Book Review: ‘I Hope This Finds You Well’ by Natalie Sue

Alberta author Natalie Sue’s buzzing debut novel, “I Hope This Finds You Well,” is a satirical critique of modern-day workplace culture driven by digital communication. The novel is hilarious, vulnerable, and enraging all at once. “I Hope This Finds You Well” explores serious and heart-hitting topics through a well-developed cast of characters with intricate pasts. 

Jolene is a pessimistic administrative worker living a lonely life. Her main goal at work is to avoid interactions with her irritating coworkers. Her way to cope with their antics? Leaving snarky notes in white-script for them in work emails, until her coworker catches her. To keep her job, she pairs up with the new guy in human resources, Cliff, whose optimistic outlook intrigues her. Due to an IT mix-up, Jolene gains access to all the emails, phone calls, and messages of her coworkers, giving her a glimpse into their real lives. What follows is an intriguing and thought-provoking portrayal of desperation, and how far someone will go when they feel their livelihood is at risk. 

Sue highlights her Iranian heritage through Jolene’s complicated relationship with her mother. Due to her mother’s high expectations, Jolene feels the need to lie to make her mother happy. Many immigrant children can relate to the pressure to excel because of the sacrifices made by their parents.

As the child of immigrants myself, I sympathize with Jolene’s anxiety around portraying an image of herself to please others and the dread she feels when compared to children of family friends. From the constant bombardment of questions from her aunties, to the recurring concerns raised by her mother, it all felt too familiar.

Sue’s characters are simultaneously insufferable yet lovable due to how real and relatable they are. She focuses on burnout syndrome in the workplace, showing how employers often make their company seem like a dream. However, in reality, they disregard the personal lives of their employees in the pursuit of workplace productivity. The story examined how the characters struggled to hide certain aspects of their lives and worked hard to keep up with others. I resonated with the way they juggled their responsibilities and personal challenges in order to fit the expectations of their workplace, feeling as if they had little support.

Through Jolene’s experience, readers can see that although it may be easy to jump to conclusions about others, you never really know what is going on. Sue’s writing also sheds light on the overlap between work and our private lives. In many relationships these days, we promote an image of ourselves to others. The blur between work and personal life is making everyday living increasingly exhausting. 

This novel exceeded my expectations and made me reflect on toxic work culture problems that have become normalized. I believe incorporating more Iranian culture into the writing would allow readers to connect with Jolene on a deeper level, amplifying her personal experience and perspective. I found the elements of romance sprinkled throughout the story to be heartwarming amidst the chaos occurring in Jolene’s life. That being said, it was hard to root for Jolene. After gaining access to her coworkers’ personal information, she consistently made poor choices. Nonetheless, I would recommend this book to anyone who would like to curl up with a heartfelt story that’ll have them feeling a rollercoaster of emotions.