The One Plus One

by Jojo Moyes

[Sam@WLABB]

Rating: 4.5 Stars

This is my second Moyes books, and I have officially added her to my go-to list. This book was a lot lighter than You Before Me, but still carried an emotional punch.

The story is told from 4 points of view:
* Jess, our struggling single mom, who is a beacon of optimism in a sea of unfortunate circumstances
* Nicky, Jess' 16 year old stepson, otherwise known as Goth Boy, who is repeatedly the victim of physical abuse at the hands of some neighborhood thugs.
*Tanzie, Jess' 10 year old maths prodigy, who wants nothing more, than to attend a posh private school , where she can eat, sleep, and breathe maths.
*Ed, a successful software developer (whose home is cleaned by Jess), who appears to have it all, but is actually on the cusp of losing it all.

An opportunity arises for Tanzie to complete in a Maths Olympiad with a large cash prize, and this is where the adventure begins. As the "family" travels to Scotland, we get to read about many of their misadventures, and see how their interaction with each other enhances their lives, and results in a lot of personal growth.

Moyes does such an amazing job creating this characters, that you just want to get to know better. Not only did I want to meet Jess, and hug her kids, I was rooting for them. I shed tears, when times were bad, and clapped, when things went their way. These people were all damaged and flawed, in some way, but they were better for these flaws. The flaws made them the whole person that Moyes presented, and made me love them more.

This is a story about family, and how it comes in all shapes and sizes. This is a story about not giving up, even when it looks like there is no hope. This is a story about survival, whether it be physically, mentally, or financially. This is story about being different, embracing those differences, and using them to your advantage. Most of all, this is story about love: love between siblings, parents and children, a man and a woman.

Overall: a fun, "awwww" invoking read. I was smiling, laughing, and feeling pretty optimistic at the end of this one.