I've worked in offices my entire career, from being an entry-level temp in a four-person office to assisting the president of an international non-profit. No matter the size or stature, office life has certain universal truths, and Natalie Sue incorporated many of them into I Hope This Finds You Well, her debut novel. I appreciate seeing real life reflected in novels (I read pandemic novels during C*VID) so I loved this book.
No one in this fairly large cast of characters is likeable, but I could relate many to my past and current coworkers. I didn't find it "wildly funny" as the blurb declares, but I laughed out loud several times (especially at the definition of HR as Helpful, Rarely). Readers get to know some of the characters outside their work life which provides depth and growth in their story arc. The plot requires some suspension of disbelief, but I was fine with it.
I listened to most of the audiobook narrated by Nasim Pedrad while working overtime at my office, which provided a delightfully meta experience. This novel joins the TV series The Office and the movie Office Space as media depicting the quirks of office life.
I'm glad I was motivated to read this for my in-real-life book club. We had an interesting discussion of the book and our worst work experiences.
No one in this fairly large cast of characters is likeable, but I could relate many to my past and current coworkers. I didn't find it "wildly funny" as the blurb declares, but I laughed out loud several times (especially at the definition of HR as Helpful, Rarely). Readers get to know some of the characters outside their work life which provides depth and growth in their story arc. The plot requires some suspension of disbelief, but I was fine with it.
I listened to most of the audiobook narrated by Nasim Pedrad while working overtime at my office, which provided a delightfully meta experience. This novel joins the TV series The Office and the movie Office Space as media depicting the quirks of office life.
I'm glad I was motivated to read this for my in-real-life book club. We had an interesting discussion of the book and our worst work experiences.
