One Plus One

I just loved this story. I read it years ago and it was so good , I wanted to reread it. It is a wonderful combination of funny and sad. The characters are well developed, and you identify with the difficult situation that the family is in. This is a must read.

I first stumbled onto Jojo Moyes last year, when I read Me Before You. One of the best books I read in 2013, it left me a sobbing mess. I also really enjoyed reading The Girl You Left Behind, which didn't cripple me as much emotionally, but still moved and compelled me. In Moyes' newest book, One Plus One, Jess is in the midst of some hard times. Struggling for money since her husband left more than two years ago, she works two jobs in order to (barely) make ends meet. Her stepson, Nicky, is sullen and not willing to fit in, yet he keeps getting beaten up by the town bullies. Her daughter, Tanzie, is tremendously skilled in mathematics, and her teacher has recommended her for a scholarship at a prestigious private school, which would change Tanzie's life and give her opportunities she wouldn't get otherwise. The problem is, even with significant financial aid, the school is still too expensive for Jess. Ed Nicholls is a geek-turned-millionaire, whose childhood obsession with computers launched him into a prestigious software career. He's also hit a bit of a rough patch, finding himself cut off from his business and his best friend, forced to take refuge in his vacation home in order to keep a low profile. He and Jess have a few run-ins, as cleaning his vacation home is one of her jobs. But when Jess and the kids find themselves in a time of extraordinary need, Ed becomes their savior, and the four embark on a road trip filled with moments of anxiety and laughter, disclosures and diversions. One Plus One demonstrates Jojo Moyes' talent as a storyteller. Despite the fact that you can predict early on exactly how the plot will unfold, her characters, even when flawed, are tremendously appealing, people you want to spend time with and learn more about. In particular, I really enjoyed Jess' children, Nicky and Tanzie, as you see how their differences from their peers and their struggles simultaneously make them individuals but cause them significant struggles. This story isn't without its quirks, and at times it seems like anything that can go wrong, any wrench that can be thrown into the situation does. But One Plus One is sweet and endearing, which makes reading it enjoyable. While this isn't as moving a book as some of Moyes' others, it's still worth picking up, because you'll like participating in the road trip that Jess, Ed, Tanzie, Nicky and their dog must take. Good fun.

I come from a very blended family -- my grandmother remarried, and so did both of my parents -- so the uniqueness of the family in this novel and their quirks was something I instantly identified with. One Plus One really drives home the importance of family. They're the people who will always be there for you even in the most dire of circumstances and have your back no matter what. I saw it constantly through Jess' fierce determination to provide for her children and give them the best life and love possible with what little they had in life. It was demonstrated through Nicky and Tanzie's relationship as brother and sister and their acceptance of one another even though they're both a little different. You even see it in Norman, the giant slobbery dog who is 100% loyal to his people. To put it simply, there is no mold for the perfect family. It means something different to everyone, and the family in this book is simply beautiful, quirks and all! The unlikely romance that develops between Jess and Ed is equally as beautiful as the family element. As always, JoJo Moyes writes characters so real you feel like you know them personally. The romance is a slow build and was one of my favorite aspects of the novel aside from the family growth. I don't see a real point in rehashing the plot, all I can really say is you definitely won't regret reading this. It made me laugh (actually out loud, multiple times) and it made me sad (and then happy again, don't worry) and most importantly when I finished it I felt an even greater appreciation for my big, wonderful, slightly weird at times family. We have been through so much together, quite like Jess, Tanzie and Nicky, yet our love for each other will always ensure we make it through the bad stuff together. There's plenty to love in these pages and no matter what your family situation, I can guarantee you'll relate to plenty here. This is another favorite read for me from JoJo Moyes (I love it ALMOST as much as Me Before You) and I'll be loaning it out to everyone I know.

Loved this book. It makes you appreciate the things you have and also appreciate the hard work you do to get there. The characters feel so real in both emotion and personality. A wonderful read with sweet happy ending.

Habe diese Geschichte von Jojo Moyes mit Freude und grossem Vergnügen gelesen. Eine Art Roadmovie in literarischer Form, wobei auf herzerwärmende und kein bisschen kitschige Weise von den Sorgen einer alleinerziehenden, in ständiger Geldnot befindlichen Mutter erzählt wird, von ihren zwei sehr besonderen Kindern und dem riesigen Hund Norman.. Mit von der Partie ist ein in Schwierigkeiten geratenen Londoner Jungunternehmer, der als ambivalenter Retter in der Not auftaucht und alle auf eine recht bewegte Reise nach Schottland mitnimmt. Natürlich ist das Ganze auch eine Liebesgeschichte, aber mehr noch ist es eine schöne, humorvolle Erzählung von Zuversicht, Zueinanderstehen, Verzeihenkönnen, Nicht-Aufgeben und eben: Liebe. Jo-Jo Moyes gelingt es, dies alles so zu erzählen, dass es keineswegs zu zuckrig wird, trotz einer gewissen Vorhersehbarkeit spannend bleibt und nie ins Triviale abgleitet.

シングルマザーの不安や日々の葛藤が描かれていて(私自身シングルマザーだったので）感情移入して読んでしまいました。世界中のシングルマザーにEdのような男性が現れてくれたら良いのにと思う楽しい結末です。

I loved this book and couldnt put it down...read in two days! I recommend reading it if you enjoy a good love story!

Oh boy, I LOVED this book. In fact, all of Jo Jo Moyes’ stories are absorbing and un-putdownable, even her earlier, more historical genre books. She is such a talented author who presents us every time with credible, interesting characters whom we want to cheer on. What should basically turn out to be a depressing read, featuring a struggling one-parent family, is not. Jess, with her cleaning and bar jobs is just about coping to bring up Tanzie, her talented daughter, a maths prodigy who doesn’t fit in at her tough school. She cares for Nicky too: not her son, but the result of her loser of a husband, and his affair with a drug addict. Said husband, Marty, has also dumped Jess, Nicky and Tanzie for a new woman and offers no support whatsoever. Nicky is another child who is “a bit different”, who needs to find his “tribe”, his own people and in the meantime is mercilessly bullied and beaten up by the loathsome Fisher and his gang. Seriously beaten up. Enter Ed Nicholls, another “different” person, with a clever IT brain and owning a successful software business. Jess and her friend Nathalie clean his swanky, vast house that never looks lived in every week. Materially Ed wants for nothing but his private life is a mess and in a mad, thoughtless, rather naïve and desperate moment, he gives away company information – a disastrous move. He is now at rock bottom too. (And also another lovable character). He becomes entangled in the life of Jess and the plot thickens. No spoilers but the main event is a crazy car journey to Scotland where all these “different” characters, (minus of course the sh**** Marty), plus a lolloping, farting dog called Norman, travel north for hours to get Tanzie to a Maths Olympiad. Bewildered? All will be explained when you read this fabulous book… It’s an intensely moving story and it is also hilarious in parts: a combo hard to pull off, but Moyes does it exceedingly well and I thoroughly recommend this book. I really couldn’t put it down and it’s her fault if my own writing word count has suffered. What a brilliant writer she is. I’d give her more than 5 stars.

Just LOVE Jojo Moyes’s stories. And this one is no different. The ups and downs, fears and hopes of these characters made me cry and not want to stop reading. Listed as my all-time favourite author, I look forward to reading more of her books.