Post by voguedotcom on Oct 4, 2020 16:59:07 GMT
Originally posted on my Goodreads HERE.
I’m going to start off by saying that if this book had not been by someone like Dawn O’Porter, whose writing I already know I love, I’m not sure I would ever have picked up a book like this one.
Being totally honest, the idea of pushing your lockdown diaries comes across as a bit of a self-indulgent concept (which I guess it is, in a way), and I wouldn’t necessarily have thought that lockdown diaries would be all that interesting really – especially when you consider we’re all stuck inside every day with very little variation. But Dawn’s writing is so humorous and refreshing that it didn’t feel that way at all.
Life in Pieces was not a perfect read by any means; there were parts of it that were repetitive (something that’s difficult to avoid when in lockdown, I guess), and it definitely showed a certain privilege that Dawn and Chris have (I don’t think many people reading this would be able to say they can afford a Peloton!), but at least there is an awareness of this in the writing.
Some of the repetitiveness was offset, though, by Dawn’s wonderful sense of humour and the different ways she has at looking at situations. I often found myself laughing out loud at a situation that wasn’t THAT hilarious, but was made so by Dawn’s phrasing. I even stopped to read passages aloud to my partner, they were so funny and relatable.
There were definitely parts of this that were relatable too, which I didn’t necessarily expect. I don’t live in LA, I’m not a writer with an actor for a husband, and we don’t have children. I don’t really drink alcohol and I have never taken drugs that aren’t prescription, but Dawn is still incredibly relatable in the struggles she has and the candidness with which she writes about them.
I especially related to her deep and affectionate love of FOOD. Cooking is also a happy activity for me (not least because there is something tasty to consume at the end of it), and not eating too much has been a real challenge for many during the lockdown period, so it was nice to see I was not alone in that calorific struggle.
The other element of this that I liked was how honest and open Dawn was in exploring and discussing her worries and struggles. She discusses grief in great detail, lockdown having started just after the funeral of her good friend Caroline Flack. It was heart-breaking to go through part of that experience with her, and watch her try to come to terms with the loss of a friend at the same time as we all lost our ways of living.
All in all, this was a good read that I enjoyed more than I expected to. It was laugh-out-loud funny and entertaining in a way I did not expect. Although not as enjoyable as her novels (in particular The Cows, it was still a read I enjoyed and would recommend to others.
I’m going to start off by saying that if this book had not been by someone like Dawn O’Porter, whose writing I already know I love, I’m not sure I would ever have picked up a book like this one.
Being totally honest, the idea of pushing your lockdown diaries comes across as a bit of a self-indulgent concept (which I guess it is, in a way), and I wouldn’t necessarily have thought that lockdown diaries would be all that interesting really – especially when you consider we’re all stuck inside every day with very little variation. But Dawn’s writing is so humorous and refreshing that it didn’t feel that way at all.
Life in Pieces was not a perfect read by any means; there were parts of it that were repetitive (something that’s difficult to avoid when in lockdown, I guess), and it definitely showed a certain privilege that Dawn and Chris have (I don’t think many people reading this would be able to say they can afford a Peloton!), but at least there is an awareness of this in the writing.
Some of the repetitiveness was offset, though, by Dawn’s wonderful sense of humour and the different ways she has at looking at situations. I often found myself laughing out loud at a situation that wasn’t THAT hilarious, but was made so by Dawn’s phrasing. I even stopped to read passages aloud to my partner, they were so funny and relatable.
There were definitely parts of this that were relatable too, which I didn’t necessarily expect. I don’t live in LA, I’m not a writer with an actor for a husband, and we don’t have children. I don’t really drink alcohol and I have never taken drugs that aren’t prescription, but Dawn is still incredibly relatable in the struggles she has and the candidness with which she writes about them.
I especially related to her deep and affectionate love of FOOD. Cooking is also a happy activity for me (not least because there is something tasty to consume at the end of it), and not eating too much has been a real challenge for many during the lockdown period, so it was nice to see I was not alone in that calorific struggle.
The other element of this that I liked was how honest and open Dawn was in exploring and discussing her worries and struggles. She discusses grief in great detail, lockdown having started just after the funeral of her good friend Caroline Flack. It was heart-breaking to go through part of that experience with her, and watch her try to come to terms with the loss of a friend at the same time as we all lost our ways of living.
All in all, this was a good read that I enjoyed more than I expected to. It was laugh-out-loud funny and entertaining in a way I did not expect. Although not as enjoyable as her novels (in particular The Cows, it was still a read I enjoyed and would recommend to others.