As good As It Gets – Romesh Ranganathan

Confronted by the realities of adulthood, Romesh Ranganathan must face an uncomfortable truth: this is not quite how he imagined it.

Watching his friends descend into middle age, his waistline thicken and his finances dwindle to fund his family’s middle class aspirations, Romesh reflects on the demands of daily life and the challenges of adulting in the modern world.

As he reluctantly concludes that he is indeed a grown man, Rom wrestles with the greater questions that threaten his being: Could I save my family in a crisis? Do I possess the skills to assemble flatpack furniture? Am I too old for streetwear? Is it alright to parent my kids through the medium of Fortnite? Is celibacy the secret to a passionate marriage?

I pick up books for many reasona; references in other literature, a cover with books on it, blogger recommendations, and so forth but never (at least as far as I can recall) have I picked up a book because it ‘spoke to me’ and the present situation I find myself in – that being the reluctant adult bit.

Romesh Ranganathan is the reluctant adult here, supporting a family and keeping them happy, trying not to break his children, be a good role model and encourage them in their interests (as long as they are appreciated by their father, of course). It’s life, and its hard yet has plenty of scope to be funny along with it.

There was a lot in this light-hearted book that made me laugh, which is handy as the author is a stand-up comedian. Whether it’s an incisive observation or just the turn of phrase employed to convey a point.  The inherent Britishness in the articulation had me laughing more than the stories themselves in most cases, and that was very much the highlight of the book for me. 

The subject of the author’s musings range from the (poor) form of Arsenal FC, dealing with builders, holidays with children, being trounced at video games, awful dancing, and the problems of connecting with his children in such a changed world of social media, to mention a few of his meanderings.

it’s a light read, except for the odd times when the topics veer into religion, and politics, the latter of which, by this point of the year (and yes it is early), I’m bloody well sick of.   This is bang up to date with talk of the first lockdown which makes for speculation on whether the book was rushed into shops or not.

As Good As It Gets is relatable in places but overall it isn’t a book that I expect to find myself going back to in a hurry, although the acknowledgements and dedication are worth the time by themselves. It’s a decent read and worth a flick through but one that I think was pushed out with the Christmas market in mind, which is a shame but sadly the trend these days.