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bethantg's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
2.75
I read this because my friend loves it and for that reason I am glad it exists. I know some people really love this and I can see why, but I think it's a kind of enjoyment that really hinges on relatability, and it largely wasn't relatable to me. Some parts were really beautifully and sensitively done, especially towards the end. The only thing knocking it down a little bit for me is a bit of a strange one, which is that it seems to inhabit a worldview in which everyone is entirely self-absorbed, which seems strange given the book is mainly centred around love. It gave many parts intended for humour a more negative tinge which unfortunately affected how much I could enjoy the book. Still, a very light, easy read with a lot of heart that I can see being a source of comfort for people who find it relatable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Cancer, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Sexual content and Death
katnavala's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
2.25
While I appreciated some of the chapters I found to be a bit boring and way too slow. There is so much that could’ve stayed out of the final draft. At times it was easy to relate to Dolly but at others it was way too difficult if you’re not from London. She names a lot of places that seem quite relevant to the story but if you’re not familiar, it would be hard to keep up with. The one thing I really liked was the honest and intimate description of Dolly and Farly’s friendship. I enjoyed seeing every aspect of it, the good, the bad, the dark secrets and the unconditional support.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Eating disorder, and Drug use
Minor: Cancer
yunuepub's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Grief, Mental illness, Alcohol, Death, Dysphoria, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Sexual content, Drug abuse, and Drug use
lucyrudd's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Sexual content, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Addiction, Drug use, Death, Eating disorder, Grief, Child death, and Cursing
accidiosav's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol
katesant's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, and Death
joensign's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Eating disorder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Toxic relationship
mary_do_12's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
to be honest, i think i’m simply to young for this book. while i really enjoyed reading about dolly aldertons experience in her twenties and what she grew to learn and realize, i haven’t been confronted with the problems she had to deal with yet. and that is simply due to the fact that i’m not in my twenties and therefore could not relate to a lot of things she wrote about. and that not just in experiences and thoughts, but also in mundane things such as shows and music she adored. the gap between her millennial personality and my gen z character could not be crossed easily.
yet after all, there were a lot of important topics discussed in her book and especially knowing that it was all true and hers made her story so incredibly authentic and real.
and who knows, maybe i’ll think back on this in my twenties.
yet after all, there were a lot of important topics discussed in her book and especially knowing that it was all true and hers made her story so incredibly authentic and real.
and who knows, maybe i’ll think back on this in my twenties.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Eating disorder, and Alcohol
arthurjentges04's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
4.0
this book is incredibly well written and the audiobook well narrated. dolly alderton knows her shit and how to articulate herself. i found this book to be incredibly relatable for the most part (not so much the turning 30/existential crisis part, because i’m 19 and barely and adult lol, but the rest). this book speaks about societal pressures, romance, eating disorders, unhealthy coping through drug and alcohol abuse, growing into adulthood and out of your childhood, the importance of platonic love(!!!), loss and grief, letting go and accepting and sooo much more. no matter your age, this book has something important to say to you and you have something valuable to learn from it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Grief, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Addiction, Mental illness, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Death
jeimy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
y’all. this book put me THROUGH it. 😩
rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
📝 review:
so here goes—i really struggled to get through the first part of this book. the first 30% of dolly’s memoir was mostly about her relationship with alcohol and going out as much as possible, which was really hard for me to read given that it felt repetitive and unrelatable to me. at the very least it should have started with a heavy content warning.
BUT, thankfully, the latter half of this book touched me so so deeply. (and now i see the hype!) reading this alongside all about love really made me think deeply about love as a theoretical concept, and how to pour deeply into all of my relationships—not just my romantic one. shout out to all my girlfriends & sisters who i adore more than life itself.
🔖 read this if you like:
- raw, witty, funny writing
- loving on your girlfriends
- chapters interspersed with recipes, lists, short stories
- a good cry
💭 my fave quotes:
“There isn’t a pebble on the beach of my history that she has left unturned. She knows where to find everything in me and I know where all her stuff is too. She is, in short, my best friend.”
“You were made so that someone could love you. Let them love you.”
“I thought about how we’d known each other for twenty years and how, in all that time, I’d never got bored of her. I thought of how I’d only fallen more and more in love with her the older we grew and the more experiences we shared.”
“Life is a wonderful, mesmerizing, magical, fun, silly thing. And humans are astounding. We all know we’re going to die, and yet we still live. We shout and curse and care when the full bin bag breaks, yet with every minute that passes we edge closer to the end. We marvel at a nectarine sunset over the M25 or the smell of a baby’s head or the efficiency of flat-pack furniture, even though we know that everyone we love will cease to exist one day. I don’t know how we do it.”
from the acknowledgements:
“And, finally, thank you to Farly, without whose unwavering cheering and championing I would not have written this book. You are—you always will be—my favorite love story.”
gah, i’m in my feels all over again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder and Alcohol
Moderate: Body shaming and Death