A review by jaylajohnson
Good Material by Dolly Alderton

3.0

Reading through the mind of a mediocre white male comedian is not for the faint of heart. Once the story got going, I was kinda fascinated to see his thought process during the breakup and how he never once could look introspectively to figure out how his actions over the years might’ve played a role in Jen wanting to end things. I thought Alderton wrote the male perspective really well– my frustrations with reading a character so dependent on someone else for happiness, unwilling to do the work to push himself in his career, in his relationship and as a person, and so afraid of his emotions, were because of how believable I thought Andy was written.

I do think the story could’ve been like 100 pages shorter or at least incorporate more of Jen’s POV to help get through Andy’s. Jen truly captured what it’s like to feel lonely in a relationship, the expectations of women to be married and popping out kids by 35 with not knowing if she even wants that, how everyone is so concerned with her singleness as a 30+ yr old woman; plus the sacrifices expected of women in hetero relationships when it comes to their careers and having children while often carrying the weight of their relationship, the household and mental health of their male partners, plus their own careers and wants too. Jen’s chapter at the end really saved this and was the most powerful to me.