This is an absolutely wonderful story.
Eleanor is a lonely but self contained 30-year-old. At the age of 10 she experienced a trauma that she never received any help with so she repressed her memories and her emotions. She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. I found her deadpan quirkiness and unconscious wit endearing.
Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding unnecessary human contact. She eats her lunch at work alone while doing crossword puzzles. Weekends are spent eating pizza, nursing a bottle of vodka and a pop-star obsession, and phone chats with Mummy.
But everything changes when Eleanor meets Raymond, the bumbling, unhygienic IT guy from her office. One day after leaving work Eleanor and Raymond see an elderly gentleman fall, Raymond goes to his aid and asks Eleanor to help as well. Reluctantly Eleanor agrees, and, as a consequence finds that she is unwittingly drawn into a friendship which will rescue all three of them from their lives of isolation.
Beautifully written, a charming gem of a book.
~Happy Reading ~
Polly x
I also read this book recently and unfortunately my reaction was not as enthusiastic as your own. It’s not that I disliked the story, but found it a tedious read because Eleanor was not an appealing character.
ReplyDeleteHello Beatrice, yes I understand she wouldn't appeal to everyone. I get the quirky slightly damaged character.
DeleteI read this one some time ago. I also sympathised with the quirky character and I enjoyed the book. Eleanor may not be appealing in any conventional sense but she's intriguing.
ReplyDeleteShe is intriguing, and sometimes I thought how refreshing to say what is exactly on your mind withought worrying what people might think. She wasn't rude or hurtful though.
DeleteWonderful review, Polly. I've had this book in my pile for a while now, I'm moving it up.
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
Thank you Amalia, I hope you enjoy it :-)
DeleteI read this book a while ago and really enjoyed it!
ReplyDelete