Twenty-one Truths About Love: A Novel

Written by Matthew Dicks

Narrated by James Patrick Cronin

From the beloved author of Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend comes a wonderful new novel about a struggling man, written entirely in lists.

1. Daniel Mayrock loves his wife Jill…more than anything.
2. Dan quit his job and opened a bookshop.
3. Jill is ready to have a baby.
4. Dan is scared; the bookshop isn’t doing well. Financial crisis is imminent.
5. Dan hasn’t told Jill about their financial trouble. He’s ashamed.
6. Then Jill gets pregnant.

This heartfelt story is about the lengths one man will go to and the risks he will take to save his family. But Dan doesn’t just want to save his failing bookstore and his family’s finances―he wants to become someone.

1. Dan wants to do something special.
2. He’s a man who is tired of feeling ordinary.
3. He’s sick of feeling like a failure.
4. Of living in the shadow of his wife’s deceased first husband.

Dan is also an obsessive list maker, and his story unfolds entirely in his lists, which are brimming with Dan’s hilarious sense of humor, unique world-view, and deeply personal thoughts. When read in full, his lists paint a picture of a man struggling to be a man, a man who has reached a point where he’s willing to do anything for the love (and soon-to-be new love) of his life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Nov 19, 2019
• ISBN: 9781799751212

Matthew Dicks

MATTHEW DICKS is a writer and elementary school teacher. His articles have been published in the Hartford Courant and he has been a featured author at the Books on the Nightstand retreat. He is also a Moth storyteller and a two-time StorySLAM champion. Dicks is the author of the novels Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend, Something Missing, and Unexpectedly Milo. He lives in Newington, Connecticut, with his wife, Elysha, and their children, Clara and Charlie.

Reviews for Twenty-one Truths About Love

[Jessica Harrison · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was much better than I was expecting. Loved the story and the character. Very relatable. And to to the audio book was fantastic too.

[rmarcin-630843 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Twenty-one Truths About Love is a novel written as a series of daily lists, and sometimes multiple lists in a day. Dan is insecure- as owner of a bookstore and his management of it, of his wife's love, of his ability to be a good father, about his relationship with his own father. Over the course of a few months, Dan's financial situation becomes more desperate and Dan becomes more anxious about how to resolve it.This is a sweet, endearing novel about love, strength, friendship, and relationships. I really enjoyed the majority of the novel, and laughed at many of the observations. I recommend this quick read.

[bemislibrary · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Eight months of daily ramblings in list form that have no really relationship except it was written by one person who loves a woman named Jill.

[c.archer · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fast and cute read. I didn’t get into the list idea, but I think some readers will.

[ethel55_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Musings on a book of lists:1. I was really surprised that the book moved along with the story so well. The characters were fleshed out well via the list titles and descriptions.2. That said, I thought that this format would be a lot quicker to read.3. Dan. You have way too many employees for a still fledging business. A controllable expense is a better gamble than the Powerball. 4. The ending was very redemptive and heartwarming. Again, I was amazed at how much I connected with the characters in this format. However, it doesn't make up for all the penis talk, just proves that's how Dan's inner mind works.

[pinkpurlandprose · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Matthew Dicks for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review of Twenty-One Truths About Love. All my thoughts and opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.I didn’t really know what to expect when I started this. I had heard that the whole book was a bunch of lists. Didn’t quite know how that was going to work but it really did. These aren’t just lists but more like observations within lists. And they are funny as hell. Completely relatable. Dan is a frustrated writer who has opened a bookstore. A failing bookstore. The funniest observations about customers, the behind the scenes, his expectations of what it would be like compared to the reality is on point. For example he has his “original vision of a bookstore owner” with things like dining with authors and talking about books with smart people compared to his reality which includes teenage girls vaping in the store.Dan used to be a teacher. It is where he met his wife Jill. As a former teacher, the teaching reflections had me in stitches. Dan didn’t like teaching, his kids didn’t like him, the other teachers didn’t like him and Jill is the ultimate perfect teacher. Jill was married before but her husband died. Dan’s neuroses over comparing himself to the prior husband whether it’s his personality, physique or his bedroom antics. Jill wants to get pregnant. She believes Dan is on board. Of course he has many concerns that he willingly shares with us including how to avoiding getting her pregnant. Dan also hides his failing finances with Jill. He lies and doesn’t let her in on what state things are in. These “lists” are like an inner dialogue of Dan’s fears, insecurities, hopes and dreams. Very similar to my own inner dialogue - hmmm should I be concerned? Jill does get pregnant. For as cynical as Dan can be, he really is in love with Jill and wants to provide for her. He doesn’t want to be a failure. He has to find ways of cleaning up his life.I thought it was a clever, insightful, and hilarious book. The format didn’t bother me at all. It lends itself to putting down and picking it up even if you have a few minutes. I didn’t read it all in one shot so I’m not sure what that experience would be like. I always looked forward to reading it. If you need a laugh at life, choose this one!

