Scan barcode
A review by lostinpaperbacks
Lie with Me by Philippe Besson
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
How does one even justify in a single review how impactful this book is. 5 STARS all day EVERYDAY, for the rest of my life. The story, the characters, and everything I absolutely fell in love with. The writing in this book was absolutely beautiful and poetic, so much so that I can’t even begin to imagine just how beautiful this novel must be in French, as that’s how it was first written.
“The image doesn’t fit my thick glasses, my stretched-out blue Nordic sweater, the student's head slaps, the too-good grades, the feminine gestures. Why me?
He says: Because you are not like all the others, because I don’t see anyone but you and you don’t even realize it. He adds this phrase, which for me is unforgettable: Because you will leave and we will stay."
This book made me cry ugly tears, because Philippe Besson really takes you on a journey. Now, I don’t know just how much of this book is fiction and how much may have been taken from the author’s own personal life, because the novel itself is dedicated to ‘Thomas Andrieu’ and the main character is also called Philippe. But I don’t think that’s important. What’s important is the journey the characters go on, the relationship that develops between them, and what this relationship tells each of the characters about themselves. I loved the ending it was so sad however so beautfiul.
Overall, Lie With Me was a delicately beautiful book about identity and love, but the kind of love that attaches itself to your soul and stays with you, that made me cry but also filled me with a tender appreciation for life. If Philippe Besson is capable of destroying me with a 150 page book, I’m a little scared to read anything else by him. I hope his other books are translated or I might just have to learn French and read them all. It’s the least I could do to have the chance to experience something this beautiful again. Overall, Lie With Me was a devastatingly beautiful book about identity and love, but the kind of love that attaches itself to your soul and stays with you, made me cry but also filled me with a tender appreciation for life. If Philippe Besson is capable of destroying me with a 150 page book, I’m a little scared to read anything else by him. I hope his other books are translated or I might just have to learn French and read them all. It’s the least I could do to have the chance to experience something this beautiful again.
“I know you would have liked for things to be different, for me to say the words that would have reassured you, but I could not, and I never knew how to talk anyway. In the end, I tell myself that you understood. It was love, of course. And tomorrow, there will be a great emptiness. But we could not continue – you have your life waiting for you, and I will never change. I just wanted to write to tell you that I have been happy during these months together, that I have never been so happy, and that I already know I will never be so happy again."
I CRIED SO MUCH. I haven't cried that much since a little life, now that says it all. I am in love with this book. I slept with it the night I read it because I wanted to give all the characters the biggest hug.
“The image doesn’t fit my thick glasses, my stretched-out blue Nordic sweater, the student's head slaps, the too-good grades, the feminine gestures. Why me?
He says: Because you are not like all the others, because I don’t see anyone but you and you don’t even realize it. He adds this phrase, which for me is unforgettable: Because you will leave and we will stay."
This book made me cry ugly tears, because Philippe Besson really takes you on a journey. Now, I don’t know just how much of this book is fiction and how much may have been taken from the author’s own personal life, because the novel itself is dedicated to ‘Thomas Andrieu’ and the main character is also called Philippe. But I don’t think that’s important. What’s important is the journey the characters go on, the relationship that develops between them, and what this relationship tells each of the characters about themselves. I loved the ending it was so sad however so beautfiul.
Overall, Lie With Me was a delicately beautiful book about identity and love, but the kind of love that attaches itself to your soul and stays with you, that made me cry but also filled me with a tender appreciation for life. If Philippe Besson is capable of destroying me with a 150 page book, I’m a little scared to read anything else by him. I hope his other books are translated or I might just have to learn French and read them all. It’s the least I could do to have the chance to experience something this beautiful again. Overall, Lie With Me was a devastatingly beautiful book about identity and love, but the kind of love that attaches itself to your soul and stays with you, made me cry but also filled me with a tender appreciation for life. If Philippe Besson is capable of destroying me with a 150 page book, I’m a little scared to read anything else by him. I hope his other books are translated or I might just have to learn French and read them all. It’s the least I could do to have the chance to experience something this beautiful again.
“I know you would have liked for things to be different, for me to say the words that would have reassured you, but I could not, and I never knew how to talk anyway. In the end, I tell myself that you understood. It was love, of course. And tomorrow, there will be a great emptiness. But we could not continue – you have your life waiting for you, and I will never change. I just wanted to write to tell you that I have been happy during these months together, that I have never been so happy, and that I already know I will never be so happy again."
I CRIED SO MUCH. I haven't cried that much since a little life, now that says it all. I am in love with this book. I slept with it the night I read it because I wanted to give all the characters the biggest hug.