Book Review
All the Beautiful Things You Love
by
This is not your usual love story. Elly and Enzo break up in the first line of the first paragraph on the first page of the novel, and you know it’s the end for them. Elly now sells items from their apartment on Marketplace. To stay in their expensive London home she needs cash, and getting rid of the things she and Enzo shared feels cathartic. Mostly.
Her bicycle is the first to go. Enzo bought it for Elly and taught her the joy of riding a bike with no hands. Elly passes it on to a deserving young man, and accidentally shares her situation with this total stranger.
Next to go is the framed vinyl of a song called ‘Valentine’, which both Elly and Enzo fell in love with the moment they heard it. It’s their song. (You will need to keep your favourite music-playing device handy whilst reading this book to instantly play the songs that come along, and that are truly a soundtrack to the story).
Himesh buys their Italian dining table and becomes something of a friend. Jane takes the DVD box set of The Sopranos off Elly’s hands over several drinks at Enzo’s favourite drinking hole. We learn more about Enzo as the backstory of a wagon they were going to use at Glastonbury is explained. The 1960s purple Chesterfield couch had been Elly’s mother’s and as Elly sells it to wealthy collector Patrick, he offers advice, and a lot more cash than she originally asked for.
Each character that comes along adds depth and warmth to the tale, and each one helps Elly to move on. Although Elly and Enzo still love each other, we eventually discover what the original break-up argument was about and why they are never, ever, getting back together. Clever, contemporary and fun, despite the heartache, this is the perfect novel for anyone who has ever broken up with that special someone.
