Review of By Accident

[Kutloano Makhuvhela]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "By Accident" by Joanne Greene.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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By Accident by Joanne Greene is a memoir about life, setbacks, perseverance, pain, family, and tradition. It is all centred around the author, taking us on her life-changing events that made her view of life different and what moulded her to be the person she is. It is a kind of memoir that is different from everything that you might find typical in the genre of memoir. It sets itself apart by its tone and message. A relaxed book that will inspire you as much as make you emotional.

The book opens up with Joanne getting hit by a car and not being aware of where she is or what is going on. She is oblivious to the goings-on around her until help arrives. This event, which is certainly tragic, opened another dimension in Joanne’s life of which she was not aware. She has always lived on a whim, immersing herself in the work, and this accident worked like a wake-up call to her. She now has to rely on people for certain things, including healing. Fred, her husband, is the one person close to her.

This accident forces Joanne to reflect on her life. Many people who are dear to her have passed on, especially in her family. Deaths came consecutively and struck her a heavy blow. This feels impossible, but she takes every day as it comes. She reminisces about Fred, how they met, and what it was like to live with him. It wasn’t easy because he also had issues of his own that he had to work on. Now Joanne is healing and is looking forward to the new chapter ahead of her. She heals slowly and now has to work on her reintegration into society after being away from it for so long. It proves to be hard, but not like receiving another piece of news that might make the accident look like nothing.

It is not easy to write a memoir about your life as it is. Most memoirs require a lot of dramatisation to sell their stories. They need over-the-top scenes, which quite frankly are questionable, to make the reader immerse themselves in them. But this memoir is greatly different in that it tells the author’s life story as it is, making it come out as authentic, real, and believable as it is. The author presented herself as she was and did not hide her scars and victories.

The penmanship was the biggest highlight. The author’s writing was concise, calm, and convincing. During her healing stages, as a reader, I had to understand what she was going through, and the author used words and phrases that best described her tragic situation. The selection of those words made her sentences flow, moving the book steadily forward. The pace was quick, and this was perfect as the book was less than 200 pages. A fast reader might finish it in one sitting if they are emotional strong.

The organisation and presentation were the second highlights. The use of features like flashbacks made the book interesting. The switch from past and present (which was achieved through the use of past and present tenses) made the book exciting and fun. It complemented the tones each era was discussing. You cannot be bored when you do not know what to expect in the next paragraph. The mystery and guessing brought challenges to the reading experience. The cover was thought-provoking.

The chapters were equally short and made the reading fast. I also noticed the diction that was relevant to their times and areas. The introduction of other characters made the story of the author both sad and amazing. All these characters, although appearing briefly, were well done in that they all had personalities that made the author’s reaction to them realistic.

There is nothing I dislike about it because it met and exceeded my expectations. I love the fact that it was exceptionally edited because I didn’t detect any errors that could have diluted the quality of the book. The conclusion was my favourite part. It did not leave me with question marks or yearning, but with a closure that made me glad I read the book. The humour brought out another comic side that perhaps the author didn’t notice she had.

So for everything I have said, I am proud to award this book a full five out of five stars. This is a must-read for anyone who loves memoirs and inspirational books. A few curse words are used here and there, but not in excess to balance it. I would recommend it to teenagers, as a discussion of parental neglect and its effects is included. My favourite quote Is: ‘Be patient. Progress isn’t always linear.’ [page 44).

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By Accident
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