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HomeNewsArts & CultureLocal book Jolly Good!

Local book Jolly Good!

Times Team
By Times Team
May 5, 2026
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Kawakawa Bay author Lisa Jolly has been nominated for the International Impact Book Award. Her book, titled The Diary of Mrs Jolly Good, Because Therapy Was Too Expensive, is a humorous memoir about tough times and how to cope.

Jolly began writing in a hospital in Shanghai while recovering from a brain bleed.

“I had two choices, I could be angry about the situation, or I could be positive about it,” she says. “It was a good time to start reflecting on things that had happened to me. It was more for myself originally, so it’s very honest and it’s roughly written.”

Released in July last year, the book has received solid reviews and reached number one on Amazon in the USA and Australia. In part, it is intended to show that life is not always easy, but we don’t have to be perfect.

“I’m not a professional writer, I just decided to tell my story and hoped others could relate to it,” she says. “Most people have their ups and downs and that’s okay. Building great things is not only about the success we experience but also our failures.”

Since publishing her ‘diary’, Jolly has been writing and planning more books, including a new series based on an Uber-driving serial killer.

Titled Ride Share, her next work is a gripping psychological thriller about a middle-aged woman who – feeling overlooked, overshadowed and ignored – begins killing. Part one was published in December with a sequel on its way.

The International Impact Book Awards are intended to recognise stories from around the world, honouring literary voices with impact. To vote for Jolly’s book, visit internationalimpactbookawards.com.

  • Tags
  • Because Therapy Was Too Expensive
  • book
  • International Impact Book Awards
  • Kerry Lee
  • Lisa Jolly
  • Ride Share
  • The Diary of Mrs Jolly Good
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