One Day (Vintage Contemporaries Original)
by David Nicholls
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Book Summary Information
Author: David NichollsEdition: Kindle Edition
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Kindle eBook
Published: 2010-06-03
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 449
Publisher: Vintage
Book Reviews of One Day (Vintage Contemporaries Original)
Book Review: Em and Dex, the barbs and banter of their love
Summary: 4 Stars
Dexter Mayhew, handsome, shallow, can be -and often is - a lout, has an easy, easy time with women.
"He had one of those faces where you were aware of the bones beneath the skin, as if even his bare skull would be attractive. A fine nose, slightly shiny with grease, and dark skin beneath the eyes that looked almost bruised, a badge of honour from all the smoking and late nights spent deliberately losing at strip poker."
Emma Morley, a beauty when you wipe away the dull veneer and really look in closely, smart, needs a jab of ambition, definitely not promiscuous - which is not to say she is by any means prudish.
"She was pretty but seemed annoyed by the fact. Her bottled-red hair was almost willfully badly cut, alone in front of the mirror probably. Her skin had a pallid puffiness that spoke of too much time in libraries . . . there was no denying that her face - well, her face was a wonder."
Someone should -- and surely will -- make a movie about their relationship. It will pull in buckets of money. It will reduce audiences to tears.
St. Swithin's Day, celebrated in the U.K. on July 15. We meet Emma and Dex on St. Swithin's Day in 1988 when they spend the day (and night) together, in Edinburgh, the last of their days as students. Over the next two decades, we catch up and check in with them every year on the same date, July 15, and watch as their lives unfold and their friendship grows and a relationship, mostly platonic, develops based on need and trust and the emotional sustenance they gain from each other.
Post-university, Emma ends up "in the graveyard of ambition" working as a waitress at "Loco Caliente," a Tex-Mex restaurant in north London. One of the great set pieces has Emma giving the new guy on the wait staff, Ian Whitehead, a tour of the dive. "Loco Caliente means `Crazy Hot.' Hot because the air-conditioning doesn't work, `crazy' because that's what you'd have to be to eat here. Or work here, come to that. Mucho mucho loco."
Ian, who has a face that "for some reason makes Emma think of tractors" and who aspires to earn a living as a stand-up comedian, takes on the role of boyfriend as Emma escapes to become a grade school teacher and begins to see success as a writer of teen fiction.
Dexter, meanwhile, learns to define hedonism and falls into the job of a TV "presenter" on "Late-Night Lock-In," a past-midnight program targeting his age group and lifestyle. Dexter attracts success much like he does women. He enjoys both. Humility is an attribute for others. "Dexter didn't like to think of himself as vain, but there were definitely times when he wished there was someone on hand to take his photogaph."
Dexter's success is dazzling. His fall from grace and teen favor is equally steep. Booze, drugs and bad behavior account for the decline. We get to see him, as Emma does, at his absolute worst. Being out of fahion is not something Dexter wears well. Emma remains a steadfast friend. For the most part. Their relationship snags bottom in 1995 when Emma gives Dexter what she believes and fears is a final buss on the cheek, "Dexter, I love you so much. So, so much, and I probably always will. I just don't like you anymore. I'm sorry."
With time and circumstance, it's fair to say, the relationship bounds back, evolves. If this all sounds as if the book might veer in the direction of becoming this generation's "Love Story," forget it. "One Day" is a love story, but a story of two people without all the pathos of Erich Segal's 1970 bestseller. If comparison is in order, "One Day" is in style and substance more like "When Harry Met Sally."
Nicholls is aiming for humor. He succeeds. At its best, the narrative is great comedy with a shattering instance of wrenching melodrama, but primarily a narrative chock-full of wry remarks, hilarious situations and real wit and old-fashioned repartee. About the intricacies of relationships, "One Day" is insightful and acerbic.
There are a few banana peels lying around but the book is largely driven by the banter and barbs, and at times it feels as if you're reading "One Day" as a screenplay. Like real life, lots of talk; not too much action.
We're well into the story when someone asks Emma how the two friends met. "We grew up together," Emma answers without hesitation. Em and Dex have a history and like their story, "One Day" is funny, moving and ultimately memorable.
Summary of One Day (Vintage Contemporaries Original)
It?s 1988 and Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley have only just met. But after only one day together, they cannot stop thinking about one another. Over twenty years, snapshots of that relationship are revealed on the same day?July 15th?of each year. Dex and Em face squabbles and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. And as the true meaning of this one crucial day is revealed, they must come to grips with the nature of love and life itself.From the Trade Paperback edition.
It?s 1988 and Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley have only just met. But after only one day together, they cannot stop thinking about one another. Over twenty years, snapshots of that relationship are revealed on the same day?July 15th?of each year. Dex and Em face squabbles and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. And as the true meaning of this one crucial day is revealed, they must come to grips with the nature of love and life itself.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
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