Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Mary 2013 Favorite, Contemporary Fiction, Jojo Moyes, NetGalley, Pamela Dorman Books

me before you

  • Title:  Me Before You
  • Author:  Jojo Moyes
  • Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
  • Published:  December 2012 – Pamela Dorman Books
  • Source:  Publisher via NetGalley

Synopsis (publisher):  Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—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 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 acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, 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.

A Love Story for this generation, Me Before You brings to life two people who couldn’t have less in common—a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart?

My take:  This will be brief. I loved this book. It’s a story that made me laugh out loud and brought me to tears. Louisa is a character who lights up the page and I couldn’t help but cheer for her as she started to put herself before the needs of everyone else. That wasn’t an easy thing for her to do because she’d put herself last most of her life. I’d love to read her story about ten years from where the book leaves off.

As sad as this book was it was also quite uplifting. The point to live in the moment and appreciate each moment was a theme throughout the novel. There’s also a highly debatable topic that I’m certain would invite lively discussion for book groups. I’ve only touched the surface here. It’s a wonderful novel that I’m still thinking about weeks after turning the last page.

I highly recommend Me Before You – it’s on my 2013 Favorites list. Now I need to track down Jojo Moyes’ backlist. If you’ve read any of her previous books do you have a recommendation?

24 thoughts on “Me Before You by Jojo Moyes”

  4. So glad you loved this as much as I did! It made me think a lot about what it’s like living with a big disability and pain day after day. I also loved Louisa. She was lively and genuine.

    Like

  6. I have heard that this one is very good, and I am anxious to try it out for myself. It sounds like a really heartbreaking read, but one that you found to be delightful and full of wonder. Very nice review today, Mary!!

    Like

  7. I received this book at BEA and it is still sitting on my shelf. Your review is encouraging me to move it up on my to-read list.

    Like

  13. This one was my first by this author, and I can’t forget the characters either. Or the themes. It would definitely make a good book club discussion. Thanks for sharing.

    Like

  15. I picked up the audio since you loved this one so much. It’s up next after the new Wendy Wax book and I can’t wait! Usually when you like something a lot so do I.

    Like

Comments are closed.