Me Before You Introduction

In a Nutshell

We were pretty ticked when we found out that Me Before You was already a book title, because we were planning on using it for our upcoming self-help book about the value of narcissism. What an underrated personality trait, right?

Okay, maybe it's a good thing that Jojo Moyes stole our thunder on that one.

Yeah, what Moyes writes, unlike our unwritten self-help book, is legit. After a decade as an international journalist, Moyes published her first novel, Sheltering Rain, in 2002, and released another seven novels over the next eight years. Productivity for the win. It wasn't until the publication of Me Before You in 2012, however, that Moyes took her rightful role as a praiseworthy purveyor of popular fiction. Now you can't miss her.

Also, folks, did we mention the fact that the film adaptation of Me Before You even stars Daenerys from Game of Thrones? That's when you know you're legit.

We'd attribute all this success to the fact that Me Before You is both the quintessential romance novel and the perfect subversion of that genre. On the one hand, it has all of the requisite elements: a quirky heroine, a wealthy suitor, and a relationship that begins with enmity and ends with kisses. On the other hand, it complicates the situation by having that wealthy suitor, Will Traynor, be struggling with his feelings about his quadriplegia. It's what a romance novel would be like if real life got in the way. And we mean really got in the way.

As a result, Me Before You touches on heavy issues normally ignored by novels with Fabio on their covers. It touches on the inner turmoil felt by those with immense medical challenges. It touches on issues like quadriplegia and depression. It touches on the psychological impact of sexual assault. It even touches on the hot button topic of assisted suicide. Not your typical rom-com fare, huh?

That being said, you'll still get some major romantic feels while reading Me Before You. You just might be surprised that you walk away with your noggin as inflamed as your heart.

 

Why Should I Care?

Before you scoff at Me Before You as a run-of-the-mill romance novel, we recommend that you check yourself before you wreck yourself. There's a lot more going on here than you might think.

That's because the novel deals with issues of class and how they can drive a wedge between otherwise compatible people. It deals with the way that physical ailments and diseases can completely upend our sense of self. And it deals with the very controversial topic of assisted suicide while paying respect to both sides of this contentious debate.

More than anything, though, Me Before You examines our relationship with our hopes and dreams. Will, for example, is struggling now that his future has seemingly been stolen away from him in a flash. Lou, on the other hand, is struggling because she's never fought for her dreams, out of a combination of fear and insecurity. We've certainly felt both of these emotions at different points in our lives—and if you haven't, you're probably not human.

Maybe reptilian?

Still, we think that even our reptilian brothers and sisters would agree that the future can be scary at times. What Me Before You teaches us is that although it's impossible to delete these fears entirely, we can keep them from controlling our lives.