I give this book a two because I liked the format so much. Otherwise, I didn't like the characters, and I was frustrated throughout most of the story by the main character's whining and inability to do anything for himself. This book should have been a quick read, but I didn't want to come back to it, which made it quite a long read. I would absolutely read another novel in list format though because it was really intriguing.

My Twenty One Truths About This Book

1. I was very excited about this book, described as being comprised mostly of lists.
2. I did not realize this entire book was made up of lists.
3. The main character - Dan - being able to write these minute by minute lists throughout his day, with other people around him, is incredibly unrealistic.
4. It would have been more realistic if these were described as his innermost thoughts, as opposed to the idea in my head of him opening up a notebook as his wife is talking to him to start making notes. (Which is weird.)
5. Dan is a very hard character to like, as for most of the book he is doing very unlikable things.
6. Dan should not have lied to his wife about his financial troubles, considering they are also her financial troubles. This is close to unforgivable, although we all have our different breaking points.
7. Dan sometimes thinks very not-nice-things, but I’ll give him the smallest of passes on this, as we all think uncharitable things sometimes.
8. It is best if you do not write down your uncharitable thoughts.
9. I liked Dan a lot more by the end of the book then I did at the beginning, although he did some of the stupidest things that he’d done the entire book in the last fifth of the book.
10. My favorite parts of the book were the lists and notes about the bookshop Dan owned.
11. Sometimes people ask really stupid questions in bookstores.
12. Dan seemed a lot more likable and endearingly fallible about halfway through the book after you got some of his backstory and realized why he was being such an idiot about so many things.
13. It’s hard to make smart decisions about things sometimes, especially if you haven’t had good role models in your life.
14. I’m only on my fourteenth truth and I thought this would be a lot more concise than it’s turned out to be.
15. Dan was really hard on other parents and their decision making. Bad form, Dan.
16. Sometimes I agreed with him and sometimes I wished he was a real person so he could have some of those things thrown back in his face after he became a parent.
17. I love how much Dan loved his wife, and how much he tried to be deserving of her, even though 99% of the time he was being a prat about it.
18. I gave this book 4 stars initially, then changed it to 3, then back to 4, then back to 3, then landed at 4.
19. I might not have always liked Dan, and sometimes he thought awful things, but I liked this book more than I thought I would at the beginning.
20. Dan does not deserve his new friend Bill, or his old friend Steve, but I’m glad he has them, as they both make him a better person.
21. Dan’s eventual listing of his 21 Truths About Love was my absolute favorite thing about this book.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for my gifted eARC of this book! This in no way influenced my review - opinions are all my own.

When I was invited to read and review 𝐓𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 I was skeptical. A book made entirely of lists? How would that work? @stmartinspress never lets me down though so I decided to take a chance.⁣
⁣
This book is so witty, fresh, original and FUN! Im so glad I took a chance and tried something new. This is so unique and I truly enjoyed it. The writing is snarky and laugh out loud funny. Yet the author is also able to convey deep emotions during huge life events...through LISTS. This just boggles my mind. The book was entertaining and I will definitely be reading more from this author! Thank you again to the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review!

I found this book just didn't capture my attention well enough. The story is set up as a series of lists through the narrators, Dan, life by month and while I found the execution of the book through the creation of lists quite interesting I just didn't find the story all that captivating. It's not usual for me to pick up and put down a book so much which I find is a sign of boredom. The lists just wore me out, some of them being tedious and more like fillers. No matter how easy the book was to read it's not overly engaging.

However, there were moments in the lists that I could really relate to as a human, as a spouse, as a parent which I did appreciate. Matthew Dicks reaches into the heart of Dan and really exploits his fears about love, dreams, and the possibility of loss and heartbreak which I found refreshing. In the list making there's a good amount of humor too that I found I could relate to and counteracted some of the more cumbersome lists. There's a lot of honesty and heart in this book that kept me attached and wanting to see it through. It's just not something that truly fits my reading personality or taste.

Daniel Mayrock quit teaching in order to own a bookstore. He has not told his wife that the bookstore is not making money and they will be broke soon. He is in a constant state of stress over their finances & wondering whether his wife loves her dead husband more than him.
The book is written entirely in lists. I adore lists, so this book was perfect for me. The lists ranged from mundane to laugh-out-loud funny. This book was a lot of fun and is perfect for anyone needing a good laugh.

Dan Mayrock is an ex-teacher that now runs his own bookstore and through lists unfolds his story of not being completely honest to his wife, Jill. The couple are now expecting a baby and Dan has to work through a lot of his issues in order to move on or face some pretty severe consequences.
The list thing did wear on me by the 52% mark, but I still wanted to find out if Jill and Dan were going to have an honest discussion about what he was keeping from her. So that kept me reading and I was quite satisfied with the conclusion of Dan's story.


Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads review 03/11/19
Publication Date 19/11/19

The premise of this book intrigued me - a book made up completely of lists. But what sounds good in principal didn’t quite live up to its potential.

