thegreatmanda's Reviews (459)

I have a lot of things in common with Jean Louise, and I can identify with some of her experiences in this book. She faces some ugly, messy truths about the flaws and failings inherent in being human, and that made this a difficult, exhausting, but important reading experience for me.

This might be my favorite book of all time. That's how funny it is, and that's how deeply it's truths resonated for me.

This is a very unusual book. Even though I enjoyed every sentence, I found myself having to pause frequently and consume it in 20-page sips each day. It felt like reading more in one sitting would spoil me for all other writing, as if my brain would just decide this style is the new norm. It feels like both a lighthearted fun story and a very heavy and emotional tome all at once.

I had a hard time getting into this at the beginning. It bothers me when fiction writers get so involved with world-building that they pelt a new reader with unfamiliar proper nouns immediately. There are more elegant, less alienating ways to bring your reader into that world and show them all the cool stuff you've made.

Once I got through that initial annoyance and put concepts to all the names, I was invested in the world and extremely fond of the main character. I will definitely be continuing with the next book in the series.