So here we are on the 15th of July

One Day by David Nicholls

In a nutshell: this is the story of the friendship between Emma and Dexter which starts on their last day of university and spans the following twenty years with all the ups, downs, highs and lows that passionate friendship inspires.

The blurb: this book is called One Day because every chapter takes place on the 15th of July, starting in 1988 and ending in 2007. First and foremost a story about friendship, it is also an clever, satirical study of becoming an adult in 1990s and early 2000s England, against a backdrop of cool Britannia. Emma and Dexter being very different- she the serially single and talented girl who doesn't know where she's going, he the happy-go-lucky-stud who burns the candle at both ends, this is a wonderful, yet realistic, ode to friendship. As every chapter is set on a 15th of July, years fly by, yet the pace of the book doesn't feel too fast as you evolve and follow these characters through their early adult years.

IMHO this is the funniest and most moving book I have read this year (so far!). The dialogues are fantastic- incredibly funny and witty like the female protagonist, and as I switched between the two characters' points of view I felt I was starting to know these people better than a lot of my own friends. Despite the laugh out loud parts, the book is also incredible touching (yes, i wept) as one tries to define with the characters what defines true friendship, happiness and love. Very highly recommended, any place, any time.