Carry You

by Beth Thomas

[Leah]

As soon as I heard about Beth Thomas’s debut novel Carry You, I knew I wanted to read it. I thought it sounded like a pretty amazing book, and I couldn’t wait to see if it lived up to my expectations. It’s quite a chunky book, over 450 pages which seems to be a rarity these days for books to exceed 350 or 400 pages, so I knew I would be settling down with quite a time consuming novel, but after reading the first page, that didn’t bother me at all because I was hooked from the beginning. I managed to complete it in a day, which is no mean feat, but really I just wanted to see if Daisy managed to pick herself up again, if she managed to complete the Moonwalk and if her awful siblings managed to get their come-uppance!

Carry You is rather like no novel I’ve read before, or at least not any novels that I can bring to mind. It’s a rather bizarre mix of heavy and light and I really wouldn’t know where to place it if I was recommending it to someone, because it sort of straddles the line between fun and serious. What Daisy’s going through is awful, having just lost her mum, she’s not working, she’s got nowhere to live after her mother’s house was sold, and she’s also lost her step-dad Graham, and her sister isn’t talking to her, either. Of all the bad things that could happen to you, ever, Daisy rathers got them all at once, but she’s got her best friend Abby on hand to not let her sink into a deep, dark depression and Abby’s got the perfect idea – she and Daisy will to the Moonwalk, a 26 mile walk around London for a breast cancer charity. Daisy cannot say no – it’s what she lost her Mum to, after all, and Abby presents Daisy with a plan to help her train for her walk (because, apparently walking 26 miles consitutes some training – especially if you’re going to do it in sub 9 hours). But can Daisy drag herself out of her funk long enough to walk 26 miles?

If you’re looking for a fast-paced read, Carry You isn’t in. It’s a very slow-going book, spanning a month or so in total, and we hear a lot (A LOT) about Daisy’s walking training. But if you want a novel about how AWESOME your friends can be, and how one best friend really can make the difference this is the novel for you, because if you EVER are in need of a best friend, Abby would be the one I would recommend you call. Many people would have given up on Daisy – she’s sad, she spends ALL DAY EVERY DAY eating Jaffa Cakes and watching Hugh Grant films, and she’s just got nothing going for her. She’s not the most inspiring heroine I’ve ever met, but I can totally understand because if I lost a parent, I too would be devastated and would spend every day eating Jaffa Cakes (if I liked Jaffa Cakes). But Abby lights up the book! She’s forceful, she won’t just let Daisy rot and I loved her for that because their friendship was just so real, so fun, so warm. And with Abby pushing her, Daisy did begin to finally come back to life, like a flower that has gone into hibernation for winter but is starting to stretch it’s petals at the first ray of sunshine. Abby was that sunshine. There aren’t many other characters in the novel, but it wasn’t to its detriment because Abby and Daisy only needed each other.

Of course, there are others characters in the book – Felix, in particular was a highlight. I sort of agreed with Abby – he pushed Daisy, and angered her and brought a bit of spark back to her and that was lovely. I absolutely loved their banter, Felix just didn’t seem to say ANYTHING that was too serious or heavy and was quick off the mark with a joke or a witty line and he really lifted the mood and I adored his and Daisy’s walks. I lived for them, in fact. I didn’t find much wrong with the book, though I did feel it was super wordy, Daisy sometimes struggled to stay in the present and her inner monologues could be quite long, but I enjoyed her narrative voice. I very much enjoyed the book. Daisy was a very sympathetic character (and whenever I was wavering about giving her a shock, Abby generally did it for me which set Daisy right) and I loved Abby. Abby should really have her own book, for being so awesome. Carry You is a very sweet read, and one that also managed to make me laugh quite a few times whilst still retaining a serious edge! I very much enjoyed it.