Me Before You

Me Before You by JoJo Moyes, 369 pages

Will Traynor is a 30-something yuppie brimming with life. He works hard, buying and selling companies (usually for a six-digit profit); he plays hard, climbing Kilimanjaro and scuba diving when he goes on vacation. Or at least he does in the prologue. By the time chapter 1 has started, Will has been in a horrible accident and is now a quadriplegic confined to a wheelchair and only able to move the fingers of one hand, which is how our narrator, small-town stuck-in-a-rut girl Louisa "Lou" Clark, finds him when Will's mom hires her to be his companion.

Based on that description, I wouldn't blame you if you assumed that this would be a heartbreaking read. And to a degree, you'd be right. However, it's also heartwarming and hilarious. Will and Lou share an acerbic sense of humor, and it shines through as they get to know each other. This is easily the funniest book you'll ever read about quadriplegia. I warn you though... you'll cry too. Probably a lot. But it's worth it and it's fantastic.