Everything I Know About Love / Ghosts

by Dolly Alderton

Two Books

Paperback

About the author

Dolly Alderton is an award-winning author and journalist. She is a columnist for The Sunday Times Style and has also written for GQ, Red, Marie Claire and Grazia. From 2017 to 2020, she co-hosted the weekly pop-culture and current affairs podcast The High Low alongside journalist Pandora Sykes.

Her first book Everything I Know About Love became a top five Sunday Times bestseller in its first week of publication and won a National Book Award for Autobiography of the Year. Her first novel Ghosts was published in October 2020 and was also a top five Sunday Times Bestseller.

Reviews

[Océane Cardoso · Rating 4 out of 5]

i cried. moved me. taught me.

[Niculina Kobler · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was decent throughout but I LOVEDDD the plot! Kept expecting her to fall in love and find someone she wants to be with but then it ended even better :)
Pretty different to what I usually read but in a good way!

[Arzu‘s bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dear Dolly,

thank you ♥️

[Zoë · Rating 2 out of 5]

WHY DID THIS TAKE ME SO LONG TO READ

(I got bored) yawn

[Jade Honess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of those books that was so relatable to life and makes you think and reflect! Never put a man before yourself girls, you will find love eventually but don’t obsess over romantic love because there’s so much more love out there 🫶🏼

[Marisa Devuono · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was kind of disappointed with this one seeing how there was such great reviews

[Ange · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to hug Dolly and thank her immensely.

I caught myself laughing so much reading this book and smiling to myself constantly. Dolly just writes in a way that is so relatable and flows so easily on the page it’s like I’m constantly having conversations with her. I felt this way reading Dolly’s fiction novels and I am in absolute awe and love for her writing.

I felt that I learnt so much from Dolly. I may only be in my 20’s but she speaks of such important life transitions and adjustments that some of us may have already experienced and others waiting to arise.

Dolly alderton you have become one of my favourite authors and I can’t wait to read more of you x

Quote highlights:

“I tried to put a stop to people pleasing, aware that giving my time and energy away so freely was what was chipping away at the void that I didn’t want to turn into a quarry”

“I don’t need any words or looks or comments from a man to believe I’m visible; to believe I’m here. I don’t need to run away from discomfort and into a male eyeline. That’s not where I come alive. Because I am enough. My heart is enough”

“The weighty representation of the world cannot rest on every decision you make”

[Antonio Gámiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this book because it was picked by my partner at a telephone cabin in Stavanger, Norway. I thought this book was going to be some kind of guide into relationships or some structured tutorial about love. To my astonishment, this book is actually a biography of the author. An accurate one. It contains all the details of her love life, starting from adolescence until she is 30 years old (2018, when the book was published). It does not only contain romantic love, but also the love you feel towards your friends and loved ones.

That said, I did not quite like the book. I think it´s the biography of a random person living in London, and probably taking a lot of bad decisions, to finally write some, let´s say, not surprising conclusions, about what decisions other people should take (20 pages of conclusions, after 340 describing her life). So probably you are better off watching some romantic film rather than spending the time reading this book.

[Alexis Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

As soon as I started reading the this book, I could tell it was going to have a profound impact on me. So often, I ask myself what is actually going on whilst I have been a twenty something and this book reassured me this is a question many in this decade face. There were chapters of this book so telling for me that I didn’t bother to put the lid of my highlighter back on because I knew I’d just have to take it back off again. I picked up this book at the perfect time of my life and it hit very close to home at times that it could have been written about my own life. One of the most beautiful pieces of writing I have ever read; if you ever find yourself asking what is actually going on right now? I suggest you make a tea and pick up Dolly Alderton💛💛💛💛🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Laura Neubert · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a funny, wonderful, and cringy at times love letter to yourself and to your friends. I wish I read this much earlier. If I ever have a daughter, I'll make her read this when she turns 15 (give or take a few years)

[Courtney Rodrigues · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bloody loved it, a heartwarming bowl of soup. Would read again six times or more

[Giulia Fonseca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Acho que esperava mais do livro. Apesar de agora ter entendido os ‘riscos’ na capa — já que ela entende de todas as outras coisas, menos sobre amor romântico — no final, ela deixa claro que entende o amor por causa da melhor amiga. Mas, sei lá, não era bem o que eu esperava…

Voltando ao principal: achei a história rasa. Parecia que seria um livro mais maduro, mas me deu nervoso ver uma pessoa de 25 anos agindo como se tivesse 15. Acho que é um livro mais voltado para adolescentes, porque sinceramente, quase ninguém com 20+ deve achar interessante ler sobre drogas, festas e besteiras.

