Jessica ❁ ➳ Silverbow ➳ ❁ 's Reviews > Me Before You

SO. I know that practically the whole world loves this book, and I'm not trying to undermine the majority. Truly, I'm not. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the biggest (only?) downside to training yourself to read books critically for review, is that you can't turn it off. I may never be able to devour a book, paying zero attention to anything but how it makes me feel, and enjoying it without any kind of expectations ever again.

That probably sounds awful to a lot a people, but I don't mind. I might even prefer it this way.

But hopefully, you now feel sorry for me, horrified by analytical approach to reading-for-pleasure, and no longer want to tar and feather me for besmirching the honor of one of your best loved books. *crosses fingers*

I have three main issues:

1. The unequal cost vs. gain ratio.

I won't try to deny that the conclusion of ME BEFORE YOU packed a powerful emotional punch.

BUT.

My tears weren't the result of pain felt on behalf of poignant characters who had been brought to life by a talented writer.

The situation was tragic, so I felt pain.

BUT.

No more or less than I would have felt if I'd read the same scenario in a book summary or a 500 word article in the local paper.

I could try to isolate reasons for the disconnect, like it's told in the third person, but that feels like a cop-out--I've encountered plenty of compelling characters in third person POV books--but ultimately, Will and Lou didn't join those ranks.

The end.

2. Gratuitous use of personal tragedy to justify behavior that didn't need justification.

Moyes took what would have been the most interesting aspect of this tale (Lou's quirky fashion sense), and turned it into coping mechanism.

I'm usually all for gaining insight into characters, but that insight needs to be meaningful. Turning a young woman with a colorful and unapologetically wacky fashion sense into a victim, who is merely trying to disguise her femininity is . . .

Well, it's offensive.

It suggests that you must be damaged to escape conformity, that you can't be an individual for the sake of individuality, or simply b/c YOU'RE DIFFERENT.



3. Postmodernism makes my nostrils flare.

ME BEFORE YOU is a dispiriting combination of selfishness and pointlessness masquerading as a love story.

I've frequently addressed my feelings on Postmodernism, so I won't reiterate the long version here, but suffice it to say, I HATE it.

I hate the inevitability of pain and disappointment and of mediocrity. I hate the implication that Bad Things will happen, so the best you can do is bear it gracefully, or, at the very least, with stoicism.

Reality is something I avoid when reading recreationally, so encountering the kind of inescapable sadness and loss often found in Postmodern literature is something I assiduously steer clear of.

Sometimes with limited success . . .

If you share my view, do yourself a favor and skip this one. In my opinion, ME BEFORE YOU is a headache you don't need.

The only part of the story that didn't shriek of the uselessness of hope in the face of reality, was Lou's personal growth throughout her endeavor, which annoyingly makes me want to read AFTER YOU to see if the changes stuck, and will almost certainly be another disappointment.

Ugh.

My review of After You