Jojo Moyes – seniyegroff

Jojo Moyes has written an astoundingly great book. If you read “Me Before You” and were enraptured, get ready to be even more enamored with her latest book, “The Girl You Left Behind/”. Sophie and Helene are barely surviving in a small French town during the German occupation of World War I. The sisters run the local restaurant, Le Coq Rouge, and are forced to feed the German soldiers every night. The Kommandant is mesmerized by a painting in the dining room by Sophie’s husband, Edouard Lefevre, called “The Girl You Left Behind”. It is a painting of Sophie when she was full of love and life after she first met Edouard. Sophie dreams of Edouard daily; hoping he is alive on the front. Sophie decides to make the ultimate sacrifice by offering her painting to the Kommandant in return for seeing her husband.

Alternating chapters reveal Liv, a woman living in 2006 London. She is still struggling four years after the sudden death of her 38 year-old architect husband. David gave Liv “The Girl You Left Behind“ for their honeymoon and it is proudly displayed in Liv’s home. Liv’s life has essentially stopped. She is unwilling to make anything different in David’s house since his death. During a chance meeting, Liv meets Paul and finally gets a shot at the possibility of a “normal” life. But the mysterious painting plays an integral role in both Sophie and Liv’s life as events unfold in this engrossing novel.

Moyes writes of love, sacrifice and loss with glaring detail. Her characters leap from the pages with the vivid writing of the author. “The Girl You Left Behind” is fraught with deeper meaning and readers will be thinking of the characters long after they finish the book.

Moyes will be reading her book at Powells at Cedar Hills this Monday, September 16th at 7 p.m.

“Me Before You” by Jojo Moyes is a book you will think about even when you are not reading it. The story is so tantalizing and provocative, you will be immersed in Louisa and Will from the very start. Will is a thirty-something thrill-seeker who is handsome, rich and powerful. A freak accident leaves him a quadriplegic. Louisa, a twenty-seven year old, loses her job at the Buttered Bun and is not quite sure what to do next. Louisa gets hired by Will’s mother to be Will’s caretaker. Will is bossy, moody and, at times, down right unfriendly. Louisa likes to stay in her safe cocoon and has no intention of venturing out of her safety zone.

As Louisa and Will get to know each other, they begin to challenge each other’s beliefs. Will wonders if life is worth living, given his current physical state. Louisa wonders why she is not more brave and willing to try new things. “Is ambition a bad thing?”, Will asks Louisa. In turn, Louisa asks Will, “Since life can change so quickly, why not embrace your new normal?”

This is a novel that will suck you in from the first page. It challenges you to question your assumptions and decisions. If life changed so drastically and so suddenly, what would you do?