Book Review: Ghosts by Dolly Alderton

 Ghosts: A Novel

By: Dolly Alderton

    Ghosts by Dolly Alderton is a memoir of heartbreak, the unknowns of growing up and, most dreadfully, dating in your thirties. As a twenty-three-year-old with no career, no education and not many exes to reflect on, the themes in this novel can seem disconnected. However, and maybe being deemed an "old soul", I found myself not only completely enthralled with the plot itself, but also finding myself many times in its pages. 

    Alderton is wickedly funny. Her observations and the way her voice is so casually sarcastic in most manners reminds me of the mind of Jane Austen. Alderton masters the art of making bleak situations absolutely hilarious even when its overflowing with cynicism. Nina, the main character in Ghosts, is of sharp mind and quick tongue-much like beloved character Elizabeth Bennet. Alderton carefully guides Nina through her early thirties in story of the new age colliding with a past that is still very dear to her heart. In fast paced downtown London, Nina begins a flighty and fleeting romance with a picture perfect man named Max. The affair seems too good to be true-and it is, spoiler, as Max commits the unthinkable act of "ghosting".

    I almost positive everyone I know as been ghosted. While I have never been "ghosted" in the direct definition of the word (ghosting: none; the practice of ending a relationship with someone by suddenly and with no explanation withdrawing all communication.) I have done my fair share of it unfortunately. The idea of online dating apps is a huge part of Nina's trajectory in the novel. When she's obsessing over it, her problems outside of her little screen and ten-minute conversations are completely ignored which would come with the consequences of illusion. When the app is out of her life, she is more present, more aware and more level headed. Tinder and the like are fun for a bit; that much I can admit. Being on the app and a couple like it (the offshoot Bumble being my favorite, because it's the most entertaining, which I'll touch on in a minute), I found myself laughing out loud while Nina made the exact observations one would on the app. Men of all kinds, though as she points out there's really only seven men in rotation with slight and meaningless differences, are at her fingertips. It's so easy to cast aside an undesirable partner or get excited about a prospect. Nina is a day dreamer at heart, like me, and we invest a lot of emotion into the imaginations we come up with. Seeing a guy for the first time, we get the feeling of hope and future happiness even if we only know that we like the same type of pasta. It's a silly and frankly offensive way that these apps trap us; people like me and Nina know we are generally smart and self-aware but even we are not immune to the instant satisfaction and boost of serotonin, and we see someone we can put on our "list". 

    Something I found particular delicious in reading this book was Nina's thoughts on the types of men she sees. She hits it right on the nose every time with her examinations of men like the one who posts photos with babies and puppies, hoping to pull a heart string. The ones who post photos of them cooking and traveling so you know they're cultured and worldly. It's the human and modern-day version of a Mankin and Bird Of Paradise courtship dance: ridiculous but just entertaining enough to be intriguing. And, upon that thought, where there is a type of man there is a type of woman. Otherwise, there wouldn't seven billion people and counting in the world.

    Alderton's writing is a treat to consume. Her acuity hits all the right places in the brain and creates a mind so alike to her reader while still so individual, it's very difficult not to get swept away in it. A delightful and thoughtful read, Ghosts is one to come back to on the shelf.

-S.P.