Book #42 for 2022: Just Like You by Nick Hornby - Book Bingo: J
Just Like You by Nick Hornby
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The main characters in this are Lucy and Joseph, who meet when he serves her in the butcher shop. Both have just got out of previous relationships that did not work out, and they quickly get into a complicated one-off (and quite open) relationship, which involves them constantly dating other characters (Joseph even cheats on Lucy at times when they are in an official relationship), and Lucy often getting Joseph to look after her kids while she is on dates.
This is the sort of story that risked becoming cliched, and a case of "I've read it all before", but thanks to Nick Hornby's dialogue and characterisation, it all feels original.
A few other aspects make this feel unique too; first off, the characters are in a mixed-race relationship (Lucy is while, Joseph is black), and even with the book being set in modern times, there are references to their relationship getting a negative reaction. At one point, one of Lucy's neighbours calls the police after seeing Joseph outside her house.
Secondly, there is the age difference between the characters; the fact that Lucy is twenty years older than Joseph frequently leads them to question whether they have a future together.
Thirdly, the book is set in 2016, and so involves references to two particularly controversial political events that took place that year.
The Brexit vote is referenced several times, with the book taking an impartial view towards it. I have no idea if Nick Hornby was a remainer or a leaver, but he does a good job of skewering people's stereotyping of people who voted in particular ways. Later in the book, the characters clash over their views of Donald Trump after his election.
It's been a while since I last read a Nick Hornby book, and while his characteristic humour is still present, I noticed that this one felt more heavy on drama than some of his other works. I enjoyed the fact that it swerved all of the usual romantic fiction tropes, and managed an ending that felt original.
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This book ticks off J for the 2022 ljbookbingo challenge.
Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam (M.C. Beaton)
Big Panda and Tiny Dragon (James Norbury)
Crawling Horror (Edited by Daisy Butcher and Janette Leaf)
Desperation (Stephen King)
Every Contact Leaves a Trace (Elanor Dymott)
Facebook: The Inside Story (Steven Levy)
G
House with No Doors (Jeff Noon)
I
Just Like You (Nick Hornby)
Knife Edge (Malorie Blackman)
L
Mindset (Dr. Carol S. Dweck)
N
O
Peter Darling (Austin Chant)
Quidditch Through the Ages (J.K. Rowling)
Round the World in Eighty Days (Jules Verne)
Survivors (Marcus Blakeston & Mark Astronaut)
The Truth is Out There (Thomas Bertonneau and Kim Paffenroth)
U
V
Wyntertide (Andrew Caldecott)
X
Y
Zoo City (Lauren Beukes)