Good Material, the second novel by Dolly Alderton, was delightful company on a recent trip to Seville. I highly recommend Seville as a cute weekend spot and also highly recommend Good Material as an engrossing holiday (or, any time really) read.
Opening sentence: Reasons Why It’s Good I’m Not With Jen
Andy and Jen
Good Material is the bittersweet story of Andy and Jen, a recently broken-up couple. It is the first Dolly Alderton book where the lead character and first person narration is from a male character, Andy. He is a comedian – not exactly Tom Allen in terms of his success levels but he has been on a few TV panel shows and manages to make a living from his craft.
When his long-term girlfriend, Jen suddenly breaks up with him, he’s confused and upset. We meet him as he’s coming to terms with what’s happened and trying to figure out his new way of life.
As he shared a flat with Jen, that includes finding a new place to live and as it was through Andy’s best friend, Avi that he met Jen (she is Avi’s wife, Jane’s best friend) the breakup has awkward repercussions across his whole life. This may sound like it sets the scene for a depressing read but it’s just the opposite. Good Material takes a wry, witty look at the situation and the overall tone is warm, positive and funny.
‘I’d love it if Andy ended up lodging with a ghost,‘ Rob says merrily.
‘Got dumped, moved on to a canal for two nights, moved in with a ghost,‘ Matt says with a huge grin on his face, putting his arm around me.
Both sides of the story
Most of the book is told from Andy’s point-of-view but at the end we do get to hear from Jen and it’s really interesting to understand her take on things and how her version of events compare to Andy’s.
As with every couple that breaks up, there are always variances. This is what Dolly Alderton does so well, captures the nuances of a real break-up. I think I really liked it as there were no high-drama moments as such, it was all so realistic.
I want to talk to her about how I feel, but it’s not even interesting to me any more.
As I’ve come to expect from a Dolly Alderton book, Good Material brings a lot of on-point cultural references, many laugh-out-loud moments and highly relatable characters. If you’ve ever been puzzled or hurt as to why a relationship ended then you will definitely feel seen by, and feel empathy with, Andy and Jen’s story.
Also, the writing just flows. Dolly’s naturally conversational style that I enjoyed so much in her debut novel Ghosts is very much present here too. A great read!
- Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC;
- Get your copy of Good Material here;
- Published by Fig Tree 7th November 2023;
- 320 pages;
- My rating:
Books on the 7:47 
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