Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Gail Honeyman

May 2017 · HarperCollins

About this ebook

Over 2.5 million copies sold

‘Funny, touching and unpredictable’ Jojo Moyes

‘Heartwrenching and wonderful’ Nina Stibbe

Winner of Costa First Novel Award, a No.1 Sunday Times bestseller and the Book of the Year

Eleanor Oliphant has learned how to survive – but not how to live

Eleanor Oliphant leads a simple life. She wears the same clothes to work every day, eats the same meal deal for lunch every day and buys the same two bottles of vodka to drink every weekend.

Eleanor Oliphant is happy. Nothing is missing from her carefully timetabled life. Except, sometimes, everything.

One simple act of kindness is about to shatter the walls Eleanor has built around herself. Now she must learn how to navigate the world that everyone else seems to take for granted – while searching for the courage to face the dark corners she’s avoided all her life.

Change can be good. Change can be bad. But surely any change is better than... fine?

‘Moving, funny and devastating’ The Herald

‘Unforgettable, brilliant, funny and life-affirming’ Daily Mail

‘I adored it. Skilled, perceptive, Eleanor's world will feel familiar to you from the very first page. An outstanding debut!’ Joanna Cannon

Ratings and reviews

A great read! If you're looking for a book that is action packed then this may not be for you, however it is still amazingly written and the character is so weird and yet loveable. 4/5 because I will admit the beginning is a bit slow but it gets there, definitely

Eleanor is like someone who time-travelled from a different era; she's so hopelessly clueless about technology, social etiquette and modern trends that it's almost comical. You'll wonder in the beginning of the book if she was raised under a rock during her formative years. Her mysterious childhood life was further explored when the second half of the book took a darker turn, which explains her attitude and quirks. With the help of her friend Raymond, Eleanor crawls out of her shell, navigates the confusing world and faced her fears. I definitely recommend giving this book a try. The first few chapters are a bit slow but it gets better towards the middle of the story.

I felt almost uncomfortable at the start of reading this. I then warmed up to the character just for the book to end in a really crappy way. Like most I struggled to put the book down as it continuously gives you the impression something great is going to happen, that never happens. It was good, but nowhere near as good as the reviews make out. I just don't understand why the ratings are so high???

About the author

Gail Honeyman’s debut novel, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, won the Costa First Novel Award 2017, the British Book Awards Book of the Year and the Specsavers National Book Awards Popular Fiction Book of the Year.

Since publication, translation rights have sold to over thirty territories worldwide, Reese Witherspoon has optioned it for film and it was chosen as one of the Observer’s Debuts of the Year for 2017. Gail was also awarded the Scottish Book Trust’s Next Chapter Award in 2014, and has been longlisted for BBC Radio 4’s Opening Lines and shortlisted for the Bridport Prize.

Gail lives in Glasgow.