As Young as This
Published on 4. April 2024
Book
Hardback
288 pages
978-0-241-63269-7 (ISBN)
Description
'This debut novel about womanhood and expectations will be one of the most exciting of the year' INDEPENDENT, the best fiction books to read in 2024
'A young woman's life, told through the men she has dated. With glorious attention to detail and emotional fluency, Dunn charts the ways in which we are built and broken by love' PANDORA SYKES
***
An irresistible and achingly relatable debut novel for anyone who has ever had to let go of what they thought their life would look like and open themselves up to the dizzying possibilities of chance.
Elliot. Joe. Tommy. Nathanael. Wren. Oliver. Malik. Zach. Frank. Patrick. Noah. These are the men Margot has loved, liked, lusted over.
Since she was seventeen, she's pictured them like stepping stones - each one bringing her closer to finding someone to share her life with and, eventually, father the children she's always imagined in her future.
From her first sexual encounter, to her first love, from grown-up dilemmas to spontaneous thrills, she's soaked up every experience available to her, discovering friendship, joy and despair. Through all of this she's refined her search until she believes she's arrived at 'the ending' to her story.
So how did she find herself here, single at thirty-four, and about to make the biggest decision of her life?
'Raw, funny and beautiful . . . A really gorgeously observed novel about youth and womanhood' DAISY BUCHANAN, author of Careering
'Relatable, poignant and gripping ... I read it in a single day' LIBBY PAGE, author of The Lido
'Warm, witty, wise . . . A thoughtful and moving portrait that made me laugh and cry' CHLOE ASHBY, author of Wet Paint
'A young woman's life, told through the men she has dated. With glorious attention to detail and emotional fluency, Dunn charts the ways in which we are built and broken by love' PANDORA SYKES
***
An irresistible and achingly relatable debut novel for anyone who has ever had to let go of what they thought their life would look like and open themselves up to the dizzying possibilities of chance.
Elliot. Joe. Tommy. Nathanael. Wren. Oliver. Malik. Zach. Frank. Patrick. Noah. These are the men Margot has loved, liked, lusted over.
Since she was seventeen, she's pictured them like stepping stones - each one bringing her closer to finding someone to share her life with and, eventually, father the children she's always imagined in her future.
From her first sexual encounter, to her first love, from grown-up dilemmas to spontaneous thrills, she's soaked up every experience available to her, discovering friendship, joy and despair. Through all of this she's refined her search until she believes she's arrived at 'the ending' to her story.
So how did she find herself here, single at thirty-four, and about to make the biggest decision of her life?
'Raw, funny and beautiful . . . A really gorgeously observed novel about youth and womanhood' DAISY BUCHANAN, author of Careering
'Relatable, poignant and gripping ... I read it in a single day' LIBBY PAGE, author of The Lido
'Warm, witty, wise . . . A thoughtful and moving portrait that made me laugh and cry' CHLOE ASHBY, author of Wet Paint
Reviews / Votes
This debut novel about womanhood and expectations will be one of the most exciting of the year * The Independent, best fiction books to read in 2024 * This buzzy debut is a beautiful look at how love shapes us * inews, Best New Books to Read in April 2024 * A vividly sketched, intense evocation of how we're shaped by those we know - one for Dolly Alderton fans * The Times * A young woman's life, told through the men she has dated. With glorious attention to detail and emotional fluency, Dunn charts the ways in which we are built and broken by love * Pandora Sykes * Beautifully written ... The second person narration lends an authenticity to Margot's nostalgic reminiscences and honest look back at her past ... It's brilliant on comparisons, self-sabotage, social expectations, fear and settling. Wonderful * Daily Mail * Anyone who's ever experienced the slog of modern dating will love As Young As This, an achingly relatable novel that focuses on the dreams we have for our lives, and what happens when we open ourselves up to letting them go * Harper's Bazaar, The 10 Best Novels to Read in 2024 * Relatable, poignant and gripping, told with great originality. Roxy Dunn is a fresh and exciting new voice in fiction ... I read it in a single day * Libby Page, author of The Lido * This will really speak to you if you've ever had to let go of what you thought your life would look like, readjust, and let a new life take hold * The Sunday Times Style * I love love loved As Young as This ... I wanted to live inside it, wallowing in that gorgeous prose. And that ending! Well, I was not prepared. * Laura Pearson, author of I Wanted You to Know * Dunn's debut novel, which combines lyrical writing with a very relatable main character, marks her out as a rising star * Good Housekeeping *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Dimensions
Height: 217 mm
Width: 142 mm
Thickness: 29 mm
Weight
400 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-63269-7 (9780241632697)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Roxy Dunn is a Writer/Performer and graduate of the BBC Comedy Writersroom. She's acted in multiple television sitcoms and her shows have received sell-out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe and SOHO Theatre. Her scripts have been optioned by several production companies and her pilot Useless Millennials was commissioned and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. She is the author of two novels, both published by Fig Tree: As Young as This (2024) and Wants and Needs (2026).