Review: Hilarious and Tragic
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 27, 2012
From the very beginning of this book I was intrigued by Amy and her almost unbelievable story. The book is full of wit and wildly funny descriptions of her fall from the heights and how she struggles to come out on the other side of a long dark tunnel. This may sound like it has all the content to make a depressing book, financial ruin, cancer, marriage troubles, a mentally ill daughter and more, but it is hilarious in the telling. There are also tender moments and incredibly emotional parts of the story like the loss of her hair from cancer treatment and the love and frustration she feels for her daughter and also her mentally ill husband. She comes across in the end as a very strong and honest person that you can't help but like.The book is written in straightforward chronological style and the use of language is inventive and sometimes poetic, but there are a few strange spelling choices, for example, (loc 559) trode, for trod as a past participle of tread, and (loc 6401) either for neither, although some may be explained by the differences in use between American English and European English.The story seemed a bit rushed at times and I would have liked to have learned more about Amy's family and early life to put some bones on her character. However, having said all this I thoroughly enjoyed the book, it is unique and honest and genuinely funny.