Book Club: Let’s Talk About ‘Good Material,’ by Dolly Alderton

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How to explain the British writer Dolly Alderton to an American audience? It might be best to let her work speak for itself — it certainly does! — but Alderton is such a cultural phenomenon in her native England that some context is probably helpful: “Like Nora Ephron, With a British Twist” is the way we put it when we reviewed her latest novel, “Good Material,” earlier this year.

“Good Material” tells the story of a down-on-his-luck stand-up comic dealing with a broken heart, and it has won Alderton enthusiastic fans in America. In this week’s episode, the Book Review’s MJ Franklin discusses the book with his colleagues Emily Eakin and Leah Greenblatt. Caution: Spoilers abound.

Have you read “Good Material” or any of Alderton’s other books? We’d love to know what you thought. Share your reactions in the comments and we’ll try to join the conversation.

We’ll get you started:

MJ Franklin: “‘Good Material’ is Dolly Alderton’s riff on the rom-com. I say it’s a riff because, though this book is humorous and deals with ideas of romance, it’s not really about the experience of love. It’s about the experience of a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad breakup. We follow Andy, a 35-year-old straight, white, English comedian who has just been broken up with by his girlfriend, Jen. They have been dating for a few years and the breakup causes Andy to spiral. … I’m looking across the room, and Emily and Leah are quietly laughing, which I think tells you the tone of this book.” …

Emily Eakin: “One of the things you learn early on is that Andy and Jen were best friends with a couple. Avi and Jane, and together they did all these things, and for Andy this was bliss. And at one point — this is when I remember first laughing out loud — he said, the four of us together, it wasn’t a coup de foudre, but a group de foudre, and I thought that was hilarious.”

Leah Greenblatt: “Emily loves a French pun.”

Emily Eakin: “I do have a weakness for French puns. But I was totally in.”

We would love to hear your thoughts about this episode, and about the Book Review’s podcast in general. You can send them to [email protected].