USA Today’s top 100 books to read while stuck at home social distancing From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Giver of Stars, discover the love story that captured over 20 million hearts in Me Before You, After You, and Still Me. They had nothing in common until love gave them everything to lose . . . Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady … to lose . . .
Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has barely 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 and perfect for fans of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, 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?
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It’s a feel good story with characters who are almost believable, but you are invested in them anyway. Thought-provoking.
This book stayed with me for awhile after I finished it~
Just read it! You will LOVE IT!
I waited a few days after reading this book to write a review. When I finished this compelling story of a Louisa (Lou) Clark, a young British woman who caretakes and ultimately falls in love with the troubled but brilliant quadriplegic, Will Traynor, I was hit with a wave of such emotion – something I rarely feel with most novels these days – I wanted some time to let it sink it and sort out exactly what struck me so viscerally.
I went back and read some of the reviews of other readers, no idea why at that point, and was stunned to see some who were so angry about the way Will’s life as a quadriplegic was depicted; angry about certain plot choices made, angry about decisions the author ascribed to the protagonist or the man in her care. It seemed some people were viewing the book through the filter of their own life experiences rather than the narrative choices made by this author, which, if nothing else, is a testament to how powerful the story is.
Frankly, it took me a while to get completely swept into the story. It opens with the inciting incident – the accident that puts Will in a wheelchair – and quickly bounces to the first-person narrative of Lou, a quirky young woman still living at home, looking for a new job (necessary to help support her financially challenged family), and not at all sure the one being offered — to take care of Will for six months — is a good idea given her skill set and general personality. But need trumps discomfort and she accepts the job, launching what ends up being a life-altering journey.
Arcing between the warm love and pesky financial issues of Lou’s home life versus the detachment but unlimited wealth of Will’s, we quickly see the “odd couple” angle of their relationship. Where Lou dresses with artful irreverence and says whatever pops into her head, Will broods through almost every element of his increasingly difficult life. We gain empathy for their disparate struggles, rooting from the sidelines as the irrepressible Lou charms her recalcitrant charge while daily learning lessons that are changing her perspective on life.
Lou is immediately likable. She starts with a Bridget Jones sauciness, but evolves into a deeper character with an endearing vulnerability and a sharp, creative wisdom. When she discovers her six-month contract correlates with Will’s agreement with his parents to wait six months to, hopefully, reconsider a decision to end his life, she is distraught. We’ve watched as she and Will have slowly, inexorably, but somewhat hopelessly fallen in love with each other, and we hope, along with her, that he will, indeed, change his mind. Her efforts to get him to do so are both heartbreaking and hilarious!
The conclusion of the story is powerful, one that can’t help but stir a deeply emotional discussion about assisted suicide and what day-to-day existence means for many quadriplegics. I felt myself running through the emotional gamut from one end to the other, particularly as the epilogue wraps up the narrative with enduring hope and a sense of triumph. I was deeply moved by the story, which stayed with me for days afterward.
The only quibble I have, and it’s one I’m finding in many novels, is the author’s decision to shift the POV to include — sometimes in ways that seemed out of nowhere — first-person narrative from various characters. After establishing Lou as the voice of the story, I found it jarring, even confusing, when suddenly we’re getting first-person POV from Will’s father, a rather minor character, or even Will’s mother, who plays a larger role but whose perspective seemed ancillary and distracting. It’s a relatively small quibble, but after giving us such a vibrant, appealing character as our narrator, it seemed worth mentioning.
All in all I loved this book; the people in it, the themes at its center, and particularly the way the author used humor, even romance, to convey a powerful statement about life’s unexpected turns and how we, as flawed, hopeful, loving and sometimes heartbroken humans, deal with them.
It was good story
A great read. Emotional and complex and a better journey than the movie. But I admit that my judgement was clouded about that as I was disappointed that they got an actor without a disability to play the lead role in the movie. Still, a wonderful book.
This is a “can’t put it down” type of book. I was completely enchanted by this love story. I laughed – I cried and immediately said, “what happens next” the second that I finished it. I just wanted more more more!!! Love it!!!
I read the book and saw the movie. I loved them both. I laughed. I cried. Must have tissues when you read the book or see the movie. It’ll pull at your heart!
Wonderful Book! I became a fan of Jo Jo Meyes and love the whole series. I love the way she writes! This book is a heart warming, funny, tear jerker. What more could you ask for?
Very different topic about planned suicide for a very disabled person. Very thought provoking.
This book was a little hard to love at first; tragic story of a man who is quadriplegic and a woman who has little education, ambition, or curiosity. However, because of the really good reviews I persisted. So very glad I did. This is a very inspiring, heartwarming book, which I hesitate to say since that pushes some people away. So I will say inspiring and heartwarming in the very best way. As soon as I finished it, in an airline lounge right before a trip, I quickly went on my Kindle and ordered the sequel which I completed on the six hour flight. I am now ready to read the third book!
I had seen the movie first, (which I normally don’t do), but after the movie, I had to read the book. Much better than the movie as usual, and stayed with me for days after finishing it. The characters are wonderful, realistic, and human. I recommend this book for sure!
Ok, but I wouldn’t have read it if it wasn’t chosen by my book club.
Soapy to a fault.
Absolutely fabulous read.
The book you don’t want to end!
After reading this book, I couldn’t forget the characters. Since finishing it, I have completed the trilogy as well. Now I list her among my favorite writers. Her books are romance, but far beyond the romance aspect, her character development and awareness of the complexity of human thought and action far exceeds what one typically finds. I don’t want to give away the plot, but I will say that the actions of the characters in the first book affect others throughout the series, giving breadth to the complexity of the character development.
I’m busy falling in love with this author. The first one I read was the “Horse Whisperer” and I have already purchased the next one in the Me Before You series. I really enjoy her style and imagination.
Loved this book
eh, some valuble insights into euthanasia. a bit plodding. Not my favorite.