Whoa! This book was definitely not what I expected, in the very best way! It was inspiring, humbling, hysterically funny and tragic, and moving all wrapped up in a very cool format. I can say that the explanation by the author of how this book came to be was a little tedious and eye-roll inducing, but the individual stories were crafted beautifully. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my free ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a book of stories from people who were interviewed by the author, Helena Dea Bala from ads she placed on Craigslist. I think it sounds like it should have been right up my alley but I found the majority of the stories to be sad or un-relatable. Think stories from prostitutes and people on drugs. I am not un-interested in people's lives and struggles because I am. Just the way that these stories are presented was a problem for me. Also it would have been nice to have more typical average people problems sprinkled in here or there for contrast. I admire how important this project was for the author. It was definitely a passion project. And its not bad at all if this is what you were looking for when you picked up this book. It just wasn't exactly what I expected and I came away from it feeling down rather than uplifted.

The author in this book decided to take a year off her demanding lobbyist job to just listen to people. After listening and talking to a homeless man outside her office, she realized people have stories to share that they may not be able to tell the people in their lives. So, Craigslist Confessionals was born. She posted an ad on Craigslist, asking people to share their secret stories. She met with them and just listened - and then wrote down their stories.

There are 40 stories in this book - on the topics of love, loss, regret, identify, and family. I expected some juicy gossipy type stories from viewing the cover art, but this wasn’t that type of book. Each story was sad in some way, but allowed me a glimpse into lives so different than mine. I imagine it was hard for the author to hear story after story like this, but I’m sure the confessors maybe felt a bit better after sharing.

I enjoyed (enjoyed? Maybe not right term) the book and definitely felt empathy for the people sharing their confessions. Maybe a better term is that I found it interesting. It was kind of a downer, so I definitely need to read something happier next.

Thank you to the publisher (Gallery Books) and netgalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Not a book for me. I did try, it seemed just too creepy and far fetched.I have no idea what I expected, but Not this. I will not be visiting Craigslist.

The description of this book reeled me in hook, line, and sinker the minute that I saw it. There’s something endlessly fascinating about the stories of others and the images that they project to the outside world vs how they really feel. This book provides a forum for those difficult corners of humanity that we can’t always find it within ourselves to share openly. The stories contained within are weighty and hard to digest, with a lot of confronting content. There’s stories of love and loss, a lot of abuse and deaths of children, and the burdens that so many others carry that we may have no idea about. My heart aches for so many of these people; the man living with his wife who has dementia, the woman caught in the emotionally abusive relationship with a man who pretends that he’s perfectly stable, and the mother who was wrongfully convicted for the deaths of her babies. The only thing I would have liked would have been some more stories, but with that being said, I’m unsure I would ever have enough of these kinds of books.

Interesting concept and nice culmination of stories. Had a little trouble staying engaged as there isn't much of a through-line.

So much heartbreak. Although I expected some level of sadness to accompany confessions that one could only tell to a stranger, for fear of being judged by those close to them, I was not ready for so much sadness. Unique concept and what a bold choice by the author to give up her career to chase this passion. This book kept me engaged and ready for the next confession.

4.5 stars

Great book. So interesting. Reminded me of Carl Rogers UPR (Unconditional Positive Regard) in the way stories were selected. I'd certainly recommend people look at this book and realise the challenges in some peoples lives.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

JUST WOW. So first I absolutely love humans of New York and this book is basically that but CRAZIER. So the author realizes through a impactful conversation with a homeless man how therapeutic it is to share your troubles with someone who doesn’t judge you. She takes out a craigslist add, starts meeting people in coffee shops and soon quits her job and focused on the book. This book literally has everything from heroin addiction and now trying to support a family, attempted suicide, sex addiction, etc. I literally could not put this down and cannot wait for anything else this author has written.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book caught my attention pretty quickly and the author's 'project" intrigued me but I was hesitant to get it. I was expecting a lot of fairly shallow stories but I was pleasantly surprised to read some very deep, sad stories. Occasionally there was a pretty shallow story but overall, there was real depth to people's experiences. I can't imagine how hard it was for the author to hear sad story after sad story. And of course I feel it takes real courage for a lot of people to tell their deepest feelings to a stranger who really can't offer them much in return besides a listening ear. Sometimes that's all the therapy one needs to process their situation or experiences.

When I first Started this book, I thought it was going to be like the Chicken Soup For The Soul books. i was wrong it is way better. it talks about alot of issues. Depression, marriage, divorce, loss, etc etc. I loved it and felt like I can relate to the strangers in this book. I even wondered where are they now?



I do have to say that some of this stuff talked about in this book may be triggers for some people who are depressed and are having suicidal thoughts. In case that does please reach out to someone, call the suicide hotline at 1800-273-8255 or go to their website at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ They have a chat feature and topics to read. You can also reach out at the crisis text lone at 741741.



I recommend this book for anyone and give it five stars. I am glad that I was able to receive this from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

If given the opportunity to put your deepest secrets into words, what would you say?

That's exactly what Craigslist Confessional does. The book shares stories from 40 individuals on topics of love, regret, loss, identity and family. The stories are emotionally raw, and come across as though you were reading the private thoughts written in a diary. The author does an incredible job at capturing each person's voice, and every story was compelling, which allows readers to feel empathy and compassion.

I put this book down at 34% about halfway through the regret section. This section, and if I had to guess, the ones coming after it, read too much like trauma porn for me. I understand the point of the book is for people to anonymously tell their stories, but it felt like too much at times.

Stories that make you think, some make you tear uo, but all written as if in a diary we aren't supposed to read. Love all the contributions, they seemed heartfelt and needing to be told.

Thanks to author,publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free,it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

The author spent several years interview random individuals about their lives- their successes, their failures, their desires, their regrets. This is a compilation of many interviews with many various individuals, with no continuous or related plotlines. It is very interesting reading how people sum up their experiences for an unjudgemental journalist who also wants to get to the depth of their of their feelings. Worth reading to get glimpses of how others might approach situations similar to your own.

I have to say, I didn’t really know what to expect from this book. The title was intriguing and I loved the idea of the book. I knew I was hooked as I read the first story, and sobbed! I love that every story is different and heartbreaking. Some in the best possible way. The fact that these are all true, well it breaks my heart. Reading about so many of these people made me appreciate my life that much more. I wanted to hug so many of them, tell them they are brave and strong and worthy! Even the authors own story grabs your heart. I hope to see more books by this author soon.

I loved this book. It was entertaining, heartbreaking, and yet strangely triumphant.
The author sat down with people that she had met through a Craigslist ad. She listened to them and recorded their stories.
Its a very voyeuristic book, but also so relatable.
All of the stories you could understand, relate to, and feel empathy for all of those who told their stories.

I read it, well devoured it within 2 days of getting it from netgalley!

GREAT BOOK!