In all seriousness, even though I am marking this book as Read, I'm really only halfway through. I LOVED Me Before You, but I just cannot get into AFTER YOU. It has not caught nor does it hold my interest in the slightest. It simply is not at all the way I imagined the story to continue. I would much rather have my imagining of the continuing story than read the rest of this book.
I felt the same way when SCARLET came out (the attempted sequel to GONE WITH THE WIND). Margaret Mitchell's masterpiece has a wonderful open-ended ending that I LOVE because I get to imagine what happened to Rhett and Scarlet. All the hype over SCARLET was NOT worth my time. I didn't make it through that book either.
**OK. I finally finished it. And I'm glad I did. AFTER YOU is in no way even close to the
awesomeness of ME BEFORE YOU, but by the time I read the last word, I no longer greatly disliked it. The worst part of the story, for me, is how Lily shows up at Louisa's door and that Louisa feels an instant responsibility for the girl--even though there is NO REAL REASON for her to do so. I suppose, though, that in grief, we look for any and every reason to hang on to the person we love[d] and to feel ANY connection with that person, no matter how insignificant or tenuous that connection might be.
So as I read the book, I fell more in love with Louisa. What I really love about AFTER YOU is how Moyes demonstrates the truth that just because a few years have gone by, that does not mean that the grieving can or does "get over" losing a loved one. Everyone struggles and deals with grief in his/her own time and in his/her own way. There is no one "right"--or wrong--way to grieve. What is important is to surround ourselves with friends, family, and loved ones who are still available--and to let those friends, family, and loved ones be there for us (don't push them away).
My heart went out to Louisa as she struggled to do what she felt was best for HER, in spite of the fact that she had a number of people telling her something different. I have struggled with this very thing over the past 17 years and it is very difficult. I don't want to hurt anyone by "ignoring" his/her advice, but ultimately, I have to do what is right for me--what I know in my heart-of-hearts, in my very soul, is best for me--even if it alienates others.
I have lost close friends because I went a different direction than they advised. Yes, that breaks my heart, but at the same time, I KNOW that I did the right thing--for me.
And like Louisa, I have also made some fairly stupid decisions, but my God has everything under His control and if something is in His will, somehow or another, He usually gives me the "kick in the pants" that I need in order for me to see that He has opened--or closed--a particular door.
So while I struggled with AFTER YOU at first, I am very glad I read it. The book is a wonderful demonstration of the living dealing with life after the death of a much loved one and it is REAL in that regards. Sometimes it does pay to plow through a book that we don't like at first.....
I can't even.....there simply are no words.....
I am curious about what you all think about Will's decision? And Lou's attempt to "save him".....
I knew going into this book that I was going to cry at the end, but I was so not prepared for the powerful effect it had on me. Wow. Me Before You by JoJo Moyes is an adult novel with the power and FEELS of wonderful books like If I Stay and The Lovely Bones--for me. The controversy, the questions Moyes raises make this an incredible thought-provoking novel that I want to talk to others about to hear what they think!!!
I respect Lou and her attempt to "save" Will. I see so much of myself in her, especially in the fact that I would so very much love to have a pair of yellow and black, bumble bee tights, as well as in the fact that I want everyone around me to be happy and to see life as valuable and worth living.
At the same time, I don't know that I think Will is so very wrong to want to do what he wants to do. I can't even imagine what life must be like confined to a wheelchair, to have to have someone even reposition my legs for me, not to be able to roll over or readjust myself at will, or even to scratch and itch by myself--not to mention having to be spoon-fed every single thing I eat and wearing a catheter 24/7--even if/when I go out in public. And the sicknesses Will has to deal with on a constant basis as a direct result of his injury and/or the fact that he isn't able to move around.....My heart aches for what people in Will's situation have to live with.
I can't help wondering....if I was in Will's shoes, would I feel as he does--that life simply isn't worth living if I can't live it as I did BEFORE.......
How about you???? What do you think?!
And yes, I started reading Me Before You immediately after seeing the new movie trailer. In fact, the movie trailer hadn't even finished playing before it was downloading to my Kindle app on my phone!!!! I am very excited for the movie to come out. It looks like it's actually going to do justice to the book. I read that Moyes helped write the screenplay, so I expect that will make a huge difference in taking this amazing book to the big screen.
