than gifting it, as I had originally thought I might. Chances are, if you are not excessively triggered by child abuse, you'll enjoy this book. But I am astounded that the book has received more praise than a mild - "Interesting" here and there.
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Amber619
2.0 out of 5 starsI know for the most part I'm alone in this opinion, but....
August 15, 2018
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
I really don't understand the hype behind this book. The ending was predictable. The characters didn't progress in a way that really drew me in. And the pseudo-intellectual internal dialogue was tiring at best. I thought I would form more of an attachment to this character (given her childhood, circumstances, and emotional issues) but it was just the opposite. I found myself reading it quickly, hoping that there would be a new twist that would draw me in... nope. By page 200, I stopped hoping for something to draw me and and started speed-reading just to get it over with. Disappointing.
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cilia
1.0 out of 5 starsSlow and very different from what the book is described to be about.
November 7, 2018
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
If this book was described as a look at a person with mental illness and her struggles, it might be a good read. However being described as a humorous book with a quirky main character is very misleading. This book may help people with mental illness relate to their own struggles, but it's definitely not a book you want to sit down to read for a good laugh.
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lindsay
5.0 out of 5 starsPage Turner
June 6, 2017
Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
I loved this book. Completely different than I expected, but in a refreshing way. I hate reading reviews that give everything away, so as a heads up, there are no spoilers here.

For whatever reason, even amidst all the rave reviews, I thought the book might be odd or boring; a whole book about a quirky woman, I thought how could this be so wonderful? However, it is so much more than that. It has in depth portrayal of a woman and her past and how she has come to be who she is. It details her struggles with a hurtful past, and as the story develops, so does our heroine. She begins to look at things in a new light, and grows into this beautiful strong and brave person. You want to applaud her in the end and give her a hug.

This is an intelligent and beautifully written story, a definite page turner. I highly recommend.
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Cycling Chef & BibliophileTop Contributor: Cooking
VINE VOICE
4.0 out of 5 starsAchingly Tragic but Potent Story for Modern Times
February 27, 2019
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
Eleanor, Eleanor, oh darling Eleanor: a surprising, deeply affecting character. A character that is unlike any I've read in recent memory. She is an endearing misfit and a charming underdog that I feel if we are honest with ourselves, we all will relate to. A piercing character that made me sit up and think about the not so savory things about myself and my own life. I think many women of a certain age - post 20s before 50, will sharply relate to Eleanor in some way. Part of me getting the most out of this book and allowing its lessons to penetrate through, was in letting go of any pretentious thinking I had that Eleanor was a fictional character. Because no, she is not fictional. She is very real. Look out, not even far, and you'll see her: at school, at the cubicle next to yours, at the supermarket, at church, at the gym, at the airport, down the street, two doors down from your bedroom, she's there.

Eleanor is the type of character that I perceive had she been written about a century or two ago, her fate would be different from what we read here. Even more tragic, which is saying a lot. In contemporary times when young women [and men] have access to all manner of comfort, countless entertainment options, myriad ways of communication, seemingly endless avenues of pleasures, Eleanor finds herself lost in the fray. She is barely visible, she is inaudible, heart-breakingly lonely and pining for the tiniest of human connection. Like a mustard seed floating in the Pacific, without compass, with only the rising and setting sun its company.

Immediately on page 3, I was taken by Eleanor's story. She is witty, she is smart. She is bitingly sassy, perceptive, wise beyond her years. Barely anything gets by her. Eleanor has a gift to see others as they likely are, yet she is unable to see herself for her own circumstances. Circumstances that are more serious than she herself knows. It has been a long time since a character could in one stream of their consciousness make me laugh, make me cry, and make me sit back and think about my own place in the world.

In our current age of conceited Instagram posts, vacuous tweets, infantile snapchats, plus the vapid pop culture lifestyle that insipid faux celebs try to pass off to fans as enviable in order to seek validation - Eleanor, like many of us, is hurting and drowning amidst all the fakery. To cope, she has built a wall around herself, one which she thinks protects her, not knowing that the higher the wall, the further she alienates herself from the potential kindness of strangers. Eleanor's tragic past as well as her sullen present are wrought with an underlying layer of sorrow. A sorrow that Gail Honeyman skillfully reveals at the methodical pace of someone peeling the fibrous layers of an acrid, soon to spoil onion. I say onion because once fully disclosed, the reader, like I was, will no doubt be on the verge of tears.

I enjoyed Eleanor's story immensely and I liked Honeyman's writing of her. She is unlike any female character I've read in a long time. I do however wished the author had written a longer story, delving deeper into Eleanor's past, and being more descriptive into Eleanor's earlier years. Had she done so, it would have made this book 5-stars for me. Despite some room for improvement in the overall story, 'Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine' is a tragically beautiful, powerful read and I highly recommend it. I recommend for women between the age of 20 to 50. I especially recommend it to teen girls, girls who are still discovering themselves, the ones who think the smallest of inconvenience is the end of the world. I highly recommend this book to men of all ages: dads, boyfriends, sons, husbands, male bosses, so they get to know one example of what their daughters, their girlfriends, their mothers, their wives, their female associates may be going through internally.

Lastly, there are two sentences on page 5, two of many that I highlighted during my reading and I've attached an image of - that I dare anyone to read and not truthfully admit that they themselves have not at least once felt this way in their life. These two sentences fully encapsulate who Eleanor is, and what her life is like in these wretched times. Pain and loneliness are universal, yet we each suffer as if we are a population of one.
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