[Nathalie Ceulemans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Waarom ik me graag even verdiep in een boek of een goed verhaal? Om even te ontsnappen aan de werkelijkheid. Hoe goed dit boek ook was geschreven, evenals de mopjes op het juiste moment, werd ik met dit boek heel de tijd geconfronteerd met mijn eigen deprimerende werkelijkheid. Want ik zit net als Nina en Lola in hetzelfde schuitje. Thirty something and single for life omdat de mannen die op mijn pad komen me keer op keer als een blok laten vallen. Dus ik kan niet anders dan maar een 3 op 5 geven, om die persoonlijke redenen. 🥺

[Katja · Rating 5 out of 5]

The power of a female friendship is unmatched.
A relationship of the future.

[Georgia H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread for book club. Always 5 stars

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fine. I liked the autobiographic writing style and the topic of getting older. It was kind of slow to get into because there was no crazy storyline. But a nice before bed read.

[Kyra Duetz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allebei gelezen; ghosts is grappig en everythjng i know about love zooo leuk

[gei · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d say it’s not bad but just that I couldn’t resonate with her story.

There is a chapter I like was about Farly’s sister Florence. The piece she wrote is fascinating and I literally cried in the subway.

“It may seem that life is difficult at times but it’s really as simple as breathing in and out. Rip open hearts with your fury and tear down egos with your modesty. Be the person you wish you could be, not the person you feel you are doomed to be. Let yourself run away with your feelings. You were made so that someone could love you. Let them love you.”

It’s fun to read but don’t expect too much to learn from her experiences.

[Ella Beke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dit boek heeft me herhaaldelijk van verveling naar voldoening geslingerd. In het begin bleef ik vaak op mijn honger zitten. Maar naarmate ik verder las, begon ik de chaos die het boek uitstraalt toch ook te appreciëren en herkennen. Vooral het einde verrasste en bekoorde mij door een diepzinnige reflectie en doordachtheid die ik voorheen nog niet was tegengekomen. Dit zorgde er bij mij voor dat alle chaos in the end toch betekenisvol aanvoelde en een soort van geruststelling (voor zover een boek dit kan) bood.

[Filipa Soares Franco · Rating 5 out of 5]

i can not even begin to explain how much i TRULY LOVED this book. just feels like a warm hug and a cup of tea. i resonated so much with this book. the writing and the story are just so beautiful and enjoyable. top 3 books i’ve ever read. helped me heal in such a wonderful way. will definitely read again sometime in the future. if you’re not in your thirties the second to last chapter will probably be a little boring but the last chapter makes it worth it to get through it.

[Jasmin]

DNF, I found this slow and initially self indulgent. I’d rather switch to something else that grabs me and feels worth reading. I checked other reviews and found some people had a similar reaction. I had a look at the book outline and feel I have the gist of the content (description dating over her life and focus on friendships toward the end) without reading. I’m also unfamiliar with Dolly Alderton prior to reading which likely affected my perception of the book and its account.

[Catalina Robledo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️
Me demoré mucho en leerlo y no se si fue porque no me enganche, porque a veces sus historias se parecían mucho a mi vida y mis equivocaciones y no quería leer algo que siento que he vivido. Pero al final, se siente bien saber qué hay muchas más como una, tratando de pasar por este camino que son los 20’s, me siento acompañada y comprendida ❤️‍🩹

[jess richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book and the friendships that dolly has
I felt myself relating to all of the lessons in her 20s that she’s learned, it was like talking to a friend.

Really recommend to any of my 20 something girlies that need some reassurance

[Robyn Eve · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really found this book difficult to fall in love with and I'm not entirely sure why. It came highly recommended so it was kept as a holiday read, although it ended up feeling like a struggle at times to finish. Saddening I didn't enjoy it as much as other readers.

[Georgia Lewendon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me a WHILE to finish as there isn’t really a story line. Although there are parts with a story in it, if you are more of a fiction lover girl, this probably isn’t you. But it does open your mind to being less harsh on yourself.

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. It felt like reading a more reflected story of sex and the city.

[Olivia Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the book however did take a little bit to get into however started relating more once I got into the thick of it.

[Nandnee Bhudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relatable, nostalgic and funny!

[Amy Gillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not particularly gripping, but I like the theme of it

[Oyku Saglam · Rating 5 out of 5]

sooo funny