Episode · The Book Review · 2024-04-26
Books mentioned on Book Club: Dolly Alderton's 'Good Material'
Gilbert Cruz read Good Material by Dolly Alderton for a book club. MJ Franklin recommended Splinters by Leslie Jamison, and discussed Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton, Ghosts by Dolly Alderton, Dear Dolly by Dolly Alderton, Best Minds by Jonathan Rosen, Ulysses by James Joyce, Trust by Hernan Diaz, and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Leah Greenblatt recommended Acts of Desperation by Megan Nolan, and discussed High Fidelity by Nick Hornby and Heartburn by Nora Ephron. Emily Eakin recommended Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck, and discussed Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Good Material
Good Material by Dolly Alderton is a sharp and humorous contemporary novel that explores the messy aftermath of a breakup from the perspective of a heartbroken male comedian.
Book club“this week he leads a conversation about Dolly alderton's bestselling book good material”
Where to get it
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Everything I Know About Love
Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton is a witty, deeply relatable memoir charting the author's messy and heartfelt navigation through young adulthood, romance, and female friendship in London.
Discussed“first she had a memoir come out called Everything I Know About Love then she has a novel called ghosts and she has a collection of columns called dear Dolly”
Where to get it
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Ghosts
Ghosts by Dolly Alderton is a poignant and sharply observed contemporary novel that examines modern dating, friendship, and the painful phenomenon of sudden abandonment in romantic relationships.
Discussed“first she had a memoir come out called Everything I Know About Love then she has a novel called ghosts and she has a collection of columns called dear Dolly”
Where to get it
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Dear Dolly
Discussed“first she had a memoir come out called Everything I Know About Love then she has a novel called ghosts and she has a collection of columns called dear Dolly”
Where to get it
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Best Minds
Best Minds by Jonathan Rosen is a deeply moving work of narrative nonfiction that investigates a tragic childhood friendship, severe mental illness, and the complex failures of institutional and societal support systems.
Discussed“you gave that like stirring very evocative dive into Jonathan rosen's best Minds I love that book great great narrative non-fiction”
Where to get it
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High Fidelity
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby is a 1995 breakup novel that follows an obsessive record store owner reflecting on his past relationships through the lens of his favorite music and top-five lists.
Discussed“I think it's interesting what you say about plot too because a lot of people have compared Dolly to um Nick Hornby and to uh High Fidelity which High Fidelity has this almost like Heroes Quest right”
Where to get it
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Bridget Jones's Diary
Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding is a landmark contemporary comedic novel that popularized the Bridget Jones series and captured the experiences of a single British woman navigating romance and professional life in the 1990s.
Discussed“and Bridget Jones Diary was 1996 and I feel that this I think dolly alderton is very self-consciously descendant of those writers”
Where to get it
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Ulysses
James Joyce's landmark modernist novel Ulysses chronicles an ordinary day in the life of Leopold Bloom in Dublin, mapping human consciousness and daily existence through a revolutionary stream-of-consciousness technique.
Discussed“that happens in ulyses James Joyce's ulyses and it happens in hernand Diaz's trust do also spoil aler for that book”
Where to get it
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Trust
Trust by Hernan Diaz is a structurally ambitious and celebrated novel that delves into themes of wealth, power, and multiple perspectives in historical America.
Discussed“that happens in ulyses James Joyce's ulyses and it happens in hernand Diaz's trust do also spoil aler for that book”
Where to get it
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Great Expectations
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is a classic Victorian novel following the orphan Pip as he navigates social class, ambition, and personal growth.
Discussed“a few weeks ago in another podcast on book club discussion we discussed Miss havam for instance from Great Expectations which is certainly not a breakup book”
Where to get it
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Kairos
Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck is a nuanced and complex novel translated by Michael Hofmann that explores a turbulent, intense relationship against the backdrop of a collapsing East Germany.
Recommended“and it's chyros by Jenny erpenbeck the German novelist who is a perennial Nobel long Lister”
Where to get it
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Acts of Desperation
Acts of Desperation is a contemporary novel by Megan Nolan that explores the intense, often destructive nature of a toxic relationship through the eyes of a young woman living in Dublin and London.
Recommended“one more recent book I really enjoyed was Megan Nolan acts of desperation I thought was really good”
Where to get it
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Heartburn
Heartburn by Nora Ephron is a semi-autobiographical comedic novel that explores the painful breakdown of a marriage with sharp wit and emotional depth.
Discussed“and obviously heartburn is about a true story of a person that we know and we've also seen it played out on screen by Merl stre and Jack Nicholson”
Where to get it
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Splinters
Splinters by Leslie Jamison is a deeply introspective memoir exploring motherhood, heartbreak, and the complexities of personal transformation.
Recommended“it is splinters by Leslie Jameson”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (3) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“you may have heard him on previous episodes in which he and others discussed even Copperhead and the Heaven and Earth grocery store”
“you may have heard him on previous episodes in which he and others discussed even Copperhead and the Heaven and Earth grocery store”
“you may have heard him on previous episodes in which he and others discussed even Copperhead and the Heaven and Earth grocery store”