Author: Matthew Dicks
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Publication Date: November 19, 2019
Book Description: Daniel Mayrock’s life is at a crossroads. He knows the following to be true:
1. He loves his wife Jill… more than anything.
2. He only regrets quitting his job and opening a bookshop a little (maybe more than a little)
3. Jill is ready to have a baby.
4. The bookshop isn’t doing well. Financial crisis is imminent. Dan doesn’t know how to fix it.
5. Dan hasn’t told Jill about their financial trouble.
6. Then Jill gets pregnant.
This heartfelt story is about the lengths one man will go to and the risks he will take to save his family. But Dan doesn’t just want to save his failing bookstore and his family’s finances:
1. Dan wants to do something special.
2. He’s a man who is tired of feeling ordinary.
3. He’s sick of feeling like a failure.
4. He doesn’t want to live in the shadow of his wife’s deceased first husband.
Dan is also an obsessive list maker; his story unfolds entirely in his lists, which are brimming with Dan’s hilarious sense of humor, unique world-view, and deeply personal thoughts. When read in full, his lists paint a picture of a man struggling to be a man, a man who has reached a point where he’s willing to do anything for the love (and soon-to-be new love) of his life
Rating: 4 Stars
Review: Twenty-one Truths About Love is one of the most unique books I have ever read. The entire length of the book is 100% lists. And while you are probably thinking that will never work, it totally did.
In this novel, the author tells the story of Daniel Mayrock, a struggling bookseller. Daniel is married to Jill who was a widow when they met and they are trying to have a baby when the book opens.
This book felt so freaking real. The author totally puts everything out there. You will have a lot of unease reading this, as he struggles with money, impending fatherhood, a failing business and the rest of life has to offer. But what the author shows along with Daniel being scared, is humor and so much love.
At first I though an entire book of lists, how silly, but I think by taking away all the plot out of this book, the author was able to portray a story of a man who is struggling to be the best version of himself. There are some moments in here that I thought, what was Dicks doing, but you know it all worked in the end.
Highly enjoyable story, that I would highly recommend, if you want a little more insight to a man pre mid-life crisis. It is charming through and through.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Obsessed Bookaholic 