Good Material

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'S 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR - A TODAY SHOW #ReadWithJenna BOOK CLUB PICK - From the best-selling author of Ghosts and Everything I Know About Love: a story of heartbreak and friendship and how to survive both

"Like Nora Ephron, with a British twist...Delivers the most delightful aspects of classic romantic comedy-snappy dialogue, realistic relationship dynamics, humorous meet-cutes and misunderstandings-and leaves behind the cliched gender roles and traditional marriage plot." -The New York Times

Andy loves Jen. Jen loved Andy. And he can't work out why she stopped.

Now he is...

Without a home

Waiting for his stand-up career to take off

Wondering why everyone else around him seems to have grown up while he wasn't looking

Set adrift on the sea of heartbreak, Andy clings to the idea of solving the puzzle of his ruined relationship. Because if he can find the answer to that, then maybe Jen can find her way back to him. But Andy still has a lot to learn, not least his ex-girlfriend's side of the story...

In this sharply funny and exquisitely relatable story of romantic disaster and friendship, Dolly Alderton offers up a love story with two endings, demonstrating once again why she is one of the most exciting writers today, and the true voice of a generation.

From the publisher

Penguin Random House/Knopf | Jan 30, 2024 | 336 Pages | ISBN:9780593801307 | Women's Fiction

1. You may have read any of Dolly Alderton's previous works, especially her Times UK column, "Dear Dolly." If you have, what are the differences and similarities between her fiction and nonfiction? Do you think one informs the other?

2. What did you make of Morris and his relationship with Andy? Did he surprise you in the end?

3. There are a lot of interesting passages from Andy's point of view about the differences between men and women, and specifically his insecurity that women are able to access a deeper or more complex plane of emotion than he seems to be, or at least that women think that of him. What do you make of this? Do you suspect it's a common anxiety? How should we address it either on an individual or a collective level?

4. "I soon realised that inevitably of every relationship: that the things that initially draw you to each other become the exact things that irritate you the most." Do you agree or disagree? If so, how do you cope with that in a healthy partnership?

5. In the end, who did you find yourself empathizing with more --- Andy or Jen?

Book Club Talking Points:
You know when a book gets what it feels like to have your life fall apart a little, and somehow makes you laugh while doing it? That's Good Material. It's funny, relatable, and quietly emotional in all the right places. It flips the usual breakup story by telling it from the guy's point of view, which somehow makes it feel fresh and even more human. There's so much to talk about-relationships, friendships, expectations, growing up (or trying to)-basically, it's the kind of book you finish and immediately want to talk about with someone over wine or coffee.

"Like Nora Ephron, with a British twist....Good Material...delivers the most delightful aspects of classic romantic comedy-snappy dialogue, realistic relationship dynamics, humorous meet-cutes and misunderstandings-and leaves behind the cliched gender roles and traditional marriage plot.....Alderton excels at portraying nonromantic intimate relationships with tenderness and authenticity....Alderton deserves comparisons to rom-com legends like Hornby." -The New York Times

"Alderton is one of this generation's preeminent oracles for love, romance, and heartbreak....[She] exposes the inevitable misfortunes of singledom while never neglecting its inherent beauty....To readers, she's like an older sister, guiding us through breakups, fights, and first-date mishaps with something like grace." -Swarna Gowtham, Elle

"Hilarious...Hurts so good...Surprising and sharp...[Alderton's] ability to create complex characters and tell the story with a varied perspective is masterful...Perfect endings are nearly impossible to find-especially in the break-up genre-but this comes pretty dang close. To quote the great Nicole Kidman, in her iconic AMC prologue, 'Heartbreak feels good in a place like this.'" -Clare Mulroy, USA Today

"Hilarious...Refreshing... Her witty, tender story of a newly single comedian finding his footing among smug marrieds... rigs a tightrope across a familiar chasm, then dances across it with Philippe Petit-like grace." -Elisabeth Egan, The New York Times

"With distinct notes of Helen Fielding, Richard Curtis and Nick Hornby....Warm and generous....Alderton captures the myopia and obsessiveness that sudden heartbreak can bring, using both satire and compassion....A writer very much in control of her material." -Michael Donkor, The Guardian

"Funny and electrically honest....Dolly Alderton is the closest person we have to a modern-day Carrie Bradshaw....[In] Good Material, Alderton expands her reach and uncanny ability to distill the intricacies of being a human alive today with every joke, text conversation, and heartbreaking thought....Alderton dispenses gems of life advice you have to sit back and appreciate." -Sam Franzini, Shondaland

"Genuinely laugh-out-loud funny-with characters straight out of a Richard Curtis film (the elderly lodger who's prepping for doomsday is a highlight)-whipsmart dialogue and relatable millennial themes (Alderton's forte) mean there's never a dull moment. Despite it being a pleasingly easy read (we tore through it in a single day), Good Material still manages to be thought-provoking and wise." -The Independent (UK)

"Have you ever wondered what a lost love was thinking? In this ingeniously constructed and endlessly amusing novel, Dolly Alderton flips the script on everything we think we know about romantic loss, to bring us an unforgettable character on a deeply relatable downward spiral. Wise and relatable and pee-your-pants funny. I cried by page 5. Dolly Alderton is, quite simply, the bard of modern-day love." -Lena Dunham

"Dolly Alderton has always been a sparkling Roman candle of talent. She is funny, smart and explosively engaged in the wonders and weirdness of the world." -Elizabeth Gilbert, New York Times best-selling author of City of Girls

"Wickedly funny and, at turns, both cynical and sincere, Dolly Alderton's voice feels like your very favorite friend." -Taylor Jenkins Reid, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Carrie Soto is Back

"One of the foremost 'it' writers of our time . . . Whatever ails you, Alderton can fix it with her intimate wisdom . . . There is no writer quite like Dolly Alderton working today and very soon the world will know it." -Lisa Taddeo, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Three Women

"The male perspective is rarely the focus in romantic comedy, but Dolly Alderton's new novel corrects the imbalance... Relatable, funny and refreshing." -Elle (UK)

"Like so many twentysomething women, I have turned to Dolly Alderton's writing for solace... Written from the perspective of someone recently heartbroken, but this time it's a man... The detail is luscious... Radical." -Annie Lord, The Sunday Times (UK)