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The Best Awful (Abridged): A Novel Audiobook
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(2.99) - 683 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Suzanne Vale, the Hollywood actress, whose drug addiction and rehab rigors were so brilliantly dissected by Carrie Fisher in Postcards From the Edge, is back. And this time she has a new problem: She's had a child with someone who forgot to tell her he was gay. He forgot to tell her and she forgot to notice.
Suzanne's not sure she has what it takes to be the best mother to her daughter, Honey. She can't seem to shake the blues from losing Honey's father to Nick -- the man who got the man who got away. Or maybe those aren't the blues, just more symptoms of her sprawling multi-symptomatic bipolar illness: an illness Suzanne can't bring herself to take all that seriously, no matter what her doctors say. How serious can an illness be whose symptoms are spending sprees, substance abuse, and sexual promiscuity? And worst of all, under the watchful round eyes of the pills the doctors' plied her with, her friends are starting to find her a little...boring.
The obvious solution is to take a little walk on the wild side. But what starts out as a brief gambol through the scary/fun world of twenty-first-century dating becomes a vigorous jog-trot through the latest drug wonderland -- and finally a wild gallop toward a psychotic breakdown and a stay in "the bin."
Based on a truant's story, The Best Awful is Carrie Fisher's most powerful and revealing novel: hilarious, moving, and fully informed by the wisdom of a true survivor.
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"I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. I think it is a hard read, at least for me. There was too much of my child dancing through the pages. I loved it and I hated it. It is a very real look at bi-polar from the patient's point of view. It enlightened me and it terrified me."
— Charly (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“The Best Awful [is] Ms. Fisher’s most amusingly snarky book since Postcards From the Edge…tartly funny, inviting readers to tag along on a wild manic ride…fierce comic flair.”
— New York Times -
“The Best Awful promises over 250 pages of uninhibited entertainment.”
— Amazon.com, editorial review
The Best Awful Listener Reviews
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" I gave up on p.23. I just couldn't follow along with the babbley writing style. "
— Sandra, 1/13/2014 -
" For some reason, less absorbing and believable than her other books. Extremely clever wordplay crosses over the fine line into the realms of annoying puns. "
— Noel, 1/12/2014 -
" Carrie Fisher's crazy life growing up, one of many stories she has in book form. Not sure what is true and what is added in for fun, but quite an enjoyable read. "
— Donna, 1/8/2014 -
" this book should be called the worst awful. "
— Kelly, 1/6/2014 -
" awesome new fict, #2 Suzanne Vale bk "
— Michelle, 1/5/2014 -
" an interesting insight into a bipolar mind...I admit though, I was bored by the end.. "
— Bethany, 12/23/2013 -
" I really enjoyed Postcards from the Edge and Surrender the Pink. This book is just whiny and repetitive..couldn't even finish it. Terrible! "
— Maiann, 12/18/2013 -
" honest and sad. i read this at a point in my life when i was dealing with an asshole girlfriend and this book was soothing. "
— Joey, 11/19/2013 -
" This is a dizzying account of what it's like inside the head of someone who suffers from depression and bipolar disorder. It's funny but at times it was just too much for me. "
— Natasha, 11/1/2013 -
" I've been a longtime fan, just getting around to reading her books. I always wanted to write like her painting scenes with words. I enjoy this slice of her life and admire her courage to write about it. "
— Teesa, 11/1/2013 -
" OMG!!! The part about tong rings....LMFAO!!! "
— Melissa, 10/29/2013 -
" This wasn't nearly as interesting as "Wishful Drinking" and "Postcards from the Edge". Seemed to drag. "
— Elise, 10/22/2013 -
" This book was very similar to Fisher's "Wishful Drinking", just in novel form. "
— Erin, 10/15/2013 -
" I just could not relate to anyone in this story, the writing was just strings of words, and the ending was disappointing and somewhat depressing. "
— Christine., 8/12/2013 -
" Did not start off well for me, wasn't enjoying. 4 or so chapters in I quit reading it. "
— Desiree, 3/20/2013 -
" Snappy, but way too punny. Sangron is the word in Spanish, but there's no English word that does it justice. Obnoxious comes close. I guess it was supposed to be funny, but I found myself groaning more than laughing. "
— CELIA, 3/14/2013 -
" Boring, Boring, Why is this book so boring?? "
— Andrew, 10/14/2012 -
" Princess Leah is witty and funny!!!! "
— Angelica, 5/25/2012 -
" This was a pleasant read, but im not particulary motivated to go find myself another book by this author.... "
— Laura, 5/11/2012 -
" I don't know about Best, but it certainly is Awful. "
— Megan, 11/30/2011 -
" Carrie Fisher is someone I would love to meet. When you read this book, you want to sit down with her and say, "Now really, just how much of this is true." Another Times-Pic review by me. "
— Lauren, 11/14/2011 -
" i love carri fisher but this is her worst book. "
— Jessica, 7/7/2011 -
" Liked it. Laughed. Am now resolved to never become friends w/Carrie Fisher, despite how awesome she is, b/c she writes about her life and just changes the names. "
— Nadia, 7/4/2011 -
" This is one of my all time favorite books. Carrie Fisher's description of life with bipolar disorder is dead on. She is one of the funniest writers I've ever read. "
— Laura, 7/2/2011 -
" awesome new fict, #2 Suzanne Vale bk "
— Michelle, 4/1/2011 -
" This book was very similar to Fisher's "Wishful Drinking", just in novel form. "
— Erin, 4/1/2011 -
" "I'm just smart enough to be unhappy."<br/><br/>"... her battle to accept a life so often seeming so inexplicably unacceptable."<br/><br/> "
— Valissa, 11/19/2010 -
" I've been a longtime fan, just getting around to reading her books. I always wanted to write like her painting scenes with words. I enjoy this slice of her life and admire her courage to write about it. "
— Teesa, 10/6/2010 -
" Carrie Fisher is hilarious and has a great eye for the absurd in Hollywood. "
— Alane, 1/6/2010 -
" Borrowed this from a bipolar friend of mine who, amzaingly enough, did not seem to recognize her own behavior mirrored in this book at all. "
— Llefser, 12/16/2009 -
" Not nearly as good as Postcards From The Edge. She uses an overtly strange writing style that she seems to be trying to impress the reader with and it just makes you conscious of her writing sty;e throughout the book rather than being able to focus on what she's saying. "
— Amber, 12/1/2009 -
" This was a pleasant read, but im not particulary motivated to go find myself another book by this author.... "
— Laura, 11/17/2009 -
" The writing felt a little forced at times, like every sentence had to be clever and witty. However, it was an intriguing glimpse at the mind and experiences of a person with bipolar disorder. "
— Karen, 7/30/2009 -
" I just could not relate to anyone in this story, the writing was just strings of words, and the ending was disappointing and somewhat depressing. "
— Christine., 7/12/2009 -
" This wasn't nearly as interesting as "Wishful Drinking" and "Postcards from the Edge". Seemed to drag. "
— Elise, 5/30/2009
About Carrie Fisher
Carrie Fisher (1956–2016) was an author, actress, and humorist best known for her role as Princess Leia in the Star Wars franchise. She appeared in many other films, including Shampoo, When Harry Met Sally, The Blues Brothers, and Hannah and Her Sisters, among others. She wrote four bestselling novels: Surrender the Pink, Delusions of Grandma, The Best Awful, and Postcards from the Edge, as well as the memoirs Shockaholic and Wishful Drinking. The daughter of the singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds, she appeared with her mother in Bright Lights: Starring Carried Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, a 2016 documentary about their relationship, which premiered at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.