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By: FEILD 004
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2025-06-23 09:44:14 |
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Group appreciated Maggie's skill as a writer. Found the book easy to read and engaging. Something to learn and ponder on about how we live our lives. |
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By: DUNED 015
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2025-05-19 10:23:46 |
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We enjoyed the episodic style, short punchy sections, and great writing. Some of us now reading all of O'Farrell's output! |
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By: AUCK 183
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2025-03-26 12:41:42 |
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Most people did not finish this book - found it either depressing, exaggerated, or a woman making stupid decisions. I thought it was well-written, with interesting words, and that she was a real 'fighter'. |
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By: MOSG 004
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2024-10-16 10:06:30 |
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A great read. Well-written book which encouraged good discussion. We were all exhausted when we had finished the read! |
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By: NELS 040
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2023-09-25 13:24:14 |
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Those who persevered found this a fascinating way to write a memoir. Others found it all too much. |
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By: AUCK 440
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2023-07-26 11:42:31 |
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Readable but found it a little disjointed and the stories told in a slightly remote way. The reading experience wasn't especially memorable. The stories at the start and end of the book were significant. Some of the stories in the middle were a little more ordinary. |
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By: WELL 018
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2023-05-24 15:02:00 |
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We enjoyed this book in general. We thought it was an interesting way to present an autobiography. |
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By: TAPA 001
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2022-10-10 14:24:05 |
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Our group enjoyed this book. Well-written. Great conversations about our own near misses in life. |
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By: DRUM 001
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2022-08-22 15:02:03 |
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We found it an unusual read. Some chapters were more memorable than others, although all were well-written. She was prepared to take risks many of us would not have taken, but that challenged our thinking. |
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By: CHCH 086
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2022-05-27 16:06:24 |
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Writing excellent. Not enjoyed by all. Some felt it was unbelievable. |
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By: DUNED 036
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2022-05-27 16:05:01 |
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Most of our group really enjoyed this book. Great discussion on near death experiences amongst the group. Maggie O'Farrell now on some of the group members' authors to read! |
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By: AUCK 277
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2022-03-07 11:05:37 |
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Three of us gave this book a 5, one gave a rating of 1 1/2, the rest of the group gave it a 4. Most of us could really relate to the book and we loved the author's writing. Fabulous to start the BDS year with such an outstanding book. |
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By: AUCK 037
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2022-01-12 11:36:41 |
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Most members were somewhat disappointed in this memoir - in the sense that they found the author irresponsible, lacking in judgement and careless. The writing is high quality, and most have previously read Maggie O'Farrell's fiction, which they'd enjoyed. Maybe the honesty of the memoir makes it too easy to for us to judge her! |
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By: OMAR 001
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2021-06-11 11:17:16 |
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Most of the group enjoyed it once they got past the boring beginning. The comment made was that if they had read the last couple of chapters first, they would have understood the reason for the book. |
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By: CHCH 337
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2021-04-21 10:16:12 |
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A very popular book in our group! We loved her writing style, and the language was beautiful. An interesting insight into how her 'brushes' with death have shaped her outlook on life, her attitudes to death, and not sweating the small stuff. |
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By: CHCH 319
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2021-03-08 11:44:05 |
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Mixed reviews. Beautiful writing. Some thought repetitive. Some felt it was a good opportunity to reflect on near misses in our own lives. |
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By: DUNED 004
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2021-02-23 14:49:13 |
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Mixed response. Those who had read O'Farrell's other books really enjoyed this. Others thought she was incredibly lacking in risk awareness to the level of the foolhardy. |
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By: INVER 017
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2021-02-23 14:47:33 |
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Overall the group enjoyed the book, although the style of back and forth in time was found irritating for some. |
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By: CHCH 012
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2020-08-14 12:26:10 |
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An eventful life. A description of a life marked by both bad luck and poor decision making. This led her into some precarious situations. But both she and her family prevailed. |
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By: BLENH 013
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2020-07-13 14:57:49 |
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Everyone enjoyed the writing style, but a few found it annoying! I think this was because she was always having these life-threatening moments, and sometimes they could have been avoided. I personally loved it. |
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By: DANNE 001
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2020-05-25 14:44:02 |
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Most of us enjoyed the style of the book and its language. Some had quibbles about the order of the stories/chapters, and would have liked the 2nd to last chapter to be first to explain the rest of the chapters. Also, how did she remember her early experiences Members discussed that for some time, with examples. |
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By: CHCH 480
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2020-05-13 11:07:23 |
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This book had mixed reviews from the group. We were unable to meet to discuss the book, due to COVID 19 lock down. Two of the group did not finish it and one described it as self-indulgent. Those who did finish it enjoyed the memoir and felt the last two chapters brought it all together. Another member who discovered Maggie O'Farrell's writing 20 years ago and has read all her novels, was very moved by the final chapters. Under different circumstances we may have been able to have a more in depth discussion. |
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By: CHCH 317
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2020-05-11 13:53:58 |
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We had interesting feedback on this book - mixed reactions. Most found it a little disjointed, mainly because the events were not in chronological order. The author seemed to be a most unlucky person; the final chapter was quite an impressive insight into living with a child with an extreme allergy. Reading is recommended. |
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By: NAP 011
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2020-05-11 13:49:06 |
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Everyone loved this book. O'Farrell's writing is lyrical, and we couldn't help admiring her bravery, stoicism and lack of self-pity. Equally she was also foolhardy at times, but it all made for great reading. |
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