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A review by littlebirdbooks
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
5.0
This book has been sitting on my shelf for a while now; it was given to me as a present and I’m so pleased it was. If it hadn’t been given to me I may never have read it and discovered how beautiful this book really is.
Me Before You follows a bright, unique girl called Lou Clark. She’s 26 and living in the same town she always has with her parents, despite being in a six year relationship with Patrick (who seems more interested in his running than he does with his relationship). After losing her comfortable job at The Buttered Bun, Lou’s forced to find something out of her comfort zone. Which is how she finds herself being the carer for Will Traynor, who has lost the use of most of his body and his desire to live.
The plot caught me off-guard and it wasn’t as predictable was I thought. Moyes is a wonderful writer who can build her readers up and let them fall down consistently throughout her novel - which is difficult to do. There are many heartbreaking moments within this story but there are equally as many heartwarming moments which balances everything out. For a book that’s nearly 500 pages, they simply fly by. I usually advise people to read certain things in one sitting, and although that can be easily done with this book don’t feel that you have to. Towards the end I found myself having to take breaks and put it down because of the intensity. I found it much easier to read the book this way; I was still captivated by it and it didn’t take away from the experience.
Another thing that makes this book what it is are the characters. For most of the book we see the world through Lou’s perspective who I found incredibly likeable. In the beginning I was worried she’d be quite a cowardly character who I wouldn’t like, but that didn’t happen at all. In a way she reminds me of me and warns of how easy it is to fall into a comfortable life which may not necessarily be the best one to lead. Will was also brilliantly written, I loved how sarcastic and dry he is, especially at the beginning. As we see him through Lou’s eyes it was easy to get frustrated with him at times but it never lasted, and you couldn’t help but love him. Seeing gradual changes in his personality was great and sometimes the interactions between Will and Lou had me smiling and laughing. In addition to the main characters, I also really liked the more minor characters; the Clark family in particular seemed so genuine it was lovely to read.
Me Before You is beautifully written and really puts things into perspective - it encourages the reader to live. It has quickly become one of my favourite books and I’ll be looking more into Moyes’; work. This is a must read, although when you do make sure you have tissues and chocolate on hand because you’ll most definitely need them.
Me Before You follows a bright, unique girl called Lou Clark. She’s 26 and living in the same town she always has with her parents, despite being in a six year relationship with Patrick (who seems more interested in his running than he does with his relationship). After losing her comfortable job at The Buttered Bun, Lou’s forced to find something out of her comfort zone. Which is how she finds herself being the carer for Will Traynor, who has lost the use of most of his body and his desire to live.
The plot caught me off-guard and it wasn’t as predictable was I thought. Moyes is a wonderful writer who can build her readers up and let them fall down consistently throughout her novel - which is difficult to do. There are many heartbreaking moments within this story but there are equally as many heartwarming moments which balances everything out. For a book that’s nearly 500 pages, they simply fly by. I usually advise people to read certain things in one sitting, and although that can be easily done with this book don’t feel that you have to. Towards the end I found myself having to take breaks and put it down because of the intensity. I found it much easier to read the book this way; I was still captivated by it and it didn’t take away from the experience.
Another thing that makes this book what it is are the characters. For most of the book we see the world through Lou’s perspective who I found incredibly likeable. In the beginning I was worried she’d be quite a cowardly character who I wouldn’t like, but that didn’t happen at all. In a way she reminds me of me and warns of how easy it is to fall into a comfortable life which may not necessarily be the best one to lead. Will was also brilliantly written, I loved how sarcastic and dry he is, especially at the beginning. As we see him through Lou’s eyes it was easy to get frustrated with him at times but it never lasted, and you couldn’t help but love him. Seeing gradual changes in his personality was great and sometimes the interactions between Will and Lou had me smiling and laughing. In addition to the main characters, I also really liked the more minor characters; the Clark family in particular seemed so genuine it was lovely to read.
Me Before You is beautifully written and really puts things into perspective - it encourages the reader to live. It has quickly become one of my favourite books and I’ll be looking more into Moyes’; work. This is a must read, although when you do make sure you have tissues and chocolate on hand because you’ll most definitely need them.