Official Review: Lessons From a Difficult Person

[EmunahAn]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Lessons From a Difficult Person" by Sarah H. Elliston.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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At the age of fifty, Sarah H. Elliston comes to a painful realization yet an enlightening one. She realizes that many around her consider her difficult! At first, she cannot believe let alone understand how she has lived her life all these years as a difficult person to the people she has lived with and encountered in her life. Denise, her boss who informs her of her distracting nature, tells it to her straight and does so effectively. After this encounter, Sarah gives the experience deep thought. She realizes she has to change and for her to do so, she has to be honest and work through her painful experiences as a child.

What baffled me as the reader is that no one really told her of her disruptive habits and how it affected them. True, others did try but when you read the book you soon understand that many choose to ignore or look past the habits of difficult people while others say something about it but do so ineffectively. This then introduces a number of questions. Why are some people difficult? How can you tell that a person is difficult? Where do you take it from there? Fortunately, Elliston does a great job of answering these questions in the book, Lessons from a Difficult Person. She covers important aspects of recovery. She also explains who a difficult person is and what can be done about it.

The beauty of this book is that the author, Sarah H. Elliston, is a recovering difficult person herself. She has seen it, lived it and is recovering from her past lifestyle. She is now passionately helping those who are considered difficult as well as those around them. The book contains incredible depth aided by the author’s own experiences from her childhood days to her adult life. I liked that Elliston included these sub-plots as they enriched my reading experience and provided a basis for understanding the message contained in Lessons from a Difficult Person.

Further, the book contains invaluable exercises that the reader can use to put into practice what they have learned. The exercises are thought-provoking and educative. They created a way for me to understand the content more deeply and apply it in real life.

Additionally, the book is well-written, with very few grammatical errors and told in a language that was easy to understand. It is also incredibly researched, extremely helpful and practical. We all encounter difficult people in our lives from our bosses, colleagues, family members, and even friends. I myself can think of a few. I was grateful to learn how to handle them and how to effectively communicate my feelings. Overall, reading Lessons from a Difficult Person was thoroughly informative. I, therefore, rate the book 4 out of 4 stars.

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Lessons From a Difficult Person
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[kandscreeley]

I love that the author knows that she's a difficult person. Isn't that the first step to fixing any problem? I can believe that no one told her about her problems. We tend to talk about people behind their backs instead of going straight to that person. Thanks for the review. Sounds like a really intriguing book.

[EmunahAn]

I love that the author knows that she's a difficult person. Isn't that the first step to fixing any problem? I can believe that no one told her about her problems. We tend to talk about people behind their backs instead of going straight to that person. Thanks for the review. Sounds like a really intriguing book.

Thanks. It was a really informative book and I highly recommend it.

[CMwangi]

This is a must read book for one to get to know their personality, sometimes we don't get to understand our character, and without proper advice and pointing out by our friends, we may never know. This book will help a person get to know more about themselves, and avoid the pitfalls of being a difficult person. I have benefited from this book from learning more about myself, and become a less difficult person and be more acceptable to others

[Bamporiki]

This the best book contains a lot lessons and motivation .Sarah .H.Elliston.You done well and I admire your courage which many people don't have so I recommend your book to the youth,depressed and in the schools "She covers important aspects of recovery. She also explains who a difficult person is and what can be done about it." Very touching words , I give this book 4Stars..

[Suman2 11986]

This is the one of the best book I ever read that actually speaking about the personality, which we don't get to understand our character, and without any other advice and pointing out by our friends also ,Author wonderfully describe about the characters and she describe very beautifully by word about the different characters of people ,and how they talk in front and in your back...this book is the good example for new generation to youth..I will give this book 5 star..

[Amberlily]

Wow, this sounds awesome! This is especially great to know if you work in retail, because we all know those difficult people come along rather often. Since she is a difficult person herself, it sounds like we get in inside look as to why certain people act this way, and that maybe they are not even aware of it. Great review! I might give this one a read sometime.

[NL Hartje]

What baffled me as the reader is that no one really told her of her disruptive habits and how it affected them.

Meh, I think it happens more than we realize. At the risk of being too stereotypical, I would venture that most Americans are now pegged as some version of either a doormat or a firestarter.

[Kat Berg]

It does sound like an interesting book. Although I have a ton of questions, as the term difficult is so...subjective. I wonder if she would have been considered a difficult person if she were a man? Sometimes the term "difficult" can be quite gendered. What is difficult for a woman is simply being a go-getter or having high standards for a man. I do hope that was taken into account by the author. But as others have said, knowing you have a problem is the beginning of change.

[Arrigo_Lupori]

I don't really like the title, what is a "difficult person" anyway? There are many ways one could rephrase it. I don't know, I think this isn't for me.

[Jkhorner]

Yikes, what a lesson to learn late in life. It's great that you found the book actually answers the questions it raises!

What baffled me as the reader is that no one really told her of her disruptive habits and how it affected them

I kind of get this -- we often don't want to be the one that stirs the pot and make everything even worse. Unfortunately, wanting the best for someone else usually means saying the hard things.

[JJNP]

I was drawn to this review because as someone with Asperger Syndrome, people find me 'difficult' because I do and say things differently. It hurts, and although I spent a lot of time working on my traits and relating well to others, I can't always get it right.
The book certainly gets my attention. We all have difficult things about us, we all drive some people mad sometimes. Self-reflection is never a bad thing, and trying to relate to people in a way that they don't find difficult is good, on the other hand we are all human, we won't always get it right.
I think I may add this book to my shelf. Thanks.

[Lincolnshirelass]

This was a very good review, but I don't know if I'm happy with the premise of the book. Obviously, a person who is constantly bad-tempered and unkind should consider changing their ways, and wondering what may have made them that way, but just because a person does not necessarily conform to the norms of 'positive thought' and the like, it doesn't mean they should feel compelled to alter their nature. I realise within the confines of a short review you can't possibly refer to everything, and apologise if I have misinterpreted the nature of the book.

[prettysmart]

Thanks for the review. I seriously need to read this book as I have encountered numerous difficult people and they are a handful!

[calebchuks]

Number one step towards being a better person is to acknowledge your faults and lapses. The knew that as well. It takes a realy good courage to write those faults in a book. I give the author a four on that one. This world be a better place if everyone acknowledge thier faults and not try to prove right.