Us - David Nicholls

Rating: ✫✫✫

I was quite excited to start this book. I originally bought it in an airport when about to head off on holiday to Barcelona, but I didn't get chance to read it while I was there. However I knew lots of people were huge fans of this book, so I was sure it must be worth the hype.

I'd read Starter for Ten previously, and knew the story behind One Day, so I should have expected this book to be equally unconventional. Yet I'll admit that I wasn't quite prepared the true uniqueness of the story (and, of course, the structure of it's narrative). I liked the idea of reading about how Douglas and Connie met, especially when it was placed parallel to their troubles later in life. However I struggled to really invest in the saving of their relationship purely because I found Connie increasingly unlikable. I thought Douglas deserved a more appreciative partner, and so I grew irritated by his determination to save his marriage. I loved the idea behind the story, and I enjoyed the structure of their 'Grand Tour'; their travels through Europe complemented by the past narrative running alongside them. The relationship between Douglas and Albie, on the other hand, was really interesting, and I enjoyed watching their interactions change over the course of the story.

If you're looking for a happy book with perfect characters and a perfect ending, I don't think Nicholls is the writer for you. However, if you want something that's different, that is often messy, and that makes you think, then this is definitely one to read.

✻

Douglas thinks his life is happy. He loves his wife very much, and he is looking forward to their family holiday - the Grand Tour of Europe - before their son, Albie, leaves for University. But Albie is distant, and Connie isn't happy. She tells Douglas that after their trip, she intends to leave him.

And so the Grand Tour takes on a new and painful significance. Threatened with the loss of everything that he knows, Douglas makes a promise to himself that he will win his family back; his marriage will improve, and he will earn the respect of his son. As he travels through Europe, he remembers stories from his past, and realises that perhaps one trip isn't going to fix everything.

*spoiler alert*

I love the minimal map of the 'Grand Tour' that is included in the print. From London to Barcelona, and many cities in between.

The Structure

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I like short chapters. They tend to keep a story moving quickly, and I find books that use them a lot easier to read. I also thought that short, sharp chunks worked really well in the confines of this story. As a reader, we move around so rapidly with Douglas' thought process that it was mirrored really well in the structure of the narrative. I wasn't as sure about the story also being split into sections based on location. I liked the idea of the Grand Tour, but it took me a while to be convinced by the locational separations. On reflection, I like the idea a lot more, but originally I didn't really get it. I still don't believe it added an awful lot to the story, but it was a nice idea so I can let it go.

The Characters

Douglas

I like Douglas as a character. He's eccentric, kind, and hopeful. But he really didn't help himself. I was rooting for Douglas, but he so often made situations so much worse for himself that it became increasingly difficult for me to agree with him. 

Past Douglas was endearing, because he seemed so genuinely surprised that Connie might be interested in him. When he goes on his second date with Connie:

"I introduced her to Bruce, our pet fruit fly, to show her that it was not only the art-school crowd who knew how to have a good time."

You can't help but like him, but the further you get into the book, the more you see what went wrong with his family. He's too hard on Albie, which alienates him, and he grows too comfortable in his marriage to really make enough effort. He's a great character, because you can see so many different sides to him. You see how he was as a young man, and you see how he is as a parent to teenage Albie. You understand his greatest traits, but also his flaws. And you come to understand what makes him such a complex and troubled character.

The main problem? I wanted him to be happy, but I felt throughout the whole book that he deserved better.

Connie

Let's start with past Connie. She acts like she's the bees knees, and that bothers me. From what I can see, she never really wanted Douglas, she just wanted to want him. And that's not the same thing. You can see the love that Douglas feels for Connie throughout the whole book. And I can see how Connie is comfortable and used to Douglas. She cheats on Douglas, then tells him matter-of-factly, like she doesn't really want to stick around. She also openly admits later on that she considered leaving him. There's just such a disjointedness throughout their entire relationship, and so it isn't hard to see not only why they are having troubles, but also where their relationship is ultimately going.

Fast forward to present-day Connie, and I still can't take to her. She is openly patronising, rude, and makes snide comments about Douglas because he isn't overtly adventurous or cool. The very definition of one who has known nothing but popularity, and can't see the merits of somebody different. I didn't like her at all, and that made it difficult for me to invest myself in Douglas's attempts to save his failing relationship with her.

Albie

My immediate reaction was that Albie was a bit of a prat, and I felt this way about him for the majority of the book. It's only towards the end of the story, when Douglas has almost caught up with Albie, that you hear of how difficult Douglas has really made growing up for his son. I felt for him then, especially when you see him attempt to patch up his relationship with his dad. An interesting shift in perspective, that was done very well.

The Plot

'"When did it start, Douglas?" she said, her voice low. "When did you start to drain the passion out of everything?"'

