In my opinion, Everything I Know About Love is the perfect book to gift. It is timeless, and can be enjoyed by absolutely anyone. Written in memoir-style, Alderton reminisces over everything romance, relationship, and dating related. Its light-hearted honest tone reminds us of our universal experiences of love: both the picture-perfect moments, and the humiliating ones. From primary school crushes, to first heartbreaks, and navigating adult-life friendships; the book covers it all. Advice is sprinkled throughout her stories, making for a relatable piece where I found myself scribbling down notes on every other page.
If it’s not already clear, this book kick-started my obsession with this genre, and it was also the first of Dolly’s books to really catch attention in the media. She was dubbed ‘The Voice of Gen Z’, and was also shortlisted for several prizes following its publishing. Subsequently, she went on to write novel ‘Ghosts’ and ‘Dear Dolly’: a collection of wisdom from her Sunday Times Agony Aunt column. Whilst these books are too different to compare, they both have the same underlying themes: discovering independence, female friendships, and navigating life and love.
Having recently got my hands on a signed copy of Good Material (a major fangirl moment on my behalf), and also just finishing it, I will leave you with my thoughts on this book. Unexpectedly, this novel takes on a male perspective, navigating heartbreak in later life with friends who are seemingly more invested in their new families than their lifelong friendships. It delves into online-dating, jobs, money, and people’s priorities – making for a comfort read, a relatable piece, and an all-round entertaining book which simultaneously felt very real.
I’d urge everyone to read these books, not just to hear Dolly’s knowledgeable advice, but also to find comfort in the relatable fragments of our lives through her stories. The importance of friendships particularly resonated with me – especially female friendships; and in an era of girlhood this is more relevant than ever. Emphasis was put on navigating family relationships, and the importance of maintaining these as you grow older and move away from home, as they too, are getting older.
I’ve learnt that some of the most important relationships to us individually are sometimes the most unexpected. They may seem insignificant, but in fact each one provides for different parts of our lives. Throughout this exploration of life and character development the conclusion is always that heartbreak isn’t the end of everything. With a consistent light-hearted tone on serious and relatable topics, I believe that only good can come from reading Dolly Alderton’s books.
“Specsavers National Book Awards” by TaylorHerring is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0