Good Material: THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER, FROM THE AUTHOR OF EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT LOVE

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The last section is Jen’s point of view, whilst it may not be especially long it is very illuminating and explains a lot. I’m glad we got this as it gives a broader understanding of their relationship. The ending is extremely satisfying.

When digging into modern day manhood, meanwhile, there is perhaps a trace of gender stereotyping – Jen’s female friends take her for a spa weekend to help her deal with the breakup, while Andy’s own blokey friends arrange a night out at the pub, followed by KFC. Yet something about it rings true. We agreed I would call at seven but I wait until three minutes past to make a point that she doesn’t get to call the shots any more. I scroll to her name in my phonebook: Jen (Hammersmith). We found it funny - my chosen life partner, reduced to a borough. It’s not funny now it’s lost all its irony. It’s just a fact. I am about to call Jen (Hammersmith), a woman who I would probably never be friends with, who lives in a part of London I would never visit. The book is so easy to read and still feels profound and relatable in its revelations. I consider being able to pull this off incredibly hard and Dolly Alderton did it without ever drifting off into either pretentious, patronising or unrealistic territory. And despite us all probably having read at least a dozen novels about some sort of breakup, I thought there was enough in here to make this feel fresh – particularly the rumination about being in your thirties. I award it 13/10 on my QWJ scale (stands for Queasy With Jealousy that I didn't write it)' MARIAN KEYESShe’s fine, she hates you, her Zumba class are plotting your death.’ Another arctic pause. ‘She’s devastated, obviously.’ I award it 13/10 on my QWJ scale (stands for Queasy With Jealousy that I didn't write it)’ MARIAN KEYES WONDERFUL ... Shot through with Dolly's characteristic emotional intelligence ... Very funny ... Such a pleasure to read. I devoured it ... I award it 13/10 on my QWJ scale (stands for Queasy With Jealousy that I didn't write it) Marian Keyes

Can’t dance. Has no rhythm at all. Used to find it adorable until I saw people laughing at her and hate to say I was embarrassed. She’s sworn she won’t, but she can’t keep it up much longer,’ she says. ‘He’s your best friend. He can help you process this.’

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Don’t care,’ I snap, hoping I sound like a romantic outlaw. I inhale and feel the peculiar comfort of my lungs tightening.

The male perspective is rarely the focus in romantic comedy, but Dolly Alderton’s new novel corrects the imbalance… Relatable, funny and refreshing.”Pretended she’s unsure about wanting children because she cares about the planet, but I think she just didn’t want children with me. Your therapist suggested that I “write a letter to my ego”, so I’m sorry if I’m not gagging to hear whatever she advised.’ Annoyingly loquacious and was on a debating team at her school, which meant I didn’t win an argument in nearly four years even when I was right about loads of them. You’re the only person I can talk to about this stuff,’ I say, revolted by the baldness of my own love. ‘Please make sure Jane doesn’t tell him before I do.’

Goes to therapy every week and has done since she was twenty-nine but would never tell me what they spoke about and I’ve never seen that she has anything wrong with her. Snob. Once said that she thought people who wear straw hats at the airport on the way to their summer holiday are ‘regional’. It is also not just a shrewd portrayal of lost love, it is genuinely funny – if only more books made you laugh as much as this.

Her unbearable sister Miranda who carries nonsensical homemade signs at protests saying things like HISTORY IS WATCHING and who I know hates me because she always ranted about ‘straight white guys’ when she came round for dinner, no matter the topic. She used to say ‘Sorry, Andy’ but didn’t by the end. Alderton is excellent at fusing poignant tenderness with wry observations about modern life, and that talent is on full display here. Good Material is a highly enjoyable exploration of the messy, non-binary nature of many break-ups, and how two people can simply make a terrible couple.”