There are two TV shows that I can hardly bear to watch – Utopia and The Hollowmen. Both are basically my previous workplace. The writers of those shows must have great connections in the public service. Anyway, twenty years later, it’s still too raw. I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue is similar in close-to-the-bone satirical tone. The author captures the mild (and not so mild) irritations associated with colleagues, workplace culture and the fact that we spend a good portion of our day with people that we might actively avoid ‘on the outside’.

The thing about annoyance is that once there’s a spark, you can find more things to stoke it.

We meet Jolene – disgruntled, depressed (although she doesn’t label it as such), seething. She loathes the people she works with, especially her manager.

He nods and names everyone he passes like the damn president of Clown Town.

Jolene’s anger comes out in various ways – unhelpfully at night when she finds herself drinking a lot, and during the day when she discovers that she can say what she really wants to say in emails by changing the font to white. For example –

P.S. Deep in my core, I find you insufferable. There are times, when you’re on the phone fake laughing or retelling someone the same story about your toenail surgery, that make me consider joining a cult as a preferable alternative to staying here with you. Also, I’m fairly certain you can’t legally brag about your son since you named him “Carl.”

When one of her secret messages is exposed, she’s mandated to complete ‘sensitivity training’, led by the new guy in HR, Cliff. She is also subject to having her emails monitored. Somehow, in putting restrictions on her computer, there’s an IT mix-up and suddenly, Jolene is privy to her entire department’s private emails and DMs. It’s revealed that company-wide layoffs are ahead. Although she knows she should report it, Jolene uses the inside information as an opportunity to save her job. Yes, the job she hates.

If Sue had kept the focus on the office and not given us enough of Jolene’s life outside of work, this novel would have failed. It would have been difficult for even the most generous reader to accept Jolene’s behaviour. Instead, through her life after work and in the interactions with her family, we see Jolene as lonely, vulnerable and uncertain. She’s also someone who desperately wants to trust, and find connection.

I know what life I’m supposed to live; I have Pinterest. Obviously, this isn’t it.

Quibbles: are we done with stories about people with a trauma history, possibly disguised as hermits or neuro-diverse? Yes. This isn’t that, but it sails close to the line (there is some trauma). And neat endings? How do we feel about those? In this case, it’s okay. Yes, a bit neat, but honestly, you’ll be rooting for Jolene by the end.

This is a perfect light read – it’s very funny; the supporting characters are well thought-out, without being over-the-top or all-too-convenient (I especially loved the 12yo next door neighbour, Miley, and her crochet creations); and there’s enough emotion to make this book very engaging. I look forward to Sue’s next book.

3.5/5 (rounding up to a four on Goodreads because I LOL).

I received my copy of I Hope This Finds You Well from the publisher, Harper Collins Australia, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Cliff tries to win Jolene’s trust with sprinkle doughnuts.