PositiveLambda Literary\"... a grim, but hopeful memoir ... Madden turns that story into art by finding bittersweet beauty in the pain, by wielding her pen like a great director does a camera. In her hands, the past is present. We can see it, practically hear it, almost touch it. She knows what dialogue to highlight; she has the power to emotionally destroy you when she ends a chapter. She is not afraid to be vulnerable, to revisit scenes that have got to be incredibly painful. Above all, hers is a story of addiction told from the point of view of someone who must make peace with the fallout, and in doing so, grow from girl to woman.\
Erica Garza
PositiveLambda LiteraryGetting Off could have been a tighter memoir had Garza not strayed from the main focus, writing of her obsession with body hair and that time she was in a pageant. And it may sound strange, but the details about porn weren’t as interesting as her emotions ... Big picture? Getting Off does what successful memoirs are supposed to do–puts us in another person’s shoes and allows us to take away real solutions that could help our problems–even if our lives are not similar to hers.
Sally Rooney
RaveLambda Literary\"Rooney–a young Irish novelist with the chops of someone twice her age–delivers a novel that will be remembered for years to come ... This is the kind of novel you could talk about for hours because there are just so many ways it could be interpreted. Take it to the beach at your own risk because it might be impossible to pull away from when it’s time to go swimming: the emotional tension is tighter than a violin string ... The novel falls apart a bit when Frances’ health crisis comes to a head; it feels manipulative. Despite this minor stumble, there is no doubt that Conversations marks the arrival of a major talent.\
