Halloooo!!!!
Oooh mate, it's one of those. One of those books that require a couple of days to recuperate from. One of those books that requires the right mindset before reading it. One of those books that will touch you.
A colleague recommended the book to me back in November with the following description: "Beautiful story, but incredibly sad". In the past 6 months I wasn't in the mood for a heartbreaking, moving story that would make me sob. Instead I've read books like Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon, the Doon series (again) by Lorie Langdon and Carey Corp and the travel journey the Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. Each and every single book moved me and inspired me in some way or another, but none really brought me to tears.
At the insistence of my colleagues, I decided to give it a go. The movie is coming out here in the UK the day after tomorrow, Friday 3rd of June and I wanted to read the book before watching the movie. I started reading Wednesday. I've finished it Monday morning. I don't think I've ever read a book so quickly.
Before you continue, you might want to put on one of the two below soundtracks of the movie.
Meet Louisa Clark, a young woman from a small town somewhere in the UK. She leads a simple and drama free life and holds a job as sales assistant at the local bakery: the Buttered Bun. From one day on the other, the bakery closes and Lou finds herself in want of a job. Which she finds as a carer for 35 year old quadriplegic, Will Traynor. Things start off pretty roughly as the two don't seem to get on at all. But as times goes by and they get used to each other, things start to look up. However, not everything is what it looks like and Lou ends up fighting a battle she'd never thought she'd face.
First of all, Jojo Moyes is right next to J.K. Rowling, Cassandra Clare, Alexandra Potter and Diana Gabaldon on my list of favourite writers. Her style is so fluid and clear and she doesn't use a lot of repetition in her words. It's easy to read in the sense that you don't have to read a sentence twice to know what she's talking about, but it doesn't make you feel like you're reading a book written for someone who has trouble reading. It's definitely a page turner.
Characters are very clearly described and are very likable. You feel a development in both Will and Lou. Will is this very sarcastic guy with a very negative view on the world who has been to places and done things Lou didn't even dream of. Lou is a very optimistic, even a little naive yet strong minded young woman who's never really been outside her small town. Both characters are incredibly witty which lead to chuckles and laugh out loud moments on my end.
Even though there are really funny parts in it, it's first and foremost a romance. You're pretty much able to guess what will happen. It is the comforting predictability of romantic story. But somewhere in 1/3 of the book you discover something, which will change everything you thought you actually knew. And the rooting, oh man the rooting, the hope, that you're wrong. The last 3rd of the book were read through tear filled eyes. The story touches some very sensitive subjects which actually makes you think. What would I do if I were in Will's position? What would I do if I were in his parent's situation? What would I do if I were Lou?
The one thing I was really afraid of, was the possibility that it might be a very heavy story. The subject is not to be taken lightly, but Jojo found a nice balance between heart torn moments and light hearted banter. Yes, I need to recuperate from it, but it's not like I'm stuck in bed, unable to function anymore. As I've said previously, it touches upon some very sensitive subjects of which I've never really thought about before.
I'm really happy my colleague recommended the book to me. She also recommended The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. I know I know, I haven't read any book by Khaled Hosseini, but now that I'm on a role with reading moving stories, I might as well continue :) The sequel to this story, After You, will be released 30th June in UK in paperback version. It's already available hardback. I know what I'm going to do when I return from my trip to Scotland ;)
And now I'm recommending Me Before You to you!
Please let me know your thoughts on the book.
Many thanks for reading!
xo - Sara
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