As a lover of @nickhornbywriter 's work since the mid 90s I was thrilled to receive an ARC of his new book "Just Like You". Hornby's characters are always deftly constructed and I love that we, the readers, have the implicit characterisation he writes so well; allowing us to let characters unfold rather than explicitly being told what they are like from the offing. The morally-bankrupt and aimless Will Freeman in "About a Boy", the disillusioned Katie Carr in "How to be Good" and commitaphobe Rob Fleming in "High Fidelity" are characters who have stayed with me for decades and I must say that our lead characters in "Just Like You" will have the same lasting impact.

Lucy Fairfax is a 42 year old English teacher (of course this rings true with me as I am 41 and also an English teacher but that's where the similarities end), mother of two sons and separated from her alcoholic cocaine abusing husband Paul. It is is the "calamitous collapse" of her marriage which leads to Joseph, a part-time butcher/ university drop-out/ babysitter/ wannabe DJ who is 22 and black. A relationship commences and Hornby writes about their age-difference in a comedic yet sensitive way; from Joseph's toes curling as Lucy "boogies" to his tracks to Lucy agonising over what her 42 year old backside looks like in comparison to Joseph's previous lovers with "nothing as taut or as smooth as it had been".

It is the early part of the relationship I particularly loved with Lucy's texts to Joseph which make him see punctuation in a whole new light. Punctuation and in particular the apostrophe have become sexy (which I love!) and he pores over her texts which have been written, deleted and re-written as she fights with her conscience on how to say what she wants to say without coming across as desperate and needy. Joseph states "Why using punctuation in a text was sexy, he couldn't say, but he found himself wondering what it would be like to sleep with someone like that."

Hornby captures the zeitgeist of a pre and post-Brexit England, complete with the polarising views of the divided nation who are all given a voice during the course of the book. It is the political backdrop of the referendum which provides crackling dialogue between teachers fighting in the staff room and the dinner party where Joseph informs the middle-class guests exactly how he voted. It is, as Hornby puts it "the conversation that couldn't be avoided".

Hornby covers racial profiling, the police's treatment of Joseph who visits his girlfriend at 10pm and Trump's election adding another dimension to this multi-layered narrative. The issue of race is particularly prevalent as despite Lucy and Joseph initially not appearing concerned with their own respective races, it is the election of Trump and Joseph's anger for what he represents which acts as a trigger for the rest of the action. "He was angry, and he wanted to pick a fight.... This felt personal, in a way that no other political event in his lifetime had."

"Just Like You" is released in September and I urge you to pre-order. It is a stunning read and if you love a book rich with sparkling dialogue and characters you want to gradually unwrap like beautiful presents, it is one for you!

Just Like You by Nick Hornby is a romantic comedy set against the backdrop of the 2016 EU referendum and perennial race relations. I love novels that combine big social issues with light comedy, so Just Like You is my literary sweet spot. In fact, in all honesty, I can best compare Hornby to Shakespeare on this front, and it's no coincidence that a production of 'As You Like It' features within the novel.

It may seem audacious for Hornby - a sixty-something white man - to write the perspective of a 22 year old black guy, but then the other narrative voice is a 42 year old white woman. Who does Hornby have least in common with? Who is he less entitled to portray as a fictitious character? Neither, or do the two together neutralise the audacity? As a middle-aged white woman, all I can say is that Hornby nails the voice of a plain speaking, fed-up-with-frivolity Head of English who has had her sanity tested by an alcoholic, drug addict ex-husband. With refreshingly scant physical description, I could picture Lucy perfectly. Joseph represents a life experience much further from my own but why shouldn't any author create this multi-layered, lovable character? I'd bet my bottom Euro that Nick Hornby culture-checked these scenes with young black friends (perhaps of his own sons) - I certainly felt I gained an authentic insight into a side of North London life that I don't otherwise have access to.

But away from the heavy stuff - reading this novel towards the end of a tense corona lockdown in the UK, I laughed like a relieved drain within the first few pages of Just Like You, and then at regular intervals throughout. The dialogue dances and the symbolism sings in sotto voce; the frustratingly unclean break from Europe reflected in Lucy and Joseph's unpredictable relationship as well as their wider cultural dissonance.

