I've never been the biggest nonfiction reader, but this memoir was everything I didn't know I needed. This book has become extremely popular, you probably have heard someone talking about it on Tik Tok or seen it on display at any bookstore. Let me tell you, this book is popular for a reason. Everything I know about Love inspired me, helped me, and reassured me in one the most influential periods of my life.
Dolly Alderton is a British journalist and she spends this memoir talking about growing up and the mistakes and accomplishments that came along with it. The book starts with her childhood as she recounts her friendships, mainly the one with her best friend, Farly. Farly remains a main character throughout this book because of her strong friendship with Dolly. It's truly beautiful to see this friendship develop and change throughout the book. Dolly makes a phenomenal point that when it comes to change in friendships, the love will also be the same, but how it formatted and shown changes over time.
The book goes on into her teen years, college life, 20s, and her life now in her thirties. Farly stays a prominent character in every one of these chapters of her life. Along with Farly, she writes about her other friendships, roommates, and relationships. What I love most about her writing on friendships, is the fact that she credits her knowledge of love to her long-term friendships with women. This is something that is so relatable because it's so easy to think of love as something only attainable through a romantic relationship but there's love everywhere, especially in our friendships.
This book feels like a hug from the big sister I never had. Throughout this memoir, Dolly recounts some of the worst moments in her life but also some of the best. She writes about her crazy first dates and wild nights out and you can't help but smile as she reflects on this experience. On the other hand, she also talks about more serious topics like her struggle with her body image and the feeling of not belonging as her friends are getting in serious relationships and she is not. This is a book that will make you laugh and cry as Alderton dives into the fascinating stories of her life.
To finish off this review, I'm going to read you one of my favorite quotes from this book.
"When you're looking for love and it seems like you might not ever find it, remember you probably have access to an abundance of it already, just not the romantic kind. This kind of love might not kiss you in the rain or propose marriage. But it will listen to you, inspire and restore you. It will hold you when you cry, celebrate when you're happy, and sing All Saints with you when you're drunk. You have so much to gain and learn from this kind of love. You can carry it with you forever. Keep it as close to you as you can."
