Twenty-One Truths About Love by Matthew Green

Twenty-One Truths About Love is a quirky, feel-good novel about Dan and his fear that he will lose Jill, the love of his life. Jill and Dan met as teachers at the same school. Skip forward a few years and they’re a devoted married couple now trying for a baby. The problem is that Dan left teaching to open a bookshop which is leaching money and he’s afraid to tell Jill they can’t afford a baby after all.

Through the book Dan becomes a simmering cauldron of anxiety, imagining that he comes up short against Jill’s previous husband, Peter, who was a good earner and (his trump card) died tragically young. Dan struggles with managing staff at his shop: the bossy, self-righteous Kimberley who thinks she should be manager; the sensible, good-guy Steve who should be manager but Dan is too nervous to ask him.

Meanwhile Dan counts the days he has not spoken to his father – the man who left the family when Dan was ten and who sends Dan letters he never opens. So yes, Dan’s a bit of a mess. As the months pass and there’s at last a baby on the way, Dan’s plight worsens and he thinks of increasingly absurd ways to earn a lot of money fast, building to a hilarious climax where, of course, Dan learns something about life as well as love.

Twenty-One Truths About Love is a book unlike any I’ve read before in that it is written as a series of lists. Dan’s therapist once suggested he write lists as a way of managing anxiety. Matthew Green creatively tells Dan’s story via the lists he keeps in his notebook. There are lists like: 'Reasons I Fell in Love with Jill' followed by 'Reasons I Wouldn’t Have Married Jill If I Hadn’t Fallen in Love with Her', giving a snapshot of the couple’s marriage.

There are lists like 'Stupidest questions asked this month'; 'Number of books sold today that I love'; 'Number of books sold today that I despise' that explain a lot about Dan’s workplace. There are 'Dan’s Laws of the Universe' and month by month, lists about finances which underline Dan’s anguish.

If you think lists are a weird way to write a novel, think again. The plot is pacey, the pages fly by and somehow, Dan’s distinctive voice and his increasing desperation chime through. It is a dazzling accomplishment and well worth checking out if you’re eager for something a little bit different.

Posted by JAM

Catalogue link: Twenty-One Truths About Love

Aroha's Way by Craig Phillips

Aroha is a child of Aotearoa New Zealand: warm hearted, adventurous and full of life. The first few pages of this picture book are bright and blustery, their palette alive with orange leaves, yellow kowhai; the colours of the autumn outdoors. The pages burst with childish joy and adventure, picturing Aroha playing with friends and being a great Kiwi kid. Children will recognise themselves in the diversity of Aroha and her friends represented in the illustrations.

Children will also recognise that, although life can be joyful, now and then a cooler, or even downright icy mood can come upon us. The palette that identifies emotions of fear, sadness and anxiety are bleached of the previous warmth; the beach of the troubled Aroha is blustery and grey.

The great strength of this book is that it identifies normal human feelings and experiences. Aroha has a lovely bunch of friends but at times can feel lonely and unsure of herself. As the hero of the book she has strategies in place to identify and confront the negative emotions; she knows what to do when anxiety strikes and the illustration accompanying this thought is extremely powerful. No longer looking anxious and meek, Aroha is standing tall, clearly empowered by the knowledge that she can breathe, talk and share her way through her worries.

Not only is this a perfect book to share with children, who will enjoy the life and movement of the pictures as well as the acknowledgement of light and dark, it’s a tool for parents, caregivers and educators, and a reminder for grown-ups that more challenging feelings are usual and that there are ways to deal with them. The book ties up Aroha’s narrative beautifully with her safe in the knowledge that she is not alone and has extra tips at the back for breathing away fear, relieving nervousness, sharing thoughts and apprehensions. A timely, useful and beautiful book.

Reviewed by Louise Ward

Wardini Books

Craig Phillips will be discussing illustration in ‘Telling tales With Pictures’ at Harcourts Hawke’s Bay Arts Festival -  Readers and Writers on Sunday 20^th October at Hastings City Art Gallery. See hbaf.co.nz for further details.