Even after sitting on it, I am still not sure how I feel about Everything Is Fine, I’ll Just Work Harder: Confessions of a Former Badass by Cara Gormally. I started and stopped when trying to write the review multiple times. I even started before I officially finished the book so I could try and think out what a piece of the writing evoked in me.
In the end, I am going to say that Everything is Fine is a personal read. You take from it what you put into it. Your own experiences (personal and with family and friends) will color your feelings. This is mostly due to the issues presented. It deals with several serious issues (such as sexual assault and mental health issues) and how the author is, or is not, dealing with them. Obviously this means there will be triggers present while reading.
One of the biggest issues dealt with is the sexual assault and the showing of that assault. While it is done in a way that is neither graphic or gratuitous it is obvious and does not shy away from details. Obviously it is intense, but also confusing. This is partly due to the fact that I can’t imagine what Gormally is feeling (during that time and then writing about it) and the fact that the illustrations are borderline almost humorous. No, assault is not funny, but the hairy legged perpetrator and his tiny member just made me wonder why did Gormally portray things that way? Is it just their style or was it meant to be deeper?
And this exploration occurs because of something as simple, seemily innocent as a Facebook friend request. Why? It is from the man who assaulted her all those years ago.
This is what I finally came away with after finishing the writing (and editing multiple times) of this review: You will be thinking about it a long time to come.
