dePalafox

An invaluable book to those who are interested in the “woman question” and the women throughout history who had important contributions to philosophy. It's earned a place on my shelf with that alone. Intertwined with the fascinating historical and biographical context of these women is Regan's own journey—this is less interesting, and the combination feels a bit meandering at times. But it's easy to sympathize and learn with her as she catalogs her own history and relationship with these women and their writing, so the lack of direction doesn't mar the work terribly much.

With a rich bibliography of so many other works I want to dig into, I'll be keeping this inspirational tome around for quite a while.

everything is ok is a candid look into debbie's struggles with depression, anxiety and the steps she takes towards being able to better manage these feelings to live a happier life.

if you've never read anything like this before and are unsure how to make things “okay” in your own life, you might get a lot out of it. it's mundane in a good, very relatable way: the pages are filled with advice, situations and positive affirmations that one would discuss lightly with their therapist.

with the above being said, for me this was mostly OK and didn't leave much of an impression. i prefer explorations of these types of topics to have a deeper, more unique perspective.

a genuine-feeling, encouraging little memoir.

it's a quick read. it wouldn't be the worst choice if you're someone struggling with your mental health and are looking for something to relate to for the first time. you may find it helpful.

if you've read the midnight library, you'll find similar elements between it and this memoir. no staggering insights, but it's fun to connect the dots.

he does romanticize the idea of depression and anxiety as being things that help show the true beauty of life and conductive to creativity and greatness. i think there is some truth to that. but it's also a dangerous notion, the idea that if only you could live with these terrible, dark things within you, flirting with them, you will be a stronger person.

which isn't to say it's impossible to manage your anxiety and depression on your own. but if it's severely affecting your life, if you have the resources to i highly recommend finding a therapist you're compatible with, which can be an entire ordeal by itself, and considering if medication would be helpful.

it was okay.

i listened to the audiobook which had an appropriately jovial, friendly tone.

overall, a lighthearted seafaring adventure with characters that are fun and exactly who they appear to be. except for i guess, dunya. was pleasantly surprised at the inclusion of a trans character, and the ending reveal of who the narrator is was fun. but, the trans experience is never really explored *too* much, and i didn't expect them to be for a side character in this kind of novel.

won't be something i return to, but was nice to put on in the background while attending to other things.

now i need a sexy demon husband for myself.

A bit of an unrelatable, exhausting slog with some appealing line work. I'll applaud the last few pages for being poignant.