Now Read This: “Twenty-One Truths about Love,” by Matthew Dicks

Daniel Mayrock makes lists to track his dwindling savings. He compiles records of the various texts he receives from his wife. He itemizes the stupid things he says. And he numbers all the reasons why he can’t measure up to a dead man. Everything in Dan’s life can be found in his notebook, everything except the money he needs to make ends meet, the desire to speak to his long-lost dad and any viable solution to his problems.

Dan’s obsessive list making is not only part of his personality, it has become the entire foundation of Matthew Dick’s novel “Twenty-One Truths about Love,” a quirky and somewhat comical account of an average man who’s placed himself precariously between his lies and his wife, Jill. By following his rambling trail of notes throughout the months of Jill’s pregnancy, we see the change in Dan’s outlook on life and his desire to do anything for his family, even if it is detrimental to his own safety.

I enjoyed the unique perspective Dicks used to show the actions and feelings of his main character in this novel. It was interesting to read this story without seeing anything outside of Dan’s character. And although it took some time to get used to Dan’s personality and the format of the book, I really liked the way he started to grow and change as the story progressed. I would like to mention that Dicks is a bit liberal with his use of profanity, which didn’t seem necessary to the story. But overall, it was a good read.

If you are looking for something similar to this in a more traditional format, you might look at “The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry,” which is about a bookstore owner who is slowly losing touch with the rest of the world until someone leaves a bundle on his doorstep. Both of these titles can be found at the Cape Girardeau Public Library as books, and “The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry” is also available as an audiobook.