I was also impressed that Nick Hornby explores both sides of the Brexit debate: this novel isn't a Remainer's eulogy. The Leave argument is given fairly equal credence with voices represented that have been largely unheard in mainstream culture - the scaffolder, the northerner, the NHS nurse who believed the bus poster. Hornby doesn't abuse his platform by preaching from it; he makes room on it for diverse opinions.

Ultimately, I guess I didn't care that much about the final trajectory of Lucy and Joseph - they're not really the point of Just Like You. And if I have one quibble about this book it would be that more could be made of the societal hypocrisy that middle aged men regularly date women half their age, with few eyelids batted.

But I massively appreciated seeing the world from a different perspective; I enjoyed being plunged into a London I'm only half familiar with (to previous reviewers who don't believe Londoners queue outside a butcher's to spend £100 on meat - yeah, they really do) - and most of all, I luxuriated in laughing out loud, for two days solid, at a thoughtfully and skilfully written novel. I think this is exactly what the world needs right now.

Like most people, I always enjoy one of Nick Hornby's books but I'm afraid I completely lost the plot with this one. Was it to show that a relationship with a 20 year age gap is possible, I'm not quite sure? Certainly things moved very fast from Lucy buying her meat at the butchers where Joseph worked, to having him become her babysitter and shortly after her lover. From thereon it sort of fell into a ditch with lots of time spent on Joseph and his yearning to be a well known disc jockey, this is where you feally felt the age difference, and sadly it all became a bit boring. These middle chapters were really aimed at a younger audience. Again, I wondered what the point of it all was.

I don't know if the relationship between Joseph and Lucy would work for the long haul. I like how Joseph and Lucy know that and do it anyway.
As others have commented, it is a very London-centric story. I don't know anyone personally who could afford to spend £100 on meat. The setting around the Brexit referendum is now dated and the country is in a different space now. I would have pared that back and focused more on the May to September romance and the difficult ex-husband.

I enjoy Nick Hornby books as they do reflect on modern life dilemmas. This book was no exception and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Good on both of them for living for the day and not worrying about the perception of others.

It's been a while since I read a Nick Hornby and oh my goodness, I have no idea why I left it so long. Just Like You is an absolute joy. I settled in from the opening paragraph and didn't want to let go at the final sentence.

#NoSpoilers but it's a cracking story, told in a way only Nick Hornby can.

Highly recommend.

Excellent. Real return to form and familiar territory. Possibly a little breezier than recent Hornbys.

This was different from what I was expecting but it had the Hornby stamp all over it. A detailed character study of two unlikely lovers who break through boundaries to their love. Age, race and class are expertly explored and Hornby's excellent way with words ensures the story is told honestly yet lovingly.

I found it hard to warm to either of our main characters - both were flawed (and rightly so) but I struggled to empathise and connect with them both. Perhaps I am too removed from their way of life to really imagine what it's like to be in their shoes. However, I very much enjoyed the development of the relationship and the exploration of how love isn't always as straight forward as people would have you think. There's often barriers to love and they can't always be overcome.

Just Like You is an age gap romance with a difference - the woman is 20 years older. Now, that shouldn't be that unusual, but there's not many books that focus on this topic without taking a raunchy cougar sort of tone. Just Like You instead took the high road, focusing on real romance not a sad cliche.

However, I did feel like the romance was the least important part of the book. There's so many other issues covered that it almost faded into the background, with the focus instead being on social issues such as sexism, racism, classism, agism... basically near enough every ism is covered within the pages of this book. And that's not a bad thing if it's done well, but instead it felt a bit clunky, and like the author just wanted to tick off a load of boxes to show how diverse and woke they were (other examples include, divorce, the glass ceiling, addiction, and brexit, which sadly was the focus of much of the book - have we not all had enough of it by now!?).

As other reviewers have stated, I can't help but feel that this would work so much better as a film than as a book. As a book, there was a lot of filler, and several sections that just dragged too much for me to enjoy. But turned into a film with a strong cast and director, and the fat trimmed from the screenplay, this could be a winner.

2.5 rounded down to 2.

Disclaimer - I recieved an advance reading from NetGalley and the publisher. This has not affected my review in any way, and all opinions are my own.