Despite being told purely in the form of lists, it doesn’t take long to get the gist of the story. 1) Dan has left teaching to open a bookstore. 2) The bookstore is losing money and they’re on the verge of going broke. 3) Jill doesn’t know this. 4) Jill wants a baby and becomes pregnant. 5) Jill is a widow. 6) dan writes lists about every idiot thought he’s ever had.

Why I dislike Dan...1 ) I don’t care about 90% of what Dan writes. 2) Dan not only hides their financial condition from Jill, but doesn’t seem to have any meaningful communication with her at all. 3) he dislikes Jill’s dog. 4) Dan is a total wimp. 5) Dan is a complete Idiot when it comes to thinking of ways out of his financial difficulties. 6) I like thank you notes.

I think one of the few things that Dan and I agree on is that The Alchemist is a horrible book.

It’s an extremely fast read. Parts are funny, although not as many as I would have liked. My final thoughts on the book… 1) it’s hard to really like a book when you think the main character is an idiot. 2) the lists format got old and started irritating me. 3) I couldn’t believe that a real person would be writing so many damn lists especially while doing other things. 4) I loved Bill Donovan and wish I had a friend like him.

My thanks to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

Oh my, Twenty-one Truths About Love by Matthew Dicks
1. In love.
2. Always planning
3: Questioning himself.
4. Fun
5. Witty
6. Loving
7. Caring
8. The entire book is written as a list and you follow Daniel and Jill's life.
9. Very funny!
10. Thank you #netgalley#twentyonetruthsaboutlove#stmartinpress

This book is adorable! It's refreshingly unique, as it's told entirely in lists. I've never read a book in that format before, but as it's a St. Martin's Press book I knew it would be good, and I was absolutely right. The book starts in the month of November with a list entitled "Ways to keep Jill from getting pregnant," and like a snowball rolling down a hill it keeps going and going. Throughout the book we get all kinds of lists - everything from problems with lying to shopping lists to things that exist that shouldn't...you name it, there's probably some form of that list in this book. It was quirky, laugh out loud funny, emotional, just perfect. I devoured this book in one sitting. If you liked The Rosie Project, you will LOVE this book. 5/5 stars.

I can’t say I’ve ever read a book before that was completely written in lists. It took a few pages to get into it. But once I did it was a very quick and enjoyable read. Pick this one up when you don’t have a lot of time or brain power to commit to a book. And I don’t mean that as an insult. This was a fabulous book that kept me entertained and laughing.

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.

Ten Things About This Book:
1. It's brilliant.
2. I was highly skeptical about the concept.
3. It's a novel written 100% in lists.
4. I kid you not.
5. But lo and behold, it worked.
6. The main character quit his teaching job to run a bookstore. He has a wry sense of humor.
7. To no one's surprise (except maybe the protagonist), the bookstore is failing.
8. Then his wife gets pregnant, and our hero can't figure how the heck he'll pay the bills.
9. He comes up an idiotic scheme to rob a bingo parlor.
10. I'm not going to tell you anything else. Read this book.

What an original and refreshing read!! I love Twenty-one Truths About Love!!!

Daniel Mayrock makes lists throughout each day. The lists can consist of important things, mundane musings, random questions, personal observances; anything and everything might appear. The entire story is told through Dan's lists (kudos to Matthew Dicks for such an original idea!).

Through his lists, we see an every man trying to sort out his life and come to terms with his life. He dearly loves his wife, Jill, who was a widow prior to marrying Dan. Jill wants a baby, Dan's not sure he's ready to be a father or that they can afford a child. He left teaching to open a bookstore, and it is in financial trouble, but Dan doesn't want Jill to know that - he fears disappointing her, and her comparing him unfavorably to her first husband, Peter. His father left the family when Dan was a young boy. His father has since tried to reconnect through letters he writes to his son, but Dan is still deeply wounded by his father's desertion and hasn't read any of the letters yet. He deeply wants to BE someone, to do something important, to be more than ordinary.

This book is endearing, poignant, relatable, laugh-out loud funny and one heck of a good read! Don't miss this one!! Matthew Dicks, I'm already looking forward to reading your next book!

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

What a unique and enjoyable book! I am impressed that the author was able to convey such a heartfelt story solely through lists made by the main character. Admittedly, I grew a bit weary of some of the lists at times, but I recognize that they were a meaningful way to show Daniel’s personality and state of mind. This is a feel-good read and I recommend it to lovers of contemporary fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley, Matthew Dicks and St Martin’s press for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect out of this book but it sounded like a cute story and I thought it would be interesting to try about a book written in a totally different way. This one is written entirely in list form and while I thought it would be interesting; it got a little tiresome after about three quarters of the book. I loved the idea behind the story, but I did miss having someone else’s perspective in the novel. I did read the entire book and I enjoyed how it ended but it was a bit of a difficult read to keep everything straight in because of all the lists. It’s definitely interesting, but I would say I wouldn’t recommend if you don’t like books written as lists, but I think this is the first of it’s kind! Its definitely unique.

Out November 19th!

