As I said in my very first column, I always think the book is better than the movie. I also think it’s important to read the book first so that you can picture the scenes in the way the author intended instead of how a movie producer wants you to see it. That being said, I purposely chose this book which has recently been made into what looks like a romantic movie, which I am an absolute sucker for.
The topic of assisted dying has become of paramount importance in Canada over the last several months. Who can choose to do it, where and when it can be done and by whom are all questions up for debate. There are proponents in favour of and against for sure and in Jojo Moyes’ book Me Before You this very topic is looked at from both sides.
Louisa Clark is a run of the mill girl living a remarkably average life – steady boyfriend, lives with her parents, nine to five job – and has scarcely been outside of the small village she grew up in. She takes a job working for Will Traynor, a grab-the-bull-by-the-horns ex-business tycoon who is now wheelchair bound, left a quadriplegic after an accident. Will has always lived a big, full life, one punctuated with heart-stopping business deals, extreme sports, and worldwide travel; he is not interested in exploring the new world laid out in front of him.
Will is caustic, temperamental, bossy and just plain rude, but Louisa refuses to let him get away with it and soon his happiness means more to her than she ever expected that it would. When Louisa learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, no matter how happy he is, Louisa sets out to show him that life is very much worth living. But, the question remains, what kind of life is worth living and what are you willing to live without?
Me Before You brings together two people who couldn’t have less in common and unites them over a common subject. It is a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks: What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart?
This book surprised me in that it isn’t just a romantic story but also delves in a very respectful way into an area that many people will struggle with at some time in their lives either personally or with a loved one. The ending was surprising and thankfully not predictable. Me Before You is a smooth, uncomplicated, enjoyable read that I recommend for summer travels (I read most of it while camping). I give it 3.5/5.
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