I had high hopes for this Canadian writer and comedian, a writer for the show Schitt’s Creek which I LOVE! I would have rated this book 3 stars, but one line caught my eye, and I felt it rather strongly as one of the most relatable thing I’d read in a while: I was very sold on the set up though: a young, pithy woman goes through a divorce and has to cope with all the changes that brings. She struggles to achieve independence (financial and otherwise) when she’s been part of a couple for so much of her adult life. She doesn’t necessarily know entirely who she is, how to go about being a responsible adult, or have complete control over her emotions and even though I haven’t been married or divorced, it was relatable. Unfortunately for me the execution fell short, but maybe if I experienced divorce I would appreciate it more. My marriage ended because I was cruel. Or because I ate in bed. Or because he liked electronic music and difficult films about men in nature. Or because I did not. Or because I was anxious, and this made me controlling. Or because red wine makes me critical. Or because hunger, stress, and white wine make me critical, too. Or because I was clingy at parties. Or because he smoked weed every day, and I did not think it was “actually the same thing” as my drinking two cups of coffee in the morning. Or because we fell in love too young, and how could our actual lives compare to the idea we’d had of what our lives could be when we were barely twenty and our bodies were almost impossibly firm? Or because we tried non-monogamy for three months in 2011, and it was just fine, not great. Or because he put hot sauce on everything, without tasting it, even if I’d spent hours balancing the flavours from a recipe I’d had to scroll past a long and detailed story about some woman’s holiday to find. Or because he forgot our anniversary once. Or because I did our laundry never. Or because his large Greek family had not quite accepted me as one of their own, even after I learned his yiayia’s favourite poem for her birthday. Or because he walked in on me shitting that time. Or because, in 2015, we attended nine weddings and got carried away, and a big party where everyone told us we were geniuses for loving each other then gave us three thousand dollars seemed like a great idea. Or because we went to Paris and had an argument instead of falling more in love or at least rimming each other. Or because I’d stopped imagining what our children might look like. Or because he’d never started. Or because I was insecure, and sometimes petty. Or because he kept insisting we go vegan, then sneaking pizzas into the apartment while I slept. Or because we finished watching The Sopranos and never started The Wire. Or because when we were first getting together, I’d kissed someone else, and sometimes still thought about her. Or because he was needlessly combative, with a pretentious streak. Or because I was a coward, whose work did not “actively seek to dismantle the state.” Or because I scoffed when he said that and asked about the socialist impact of his latest McDonald’s commercial. Or because he called me a cunt. Or because sometimes, I was one. Anyway, it was over.

However, all that being said I have little doubt this but will be a hit if not because of the authors script writing credentials. It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges.

Really, Good, Actually is also an incredibly powerful reminder that people don't need to be fixed, but they do need support, and they best possibly loving intervention you can provide if you have the energy to give? Also, to not mention any kind of random Japanese pottery theory about broken people... Really, though, let's all encourage our friends to seek professional help when we can see they're clearly struggling and we don't have the tools to help them. 🥺🥺 Almost every time Heisey comes close to a serious idea about Maggie’s inner turmoil – she also went through divorce as a twentysomething – it’s bookended with a deadpan quip. One of the most hotly anticipated, hilarious and addictive debut novels of 2023, from Schitt’s Creek and Workin’ Moms screenwriter and an electric new voice in fiction, Monica Heisey. A hilarious and painfully relatable debut novel about one woman’s messy search for joy and meaning in the wake of an unexpected breakup, from comedian, essayist, and award-winning screenwriter Monica Heisey I feel like when you get a divorce everyone’s wondering how you ruined it all, what made you so unbearable to be with. If your husband dies, at least people feel bad for you.

I've never been through a divorce, but they happen every day to the people we love around us... it was a great insight into what people really go through in cleaving their life from someone else's. I think the reason I had a hard time with this, even though there are some great insights... so much of this is a rambling mess? This book is like someone's intrusive thoughts gone rogue. lol... I think I liked it more in the end because the character grew so much? But during that, I was constantly trying to hide from the cringy parts while simultaneously laughing at the absolute absurdity of some of it. Meh that was boring. The main character was so irritating and insufferable it's no surprise her husband left her. In fact, I'm surprised he didnt leave her earlier. It turns into a superbly cutting, self-aware list, detailing everything from him putting hot sauce on every meal she lovingly crafts to her never doing the laundry and that his weed habit not being, in her view, ‘actually the same thing’ as her drinking two cups of coffee in the morning. She ends with a brilliantly sardonic shrug. ‘Anyway, it was over.’I’m giving it 2 stars because I managed to finish it, but I expected something good to happen at some point. I’m sad to say I regret the investment.