Us in the Before and After

Mab has found Elk. Elk didn't know she needed finding, but now she wouldn't have it any other way. In the 'free-range' Mab, she has gained a new best friend and a whole new perspective on life. Cocooned by love, friendship and family, Elk's existence, even allowing for the pains and problems of growing up, is one of relative cosy contentment. Even school is manageable, thanks to the protective glow of Mab's popular older brother, France.

But death is lurking. First Elk's beloved Gran succumbs to a progressive illness that withers her mentally and physically. Then the almost unthinkable and unimaginable pain of losing Mab. Grief counsellor Stevie provides a safe space for Elk to unburden herself as her worried parents whisper in corners. With the disgruntled but loyal ghost of Mab at her side, will Elk find a way through? All is not as it seems, however and there are further revelations still to come.

Jenny Valentine's Us in the Before and After is a story of pure, joyous friendship, burgeoning first love and unimaginable grief. There are no 'bad' characters here, only decent people dealing with the vicissitudes of life. This book is a melting pot of growing-up - the fear and freedom of everyday life and the wondering about what comes next.

Poetic and melancholy in tone, yet empowering in spirit, this is a book to be cherished. Just as an extra note I should also add that it is a lot shorter than what seems to be the requisite 350+ pages and to my mind, much more impactful for it!

256 pages / Reviewed by Clare Wilkins, school librarian

Suggested Reading Age 14+

From the start of Us in the Before and After, there is a tangible sense that the protagonists of this story have secrets to tell and that the author is playing with the reader through the device of an unreliable narrator. Reminiscent of a famous movie in places, the title of which can't be revealed due to spoilers, it resonates with sadness and loss.

At its core,  Us in the Before and After is a heart-warming study of friendship, a celebration of individuality, the pangs of first love, the sting of jealousy and a heart-breaking study of grief. When Mab and Ella (nicknamed Elk) meet as children, they quickly become inseparable, so that one cannot imagine existing without the other. Then the gentle presence of France, followed by an irrevocable incident, complicates matters.

Valentine's language is dreamlike and emotive. She uses evocative imagery to paint pictures in the reader's mind as the plot languorously unwinds, posing existential questions and exploring close family dynamics. It's a broken love song to art, physics and the wonders of nature captured in the minutiae of small moments and adventurous exploits which are chronicled in the chapter headings.

Us in the Before and After examines the tangled complexities of relationships, slowly revealed in flashbacks, and the fact that everything can change in a split second. Moving from joy to sorrow to hope to reflection, it will appeal to fans of observational prose that moves beyond the story to muse upon the fragile fabric between life and death.

256 pages / Reviewed by Tanja Jennings, school librarian

Suggested Reading Age 14+