Matt McAvoy Book Review

There are two sides to this side-splitting book, one laugh-out-loud comedy and the other a little more serious in tone, enough to make you wonder if you really should be laughing along with Will Goodrich – not for any politically correct reason, but because you feel this is a man with a very sour history of women.  Obviously I don’t know anything about Will’s three marriages, nor will I blindly take his side, but as a fellow man of the world, I can utterly laugh along with this book.  Its number one objective is to entertain, with the type of ex-wife/battle of the sexes comedy which was fashionable in the 80s and 90s, before GenZ came along and destroyed humour as we all know it forever.  And, although Will’s humour comes from a very bittersweet place, the book is hilarious.  Furthermore, I can absolutely vouch for (almost) everything Will has to say about women and marriage – even being myself someone I would consider happily married, and still only the once.  This book may prove controversial in some circles, but that will be, I think, more in the context of social climate than a gender row – indeed, even my wife was in stitches reading it, and confessed with great humility that much of what Will wrote was spot on (though, admittedly, not quite as much as I did).

But then, of course, there is the more serious side.  As the book progresses, you realize that Will is starting to crack his quips through increasingly gritted teeth, and I’ll admit it starts to feel a tiny bit voyeuristic at times.  Additionally, even casting the bitterness aside, this book is actually in truth a very informative and comprehensive reference guide, as unlikely as that sounds.  Will has done a great deal of work and research to present facts and figures which support his philosophy.  Were this a book on another subject it would be no higher in educational merit – but, of course, it will never be seen as such.  If you are a young man looking for genuine information in answer to the question of whether or not to marry (and a social free thinker with a sense of humour), I absolutely assure you will not find a more accurate or honest guide than this – ignore its advice at your peril, surely. 

Make no mistake, this is a book which may offend some, but my advice to them is don’t read it and leave alone those of us who still like to laugh at each other, men and women alike.  If you like your humour old school, I guarantee you will laugh aloud almost all the way through.  And if you want a candid, informative guide from a very genuine place within, do not ignore Will’s advice.  He is a man who knows, have no doubts.