I loved this book. The list style was unique but gave the book a warm and honest feeling. Beautiful.

Dan quit his teaching job to run a bookstore, but things aren't going at all how he planned. His wife's pregnant, their savings are dwindling, and they might lose their house. Mixed in with all his anxiety about becoming a new father are his feelings about his own father who abandoned him and Jill's 1st husband whom he fears he will never live up to. Will Dan fail at fatherhood as spectacularly as he seems to be failing at running his own business and being a good husband who can take care of his wife?

This book is written entirely in the form of lists: one-sided transcripts of text and phone conversations, things that annoy Dan, thoughts about his employees, number of days he's gone without certain junk foods, and crazy money-making schemes to help save him from financial ruin. This is definitely an interesting way to tell a story, but I'm not entirely convinced it was an effective one. For me, it didn't feel like enough. I was continually left with questions and wanting to know more when it came to actual plot points about Dan's life, and the novelty of a list of random thoughts (or of their monthly spending) wore off pretty quickly. There were parts where I liked how much I was able to glean about an interaction between Dan and his wife just by reading her side of it, but I still felt like I was only able to scratch the surface of getting to know these characters.

I was most interested in the budding friendship between Dan and Bill, a Vietnam vet he meets in a bingo hall who is a crotchety old man with a big heart. Dan comes up with a completely insane idea to save his business, and when he gets into trouble, it's Bill he goes to for help. Bill has no patience for BS and tells it like it is, but he is there for Dan when he needs him. It was impossible not to fall in love with this guy, and even through the lists, there were some lovely, heartwarming moments as Bill meets Jill and their new baby. But still. It was like seeing these characters through a fogged-up window...you get the basic idea, but you can't really SEE them.

The lists were an interesting approach, for sure. And for a lot of readers who really only need to know the basic facts and quick plot points, maybe this would be a great way to tell a story: by just hitting the highlights. For me, I like to get a little deeper into who the characters are, and I just couldn't get that out of this format. I wonder how I would feel about the story if it had been written in prose.

**Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!**

I received a digital Advance Reader Copy through NetGalley.

The format (lists) was difficult for me to follow at first, but in the end, they told a sweet story.
I felt all of Dan's emotions.

Very charming! I was looking for something light to read and this fit the bill nicely. It was funny in bits without being silly and was entertaining. I did feel like the end dragged then oddly ended abruptly.

I love this book! There are many laugh out loud moments, witty observations, goofy things, and deep thoughts. I found myself nodding my head in agreement often. We see Dan grow as a person, a man, husband, a brother, a friend, a son and it feels real.

Dan really admires John McClane but doesn't seem to think much of people who name their child John (ordinary name according to Dan, I happen to think it is perfectly fine but am a little unsure about Jon). Yes, I understand the logic/desire to consider Die Hard a Christmas movie. His plan to get out of debt is funny but isn't as crazy an idea as some may think. The all cash situation and the fact that it would unexpected are pluses. I like the character development, you may think that with the entire book written in lists it would be difficult getting to know the characters but it isn't. I think it resembles in some ways the manner in which we learn about people in our lives. We don't know all about someone when we first meet them but rather in little bursts of information, often unintentionally. The lists are the same. For example, we learn over the course of time about Bill, his family, etc. In fact, when we first encounter him, Dan doesn't even seem to like him, who would have guessed how important he would become to Dan?

I will definitely recommend Twenty-one Truths About Love by Matthew Dicks. I would also mention that one should not disregard it because of the format. While I believe that not every writer would be capable of writing an interesting and engaging novel in lists, Mr. Dicks is. I will definitely be looking forward to reading other offerings written by him regardless of format.

In all honesty, for the first 1/4 of this book, I was regretting my decision to read a novel written ENTIRELY in the format of lists, but from then on, I started to appreciate and enjoy the format. Interestingly, the format did allow for character formation and plot development in subtle ways I did not expect, and it made for a quick, entertaining and humourous read. Highly recommend for anyone looking for something a little different from your standard prose!

I’ve only read one other book in list format and disliked it more than I can even begin to explain. I thought this would be a good way to change my thoughts on books written in lists, and I can honestly say this one was a solid read. I wasn’t madly in love with it, but aI did enjoy my time reading it.

Dan was such an interesting character, and I loved seeing the way he thought through all of the lists he made. It was sweet how much he expressed his love for his wife, and would do anything for her, literally anything. I also enjoyed see the other characters through his eyes.

Overall, some of the lists seemed to drag and seemed almost unnecessary, but for the most part I feel like lists did this one justice.This book had laughs, love, and everything in between. If you are on the fence, I say please go read it!

The way this book was formatted may deter you within the very first pages. If you can push past the format, the story outlined in a series of lists are very clever, witty and an interesting element to the story. Admittedly, I skipped through some lists (guns and song lyrics) that didn’t add to the story. The meat and bones of the story was interesting and I appreciated the self deprecating nature of the main character. 3.5 stars.

Mushy, farcical, fast paced, TOTAL was one fun list filled book. Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for this review copy.

Coming at y’all in November this year, make sure to grab your copies. Because, even through the lists you can feel all the feels and the musings, the worries, the hopes of our protagonist. Had fun reading this.

Book 2 of The Reading Rush! #trr19

I LOVED this book. It is written in "list" form and it is fantastic. I, too, like so many other reviewers, was able to read this in one sitting. There are several "laugh out loud" moments!

Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced readers copy. The release date for this book is set for November 2019.

