The last book I read...

(This post contains spoilers for the novel 'Me Before You')

The last book I read was 'Me Before You' by  Jojo Moyes. I like books that make me laugh and don't require too much effort on my part to read but, as I decided to tell my Facebook friends:

'I am terrible, truly terrible at choosing books. Admittedly I don't read fiction often, but when I do I prefer to read light-hearted, silly romance novels that don't require too much brain involvement (I think I can be forgiven for this since pretty much my entire degree revolves around reading about the Holocaust). Why is it then, that the last ...four books I've read have left me curled up in a ball at 4 in the morning, weeping over the tragic lives of fictional people?'

Me Before You, though it initially seems like it's going to be a light-hearted love story soon reveals itself to be so much more than that. The story revolves around the lives of its two main characters, Lou, a bit of a klutz with a good heart and a lot of love to give, and Will, a young man who has quickly become jaded with life after being paralysed in an accident.

As the story evolves, Lou, who is working as Will's carer, and Will develop a friendship, although this proves difficult at first due to Will's irritating antagonism. We soon learn, however, that his spite is born out of his desire to end his life, and the fact that Lou has been hired by his mother not so much to take care of him, but rather to keep an eye on him.

Despite the flirtations and the love that grows between the two, Will remains adamant that his life is not worth living anymore. This book offers a truly heart-wrenching look at the moral implications of euthanasia and, perhaps more than that, it teaches us that we should strive to live for every day, because you never know how long you've got left.  


You can check out my other reviews here.