This delightful book consists of lists, one after the other, written by a quirky, unique, hilarious man who has quit his teaching job, opened a bookshop, and has a wife who wants a baby. His observations on life are spot on and made me laugh out loud, particularly ones about teaching and selling books:
“Read more. It allows you to borrow someone else’s brain, and will make you more interesting at a party.”
“The single greatest thing you can do to guarantee your future success is to read a lot.”
“If the childhood version of yourself would hate the adult version, you suck at life.”
“Darth Vader killed billions of innocent people then saved his only son. This did not make him a good guy. Just a selfish practitioner of nepotism.”
“The most important lessons taught by teachers have little or nothing to do with academics.”
“The best administrators understand that teachers are more knowledgeable about instruction than they could ever be.”

His list called The Worst People in the World
“ ‘Let’s start off with an icebreaker’ are words no human has ever wanted to hear.”
“I’m looking for a blue book. Tiffany blue. It’s about a woman I think.” Yup - I had customers in the bookstore who expected me to find this!
“The youngest skydiver ever was four years old, but that doesn’t mean that he was brave. He just had assholes for parents.”
“You should be required to read a book for every ten selfies you take.”
“What you permit, you promote.”
“A person is more than a person. A person is the promise of everything that person can be.”

Nuff said. Buy this book for everyone you know:)

Fantastic story written in such an interesting way. Dan is so filled with anxiety it’s a wonder his head doesn’t just pop off of his shoulders! He questions every decision he has ever made, has a terrible opinion of himself, cannot believe that his wife would love him if she really knew him, is living in the shadows of her perfect first husband who died, trying to figure out how to fix his failing business that is in financial dire straights, just found out Jill is pregnant and oh, he has not expressed one teeny tiny hint of any of this to Jill. A therapist he saw suggested journaling to help him. Not a fan of the concept, Dan instead started writing lists. Of every single thing. Literally every single thought, feeling, fear and emotion he experiences whether rational or not! He is panicked to the point of just a little crazy and doing illegal and immoral things. He loves his wife Jill, but has such fear that he cannot share his feeling because he is terrified she will discover he’s a fraud and leave. Not good! Dan has hopes that writing these lists will give him back some control in his life, some order and a way to create the life he really imagines and wants without having to admit what a mess he really is and has created around him. It’s funny, amusing, truthful, and poignant. Join him along this very funny, offbeat heartfelt journey back to reality. Its a really fun easy read about some very deep dark emotional turmoil. This should definitely should be added to everyones wish list. It is very worth the time and a great read.

Five Things Readers Will Love about Twenty-one Truths About Love:

1. It's: a) moving, b) funny, c) relatable, d) funny, e) did I mention funny? Bonus f) Dan and his wife Jill are total book nerds.

2. Lists are the most clever way to get into a character’s head—Dan is flawed and in love and complex; human.

3. Once finished, this book is impossible to review differently than using a list—as is the rest of your day.

4. Dicks’s view on random and not so random things and everything is so acutely close, dissecting them, you'll snort out loud throughout the entire book. (Example: “Why raspberries are a bullshit food? They last for about 14 minutes before devolving into mush. Less than two dozen berries in a package. Only fruit that needs to sit on a diaper. The silent p makes them impossible to spell.”) Also, is it just me or Dan’s friend Bill looks a little bit like grumpy Ove from A Man Called Ove?

5. Surely the most inventive novel since the invention of fiction in terms of storytelling—is the invention of fiction a thing?

Huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and the author Matthew Dicks for the chance to read this gem in exchange for an honest review.

As I didn't finish the book I'd prefer not to give it any stars.
I was intrigued by the title, the cover, the premise, and the glowing blurb from Taylor Jenkins-Reid, but ultimately Dan was just too unlikeable to want to spend any more time reading his lists. I know that there's probably an innate level of insufferableness baked into anything that one writes solely for themselves, and I tried to remember that the conceit of these lists is that Dan is writing them for himself, not an audience, so he's free to be honest. But in that honesty he comes off as a dick. Based on the first 40% of the book that I read I can't fathom how Jill ever came to marry him or want to have a child with him. I also appreciate that Dan establishes that liars are the absolute worst, but it doesn't stop him from lying to his wife.
Many of the lists become repetitive, and I couldn't help but feel that the side characters were more interesting than Dan.

First, can we just gush about how much I love this cover!? It's GORGEOUS! Second, the wide array of emotions a book written entirely in the form of lists made me feel is astounding! I loved this! I think Dan's story struck home for me and so many other people because we all feel inadequate and we all fear failing those we love most. Dan is a complex character and the way his mind ebbed and flowed through his lists rang true with how I think through things a well. I loved the epiphany moments Dan had while writing his lists - these were generally followed with a resounding swear word - but that also resonated with how frustrated I feel at times when I have those epiphanies too. I'm not sure how it's possible I feel so close to Dan after 352 of just lists, but I feel like he's my friend and this book ended with me reaching for the tissues as my tears got the better of me. Lovely book!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!