Review: Me Before You
Friday, June 03, 2016
Louisa Clark has a nice life. She’s lived in the same town since she was born, lived in the same house with her mum and dad and sister, she has a steady boyfriend and a good job. When she is forced to find other work she becomes a care worker for a quadriplegic man named Will. Will is everything Lou is not, he is sullen and quiet to her bright and loud personality. Every offer of friendship Lou makes is brutally ignored. After Lou learns that Will would rather take his own life than live in a wheelchair she decides to devote the time she has with him to make him see that life is worth living. As Will opens up to Lou, and a great bond between the two develops, Will in turn makes Lou see there is more to life than how she is living it and he encourages her to step out of her comfort zone and make her way in the world. The pair found each other when they needed it the most.
I picked up Me Before You by Jojo Moyes after seeing the trailer for the movie (which comes out today!). I am so glad I did. It is a really beautiful book. It is often described as a romance novel but rather than being a romance between Lou and Will it is more a story of how Lou learns to love herself. In the beginning of the book Lou is very complacent with her life and afraid to take risks. She puts herself in a niche based on how others view her. Her sister Trina is smart, so Lou must be the dumb one. Her dad works hard, she must be lazy. Her mother cares for her aging father and young grandson, so Lou is self-centred. Through working with Will, Lou discovers that she is smart, she is hardworking and she is caring. And with this self-discovery of her own worth, her family comes to appreciate her more, and she them. It is a really gorgeous book that makes you feel Lou’s story as you read it.
The movie looks to be just as inspiring and heart-wrenching as the book. I am really looking forward to seeing Lou and Will’s story brought to life by this stellar cast.
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