[ivydtruitt · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Just as when a book was released years ago told totally via emails, Twenty-one Truths About Love excited me. How do you tell a story through lists?Daniel's lists are his diary. He pours all his dreams, insecurities, you name it into his lists. He wants and needs more. Not just for himself, but for Jill, his wife. He adores her but often feels he's competing with a dead man and losing. He's terrified of Jill getting pregnant.  Then she tells him she's pregnant. His book store isn't doing too well, how does he fix it and how does he tell Jill?These revealing lists run you thru a gamut of emotions as Daniel struggles to do and be his best, and hopefully a tad bit more, while attempting to dig himself out of the hole(s) he's put himself in.There's something for every reader in Daniel's lists. Some nugget of truth revealed that's identifiable in their life. Mr. Dicks has succeeded in creating a character everyone can relate to in some way, who tells his story in a series of lists. Brilliant.  

[tamidale · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I don’t believe I have ever read a story that is told completely in lists. This book is like being in someone else’s mind 24/7 and knowing their every thought—appropriate or not. In order not to deviate from the list format, I’ll list all the reasons I loved this book.It’s funny and made me laugh out loud quite a few times.It’s wonderful to see how much Dan loves his wife and how he respects her grief over the loss of her first husband.I loved the bookstore atmosphere and the monthly books featured. I also loved Dan’s witty opinions about some of the books—and his opinions of his employees.Dan has some interesting thoughts about the teaching profession. Most were spot-on. Especially his thoughts about meetings.Dan’s friendship with Bill, the widower he met at bingo, was heartwarming. I think I love Bill too! He is my favorite character in the book.Dan’s love for the baby that he thought he didn’t want was proof that he was meant to be a father. Not just a father, but a great father!This is a really sweet, book that doesn’t take too long to read. It is the perfect read going into the holiday season.Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

[girlwellread · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A special thank you to Edelweiss, NetGalley, Macmillan, and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.Dan is an obsessive list maker—he tries to solve all of his problems by making lists.This story unfolds entirely through Dan's lists where he uses them almost like journal entries in his hopes of saving his family, his bookstore, and ultimately himself.I devoured this book in one sitting.I'm not going to lie, at first I was disappointed when I discovered that the whole book was made up of lists, I mean...who wants to read lists? Well, when they are written by Matthew Dicks you do.Dan is completely overwhelmed with life and is suffering from anxiety. It was suggested to him by his former therapist that he log his feelings—this is where the lists come in. And he pretty much records everything from the day-to-day mundane, to what is plaguing him.Having left his career as a teacher to open a bookstore, Dan is feeling tremendous pressure to succeed. He has yet to turn a profit and this is causing him anxiety and guilt since he hasn't disclosed this information to his wife, Jill. Not only does she thinks that everything is going swimmingly, she's also basking in the glow of pregnancy—having a baby is another source of stress for Dan.Jill was a widow when they met, and Dan has always felt competition with her dead husband, Peter. He feels like he can never measure up and is incredibly insecure where Peter is concerned because he wouldn't be married to Jill if Peter was still alive.We learn so much about what it is like to be flawed and human through Dicks' unique book. This narrative style could have easily failed, but instead, readers will be utterly enchanted by the raw beauty of Twenty-on Truths About Love. It was moving, funny, and incredibly real.

[lostinalibrary · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In Twenty-One Truths About Love: A Novel by author Matthew Dicks, Dan Mayrock is an obsessive list writer. But not just shopping lists or recipe lists or the normal ones we all make and, if you are like me, always forget. He tells the story of his life - lists about his jealously of Jill's first and late husband, Peter, his regrets, his brother, his financial worries and about the rather extreme plan he concocts to solve those problems but most of all, his love for Jill and the baby they are expecting.When I saw Twenty-One Truths About Love: A Novel by author Matthew Dicks for request on Netgalley, I was intrigued. I mean, a novel made up entirely of lists - how would that work? Turns out, it works quite well. It is warm, charming, and frequently hilarious. And much of this is down to Dan - he is at times sweet and at others frustratingly inept but always lovable, sympathetic and, above all, relatable even when or perhaps mostly when he is at his most dithering.Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review