“You only get one life. It’s actually your duty to live it as fully as possible.”
Published on January 5, 2012, Me Before You written by Jojo Moyes, is novel filled with humor, sadness and the bittersweet truth of life. With over 15 million copies sold, Me Before You tells a story of two people who couldn’t have less in common – a heartbreakingly romantic novel that questions, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart? The recommended age for the novel is 15 and up. Me Before You has a sequel called After You which was released on September 29, 2015.
Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life who has never been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job, working for ex–Master of the Universe, Will Traynor who is wheelchair bound after an motorcycle accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. Will is sarcastic, moody, and bossy—but Louisa refuses to walk on eggshells around him like everyone else does, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living
Readers might think they’re getting into a romance novel but instead they find themselves entangled in an emotional, and suspenseful novel.
Me Before You had extremely vivid characters. No character in this book is a cliche, not even minor characters, such as Alicia, Will’s ex-girlfriend who easily could have been a stereotype.
In the beginning of the novel, the reader might not like Will because of his moody, bossy and sarcastic nature but you begin to love him throughout the novel because of that sarcastic nature. Louisa has a great voice as a hilarious heroine. She’s one of those charming but unfortunate individuals that finds herself in numerous awkward situations but somehow gets through them and just warms your heart with her delightful lack of propriety. According to readers of the novel, the least liked character is Patrick, Louisa’s boyfriend because of the fact that all he seems to do is care about himself, his job and no one else.
The story’s told mostly from Louisa’s viewpoint, with a few chapters from the viewpoints of other characters including Camilla and Steven, Will’s parents, Katrina, Louisa’s sister and Nathan, Will’s nurse with the notable exception of Will. I believe that if Moyes had included a chapter in Will’s point of view, it would of given more information to the reader about how he feels and what is going through his head during the novel.
Me Before You will move many readers to tears but not in an overly manipulative way but I suggest you keep a box of tissues by your side at all times.
Catch the movie adaptation of Me Before You starring Emilia Clarke as Louisa Clark and Sam Claflin as Will Traynor, in theaters on June 3, 2016.
