#BookReview: Life should be better than fine

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine is a curiously captivating novel that will leave you both unsettled and uplifted.

This 2017 debut novel by Gail Honeyman won the 2017 Costa Debut Novel Award and is one I would gladly read again.

The story centres on Eleanor Oliphant, a 29-year-old socially awkward woman with a traumatic past.

Her life is simple and ruled by routines. Working as an office manager for the last nine years, every day is the same and that is just fine by her.

Weekends are a bit different. After work on Friday she picks up pizza, wine and two big bottles of Vodka. She spends the weekend mildly inebriated and alone.

But her predictable life is turned upside down when she falls in love with someone she has never met.

Convinced the lead singer of a local band is her soul mate, she begins to make changes to try and get his attention.

Then, when her computer at work stops working, she meets Raymond from IT.

He is intrigued but Elinor cares only for her crush. What transpires is both hilarious and hideously sad.

Honeyman’s story strikes many chords, deftly weaving themes of trauma, loneliness, kindness, compassion, and hope into a truly memorable story.

Look out for the movie too, as the film rights have been snapped up by Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine production company. Dates are still to be announced.

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