Me Before You - book review

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Woah. I read this incredible book on holiday in Italy (amazing holiday!), and it was so so enjoyable, and extremely gripping. 

Me Before You tells the story of Lou Clark, a quirky, sarcastic and wonderful character who has just lost her job, and Will Traynor, who is tireless, adventurous and has just been involved in an accident that puts him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. The book follows their relationship with each other and others and their characters through moments that are both wonderfully hilarious and heart wrenching. I have never read a story like this before, and it's such a unique and brilliant idea that is very relevant to today's society I think. 

I just adored both Lou and Will equally, as they are both so strong, funny and lovable. I admired Lou's determination and desperate need to help Will, and his attempts to make her feel appreciated and his interest in her I thought were so genuine and deep. Nathan as well was an amazing character, who was so easy going and refreshing, he had such a great relationship with both Lou and Will. 

I thought the book involved some really really important and relevant issues, and tackled them in such an engaging and clever way. I found that these issues were brought closer to home by reading this book, as I felt so involved with the characters, I was so moved and affected by their experiences. (I don't want to give anything away to people who haven't read it!) 

Whilst I was reading it, and more so once I had finished it, I thought about the story and characters a lot and it really made a big impression on me. I gave this to my sister to read, and she loved it as much as I did, and I would totally recommend it to a lot of my friends (at least one is definitely getting this for Christmas). 

I know the sequel to this came out the other day (very exciting!), I'm waiting for it to come out in paperback, unless I end up in Waterstones and I can't help myself, which is likely! I think I will definitely review it when I read it though! 

Also, I recently discovered this is becoming a film next year (!!!!!) and got extremely excited! I think and hope more people will be affected by it, and will realise how real the issues are. (The excitement was also partly due to the fact that Emilia Clark and Sam Claflin has been cast as Lou and Will, and both me and my sister think will be perfect! Mega exciting!) 

Keep Smiling! :-) 

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time - book review

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, by Mark Haddon

This book is brilliant in so many ways. 

The main character, Christopher, has Asperger's and after finding his neighbours dog dead he sets out on a mission to discover who murdered Wellington, the dog. The story encompasses issues such as family conflict, as well as obviously mental illnesses, namely Autism. 

The story is told from Christopher's perspective, allowing the reader to really experience how he thinks. For example, when he travels on a train, I really felt as if I understood why he was so anxious, but at the same time not fully getting it. 

Asperger's is a type of autism, where the individual often struggles with social interaction and communication, but often has intense interests or talents, such as Christopher's amazing maths ability. It is caused by a lack of cognitive (brain) development, but usually improves into adulthood. 

I really enjoyed that is was written from his point of view, as I said, and also the images and diagrams that were scattered throughout made it easy reading and separated the text out. I thought that even the small details like the chapters only being prime numbers and Christopher's little explanations that sort of diverted from the story but still allowed you to be with him, they added to the effect and show just how much thought was put into the book. 

This book offers a subtle yet engaging insight into autism, whilst being entertaining and so cleverly written. Personally, although none of my close family or friends are autistic, I found this book so insightful and interesting, and was able to relate Christopher's behaviour to people I know with autism. 

I would most definitely recommend this to others (I already have!), as I think it would suit so many different reading interests and what people look for and want to get out of a book. 

There is a stage adaption that has recently been advertised unfortunately I have not seen it, but I would love to as it looks incredible...maybe soon! 

Keep Smiling! :-) 

Tess of the d'Urbervilles - book review

BOOK REVIEW

Tess of the d'Urbervilles

I have recently finished reading Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy as part of my AS Level English Literature course. And, yes, I admit, when I found out that this was one of the books I would be studying, I wasn't too excited to say the least. However, my doubts were soon altered as I began really enjoying the novel. 

The story is set in Dorset, South England, where Tess - the main character - was born and raised along with her many other siblings by her parents, who unfortunately, are a tad too fond of alcohol. The story begins with a Vicar telling her father, John Durbeyfield, that his ancestors were once great, well-known knights. This, whether true or not, haunts Tess throughout the novel. 

As the story unfolds and Tess meets many other characters, two of whom especially have a huge impact on her life, and she experiences troubled highs and many lows. One of the things I really loved about Tess, is that even though she has to journey through so many struggles, and is let down by so many people she loves, she is still loyal and compassionate towards them. I also love her because I think she is just so real and so human, unlike some characters authors make to seem impossibly perfect. 

I found I learnt a lot more about Victorian society than I have from studying it in school (given that was in Primary!), I felt I experienced it more from a personal point of view and I was angered and frustrated on behalf of Tess because of the completely unjust patriarchal society. It also made me see industrialisation from the country folks point of view, and how, when agricultural machinery was first introduced, it was so terrifying and devastating for workers. 

As for the style of writing, I thought it would be very hard going and dense, and yes, it took me longer to read than most other books, and I had to pay more attention but overall it wasn't bad at all! I also feel that, as we discussed and wrote essays alongside reading the book in class, it made it easier for me. 

If anyone has read Tess of the d'Urbervilles or any other Hardy or Victorian novels, I'd love to hear what you thought! 

Also, I do more book reviews on my goodreads account, which are a lot more brief and straight after I have finished the book. 

Do you enjoy reading book reviews? Are they something I should do more often? 
Please let me know your thoughts! 

Keep Smiling! :-) 

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