I was very doubtful how writing a novel entirely in lists would work, but I was pleasantly surprised. His thoughts and deeds show a man struggling in life, making bad decisions and coming to learn what is really important to him. Funny and poignant.

I didn’t mind the story in lists format at all. I just completely hated the main character from start to finish. He was pathetic and made ridiculous choices. 6 months of him running out of money and instead of just getting a job.. he plots to rob a bingo hall? The climax was utterly absurd. Not for me.

We lie most often to the people we love. Time passes, lies multiply, and arguably a situation worsens. Case in point, Dan Mayrock's expenses which are outpacing his income at the bookstore he opened after leaving teaching. Jill, his pregnant wife, is being kept in the dark, led to believe the bookstore is profitable. Financial disaster is looming on the horizon.

Dan is overwhelmed and anxiety ridden. His former therapist suggested that he "log" his feelings. Dan does so in the form of "obsessive lists". Everything, even the minutest occurrence, is on some detailed list. Dan and Jill met at a school faculty meeting. He thought Jill to be the most competent teacher ever. He didn't think he was skilled as an educator. Leaving teaching behind, he opened a bookstore. Realistically, Dan found it difficult to turn a profit. "Watching great books go unread and terrible books sell like hotcakes" was disheartening.

Dan could not believe that Jill "blindly accepts me for exactly who I am". Jill was a widow when they met. "There will always be a part of Jill's life that will remain a secret to me because you can only tell your second husband so much about your previous life with your dead husband...I feel...so insecure." Will he ever measure up to Peter? Desperate times call for desperate measures. Reading through Dan's lists, it is clear that he waffled while creating a ridiculously, outlandish plan to procure money quickly.

"Twenty-One Truths About Love" by Matthew Dicks was written in a unique style. Read the lists and discover Dan's resolutions. Dan's anxieties, feelings of abandonment, failure and desperation are palpable. I enjoyed meeting Bill at the Bingo Hall and Clarence, the labradoodle. Dan's outlook was changing, but, in what ways?

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "Twenty-One Truths About Love".

This was a very different kind of book, but I loved it! The whole book is comprised of lists, but somehow the author manages to build relatable characters and a storyline through just these lists. Some of the lists seemed pointless and didn’t help move the story along, but most of them helped the reader to understand and empathize. And I loved the humor in the lists - I wanted to read parts out loud to someone - and I found the teacher “comments” to be very accurate and relatable, too!
This is a fast and fun read that I think a lot of my friends will enjoy. Thank you so much to NetGalley for providing this ARC!!

In "Twenty-one Truths About Love," Matthew Dicks gives us a novel made up entirely of lists. Don't make that face. It works. We've got plot, dialog, even emotion. And we care about Daniel even as we curse his stupidity as he hatches a ridiculous plan to deal with his financial woes.

Daniel quit his teaching job to open a bookshop (Bookstores are pretentious). Writing lists is a leftover from therapy and is a way to deal with stress (OK. The lists ensure he doesn't disappear from the world). Within the text of his lists, we learn about his marriage, his feelings about his long-estranged father and his weird habit of accidentally wearing two pairs of underwear.

It's a strange way to write a book, but I liked it.

(Review shared to Goodreads, Facebook and The Book Club Girls and 52 Books groups on Facebook.)

A heartfelt tribute to marriage, parenthood and self acceptance. This book is a little on the quirky side - it’s not written in a traditional story format. Instead the entire thing is written as daily entries in list format. If you’re a list person, I think you’ll find a certain charm in this book. Parts of it shine - others are easily glossed over. Overall a witty and charming read.

I enjoyed this book! I think it was a unique set-up being written entirely in lists. I had never read a story in this format before but Matthew Dicks managed to include lots of detail and emotion within the lists. The format also made it a quick read which I appreciated. The author really was able to grasp some of the quirks that make being a human interesting and I found it readable because of the writing style. I will admit the plot itself didn't go much of anywhere for me but somehow I still became invested in the main character's life and wanted to know what happened in the end.

I was provided an eARC of this book from NetGalley & the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I love this cover and that’s what originally attracted me to this book. I’m also a sucker for books about love. This is the story of a man who decides to quit his teaching job to open a bookstore. His pregnant wife is very supportive but he finds himself lying to her about the store’s success (or lack of). As he keeps draining his savings to stay afloat, he writes down money making schemes that include writing to billionaires, a no thank you note service, bingo at the VFW Hall. The book is written in list form, over the course of 9 months. He has a new list of things for nearly every day of his wife’s pregnancy. Clouding this is his problematic relationship with his father, and his wife’s late husband. 
Despite how short this book really is (due to everything written as lists), it took me a while to plod through it. I didn’t like the main character at first and found him rather annoying. As he gets more desperate, he gets more interesting. It’s not terrible, but not great. Maybe I just don’t like male writers? Also near the end, there’s a twist in the last two chapters which made me think there was an error in the advance copy, but really it was just a clever way to get you thinking and wondering what happened. For full disclosure, I received an advance copy from Netgalley in exchange for this unbiased review.

This book was so good!

The format of the book is a series of lists that Dan makes to help him get his thoughts out, and as an alternative to journaling because he thinks journaling is stupid. Through these lists, we follow Dan as he struggles with his insecurities in his marriage to a widow, his lack of desire to be a father, and his failing business.

This book was funny, heartfelt, and kept me reading. I loved it!

Quirky and fin. Awkward at first but then I grew to love the way it was written.. I'm happy authors are being so creative these days.