BOOK REVIEW: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

“Push yourself. Don’t Settle. Just live well. Just LIVE.”

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis: Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.
What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to lose her job or that knowing what’s coming is what keeps her sane.
Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he’s going to put a stop to that.
What Will doesn’t know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they’re going to change the other for all time
(Taken from Goodreads)

I’ll be honest, I probably wouldn’t have picked this book up had it not been made into a movie. I didn’t actually know it was being made into one until the trailer came out…and flooded social media – the book community and non-bookish people alike! It was inevitable that I would click on it at least once to see what it was all about. I didn’t know I would end up watching the trailer about thirty times until it wasn’t even a question that I would be buying and reading the book.

The trailer was beautiful, and so was the book.

The characters were fantastic. I really liked Lou. She had a bit of a Sophie Kinsella character feel about her, which is definitely a complement! She is such a likeable, relatable and quirky character and carries the story through with just the right amount of humour and seriousness. And of course Will Traynor is such an interesting character to read. It took a while for me to warm to him, but I really appreciated that. His pains and traumas are reflected in his character – he is real.

The whole book felt very real. There were points in the story when a plan was made for something to happen, and then it just fell flat and didn’t carry through. That sounds like a bad thing, but it wasn’t! It was realistic and suited the tone and characters and themes of the story so well.

I also thought that a very relevant and controversial debate was dealt with extremely sensitively and respectfully by the author. Both sides of the argument were given explanation and careful examination, and there were some very thought-provoking points given from both sides that really made me think more about the issue.

Did I cry at the ending? Sadly no. Everyone that had told me how great this book was also told me how much I would need a box of tissues for when the tears come. But they didn’t. And I don’t know why! I felt very invested in the characters, and very attached to the story. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that I finished the book in amongst writing essays and trying to meet lots of deadlines, and that my mind was in another place, because every time I watch the trailer (yes, it’s been a lot more than that original thirty!) I tear up a little. But I was certainly moved many times throughout the book. Jojo Moyes does a brilliant job of writing the everyday, mundane tasks of life to read meaningful and interesting. 

Overall, it is a realistic,  moving and important book. And without a doubt I shall be watching the movie at the cinema when it is out!