And there's the premise for the whole book. This is what Connie says to Douglas before they embark on their Grand Tour. The two are so different that it isn't hard to see how their marriage has slowly deteriorated. What I found really strange was that Connie was the one who wanted to continue with their trip around Europe. Douglas' initial reaction was to cancel the trip, but it was Connie who brought him round. I can't help but think it would have made more sense if Connie had been the one who wanted to cancel their plans, and Douglas had been the one convinced to follow through. This would have led on a lot more naturally to Douglas' choice to win his wife back. It seemed a little disjointed. 

I think the major problem for me was that I really did not take to the character of Connie. Right from the beginning, I found her patronising, mean, and unappreciative of Douglas. This meant that it took a long time for me to actually progress with the story. This was true of both the present and the past (past Connie was actually so pretentious it hurt). By the time the three travellers had arrived in France, I was just feeling more and more sorry for Douglas, and for myself for having to proceed with the poor guy's story. Connie just blew hot and cold so frequently that I found it exhausting, and Albie was often rude and inconsiderate.

✼

This was how the story remained for a long time; with Connie and Albie seeming agitated, and Douglas doing his best to keep things going. Amsterdam and Belgium followed this theme, so that I only really began to enjoy the story when Douglas was alone. He just gets to be himself for once, without having to go out of his way to try and impress people. When Freja stumbles into the story, it's just better. She understands Douglas, and she appreciates him like he has never been appreciated by Connie. I keep going back to this quote:

"But the trouble with living in the moment is that the moment passes. Impulse and spontaneity take no account of the longer term, of responsibilities and obligations, debts to be paid, promises to fulfil."

And isn't that what Douglas's life I all about? He does what he can to be spontaneous, creative and impulsive, which is what Connie and Albie really want. But that's just not him. Every aspect of his personality gears towards organisation, responsibility, and being realistic. It can never work when he is always going to revert back to his core values, and this was the point when I, if not Douglas, realised that he was fighting a losing battle.

✻

I found the last chapter really interesting, as it shows alternative perspectives that are equally as important. Throughout the book, I came more and more round to seeing Albie's side, and this really cemented it for me. It becomes clear that Albie is only responding to the treatment he has received from his father, even if it was unintentional. When both see the error of their ways, things change. Douglas and Albie, I now know, will be just fine. I'm afraid I still found Connie to be selfish, despite being provided with many obvious examples of when Douglas was also in the wrong.

Am I sad they didn't get back together? No. I think it must be perfectly clear by now that I think that Douglas deserves some who appreciates his quirks rather than tolerates them. I'm very glad he made the decision to seek out Freja. She will complement him, in a way that Connie never could, and never wanted to. It's a very realistic ending. Nicholls is very good at avoiding the easy way out; avoiding the sickeningly happy ending. What he does do is provide realistic stories, and I'm glad this book was no different.

A Note on Relationships

If there is one thing Nicholls can do, it's write about relationships; namely dysfunctional relationships. And isn't that really what Us is about? 

"It's the face itself that I love, not that face at twenty-eight or thirty-four or forty-three. It's that face."

"This was what I found so hard at first, that Connie and Angelo's story was so much better than my own."

A quote taken from the very beginning, and one from the end. Throughout the entire book, Douglas wears his heart on his sleeve, and you feel his pain when he is suffering. You feel his sorrow when his relationship with Connie is deteriorating, and you root for him to be happy.

But this isn't a story about happy relationships. This is a story about failed relationships; how they go wrong, and how it is possible to pick up the pieces and move on. When it is revealed that Connie and Angelo have reunited, I was angry, but I can't help but love how a twist of fate brought them back together. Relationships make no sense. Love is strange. And what I love about this book is that it illustrates the messy, random, hard aspects of relationships, but equally the beauty of them. Of Douglas meeting Freja and choosing to track her down. Of Connie's relationship with Angelo starting again. This story shows the good, the bad, and most definitely the ugly parts of relationships. And I love Nicholls for choosing not to shy away from that.

The Verdict

I'm very much conflicted, because I really did love the idea of this plot. I could see exactly where Nicholls wanted to go with it, and I like that he always approaches his stories differently to the norm. In a way, I loved the way everything was a little bit messy, and a little bit disjointed. But I genuinely struggled to get through the book purely because I could not invest myself in Douglas's relationship with Connie. I really disliked her, although I am aware that this may be down to personal taste.

For every part of the book that I struggled with, there was a beauty to it. The structure is sporadic, but it represents Douglas's frame of mind when telling his story. Connie is patronising and irritable, but is counter-balanced by the calm and reasonable Freja. Albie starts off appearing very rude, but his story develops and we begin to understand him. The story focuses on dysfunctional relationships, but uses them to show the beauty in the successful relationships at the very end.

And I think that's what, as a reader, you really need to appreciate about this book. It isn't perfect, and there isn't a traditional happy ending. But Nicholls can write about relationships in a way that makes you really think. I didn't love this book, but it's been very thought-provoking. And sometimes, I think, that's better than a happy, wishy-washy, perfect ending.