Jenny Lawson suffers from depression and anxiety, yet she manages to write about her life in a funny and engaging way. She is the New York Times bestselling author of Furiously Happy and Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, but Broken is arguably her most personal book. She talks about her life living with depression and anxiety in a heartwarming and honest way, sharing her downs and triumphs as she lives, sometimes surviving and sometimes thriving. Along the way, at her side for everything, is her steady husband, Victor.
Each of the chapters is themed, so you can read this in small bursts. I particularly enjoyed the chapter about the six times she lost her shoes while wearing them! This seems unbelievable at first, but when Jenny explains the situation, you just know she will lose more shoes in this way in the future – and they will probably be riding by themselves up and down in a hotel lift.
Another hilarious chapter is all about ‘Awkwarding Brings Us Together,’ and Jenny has listed loads of examples shared by others that are genuinely awkward but very funny and relatable. E.g., ‘First date. Never eaten pistachios before. Crunched into a handful, shell and all. Pretended that’s how I preferred them.’ ‘Used to work at Home Depot & came across a man looking at paintbrushes. Need a hand? I said. He turned. He was missing a hand.’
More poignantly, she talks about some treatment she has that actually makes a difference – allowing her to go to Europe with her family on a trip none of them thought she would ever be able to do.
Broken is a surprisingly upbeat book about living with depression, and it also has the most endearing front cover!
Reviewer: Karen McMillan
Macmillan, RRP $39.99