Book Thoughts: Starter For Ten - David Nicholls (BLOGTOBER Day 2)

Firstly I'd like to apologise for the awful quality photos. My camera needs new batteries and so for now my phone will have to do.  For Blogtober Day 2 I wanted to review Starter For Ten by David Nicholls. I only recently finished reading this and I can honestly say I haven't enjoyed a book as much as this in a long time; I've ready One Day by Nichols and loved that too.  They both feel like somewhere in between light reads and more serious/dense novels and just strike the perfect balance.

Starter For Ten is funny. Laugh out loud funny. It's written from the perspective of Brian, an 18 year old about to start his first year of university.  Leaving his single Mum to live away from home is difficult and he struggles to juggle his newfound independence with keeping in touch with his old life and friends at home.  At university, finding his place among so many different personalities and social groups proves a challenge, as does coming to terms with his love for Alice Harbinson, fellow member of the University Challenge team and one of the most popular girls in his year.  The book follows Brian's journey throughout his first year studying English and his whole thought process and interior monologues are just so perfect; there are so many moments that anyone who's been to university will just instantly relate to and Brian is such a personable character. This is one of the most quotable books I've read in a long time, too. My favourite is:

And make no mistake, lonely is absolutely the worst thing to be. Tell someone that you've got a drink problem, or an eating disorder, or your dad died when you were a kid even, and you can almost see their eyes light up with the sheer fascinating drama and pathos of it all, because you've got an issue, something for them to get involved in, to talk about and analyse and discuss and maybe even cure. But tell someone you’re lonely and of course they’ll seem sympathetic, but look very carefully and you'll see one hand snaking behind their back, groping for the door handle, ready to make a run for it, as if loneliness itself were contagious. Because being lonely is just so banal, so shaming, so plain and dull and ugly.” 

Can't say enough good things about this book. Read it in about 3 days and would read it again in a heartbeat. So funny and so moving.

Steph x

twitter: @stephylouise

instagram: @stephanielou__x