Review : Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

I finished this book last night and it is still on my mind. It's one of those books that I did not want to end. I did not want to turn that last page. This is not a fluffy romance book, it's a book with great depth to the characters and a very thought provoking novel that is about love, life, change, choices and so much more. I loved that it was set in the UK with the backdrop of the culture of England. It's the story of two amazing characters, Louisa a simple girl in her later 20's with a flare for vintage fashions and colorful ensembles. She lives at home and is stumbling along not finding her purpose in life, held back by issues from her past. She loses her job and ends up accepting a new job as a caregiver for a man in his mid 30's for a 6 month period. The man is Will, a debonair, man of the world who lived in the fast lane with the money and charisma to pull it off. His life changed in an instant and he is now a quadriplegic living his life in a wheelchair. The heart of the story is the 6 month time period where Louisa and Will who come from different backgrounds grow to learn so much from one another as they find their way in the world. Their families both learn how to live day to day with challenges that they face in many different ways. They learn that life is about choices we make and the freedom to grow and make those choices on our own. There are so many messages in this novel that touched me as a reader. Lessons about letting go, and how opening your heart can cause great pain but great joy. Every day is a gift, as we go through our own lives with stresses and challenges an important lesson is to not let fear hold us back. 

This is a book that will stay with me and that I will continue to ponder and think about. The author portrayed the life of Will as a quadriplegic in an amazingly realistic way, as a reader you can get an understanding of what his life must have been like. I loved how Ms. Moyes was able to help us as readers look beyond his disability to the man he was. We cannot know what life is like living in a wheelchair everyday, she did an excellent job of helping us understand that. In addition, there are also controversies this book presents that would add to making this a fantastic book to discuss with a book club. 

I must warn you that you will be touched deeply by this book. I finished it last night, alone in bed with tears streaming down my face. I felt so connected to Louisa and Will and invested as a reader in their story. This will definitely be on my list of favorite books for 2013!

This is the first book I've read by Jojo Moyes, she is an extremely talented writer. I have a copy of another book written by her, The Last Letter from your Lover which I look forward to reading soon. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

JOJO MOYES is the author of The Last Letter from Your Love. Her follow-up, ME BEFORE YOU, was a Top 3 bestseller in the UK (12 weeks on the bestsellers list), a Richard and Judy Pick, a World Book Night Pick, and National Book Award nominee. She is a writer for the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail.  She currently lives with her husband and their three children on a farm in Essex,England.

Check out :

 ME BEFORE YOU Book Club Kit: Everything you need to make your next meeting a smashing success!


 ME BEFORE YOU Inspirational E-Cards: Live Boldly, Wear Those Stripy Legs with Pride, Don’t Settle, Push Yourself, and Just Live Well


Thank you to Penguin Books for providing me a copy of this book to review. 

Giveaway for a copy of ME BEFORE YOU by Jojo Moyes ends tomorrow, Sunday April 14th, 2013. US only.  Please go here to enter, or link on the sidebar to the right.