If I wanted to read another novel where people spend the first pages wandering around in 2016 going 'It'll never happen' I would read Jonathan Coe's Middle England, which is a lot funnier than this.

A quick, light, easy read about about a relationship between a young man and a significantly older woman. There’s nothing especially gripping about the plot and it skims such a diverse range of subjects (age difference, Brexit, racism, alcoholism, divorce, and several more) that I felt as if it was an exercise in checking boxes. The promised comedy wasn’t evident, although I did chuckle once or twice in the final quarter of the book.

As a novel, it was disappointing, but I can imagine that it would make an enjoyable, funny film in the hands of the right actors and director. Perhaps it was written with a film in mind.

No regrets from reading it, it was perfectly ok to unwind with at the end of a busy day, and I’m sure plenty of readers will enjoy it. Hence my rating of “good” with 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. This is my unbiased review.

Just Like You is a jam-packed read that covers a lot of topics, as it navigates the love story of a couple with a 20 year age gap. It's an honest and heartfelt read.

Take as many different social issues as you can - Brexit, sexism, ageism, racism, careerism (not sure that is a real one but you get my drift) - shake them up, add a white 42 year old woman and a 22 year old black man and you get 'Just Like You'.

I was pleased that the female divorcee was having a good time after having to deal with an alcoholic husband but I did not get the feeling that Joseph actually loved Lucy enough to put up with all the aggro their relationship caused him. It is all very twee and I am sure will make a lovely Richard Curtis movie with lots of right on actors showing their woke credentials.

All in all it is fine, a love story if you will, nothing to scare the horses unless you really can't stand another mention of Brexit, in which case close your eyes now!

Just Like You is a love story, a keenly observed and understated romance between two people, who have so little in common, it’s a wonder their paths ever crossed in the first place.

She’s 42, middle class and white. He’s 22, working class and black. She’s educated, he isn’t. She loves books, Shakespeare and wine. He loves raves, football and beer. Lucy and Joseph are like chalk and cheese, but they are drawn to each other like moths to a flame.

This is no passionate, angst-ridden love affair. Lucy and Joseph’s story is tentative, sweet and beguiling. Their awkwardness as they tiptoe around their differences utterly charming. And their attempts to bridge the generation gap had me smiling with old-fashioned motherly indulgence.

Hornby’s setting for this unlikely romance couldn’t be more apt: London 2016, EU referendum, a time of heightened political, social and racial division. He doesn’t labour the point, but the message comes across loud and clear: How can a love like Lucy and Joseph’s possibly thrive in circumstances like this?

But thrive it does, sometimes faltering, but steadily blossoming; both characters wholly convincing in their conflicting desires and anxieties. It’s a wonderfully modern love story, and I fervently hope that we will one day see it in the movies.

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book; it was lighthearted and funny in parts whilst making social commentary on some of today’s bigger issues; our divided nation (the referendum), relationships with an age gap, race relations. I think Brexit politics are sadly still very much relevant to today, if anything our society is even more divided so it’s interesting to think back. I liked the characters and whilst there wasn’t in depth information of the ins and outs of their relationship or emotions particularly, it gave you an opportunity to extend their narratives further in your own imagination. Highly recommended.

This novel was everything I wanted it to be. Not easy to get me reading about the B-word happily but I devoured this and wanted to re-read it from the start as soon as I'd finished. It touched on pertinent themes but didn't feel irritating or like it was trying too hard to be 'relevant'. Nick Hornby at his best. I even approved of the ending, and I often struggle with the note on which novels end.

42 year old Lucy and 22 year old Joseph fall in love. Lucy is head of English an inner city comp. Joseph works in a butchers, where he met Lucy, at a leisure centre, as a babysitter and as a DJ. She is white, he is black. Joseph moves in with Lucy against the backdrop of the Brexit vote.

An exploration of an age gap relationship, of black vs white and politics. It's very readable and wryly funny in parts. I never really had the belief that Lucy and Joseph were in love though. As for the Brexit vote and immediate aftermath, it all seems very distant now.

Great believable characters. Hornby who has been one of my favourite writers, since I picked up my copy of Fever Pitch, produces a story of 2 people from entirely different circumstances who just happen to fall in love. Set against a backdrop of Brexit with a bit of politics thrown in.

Nick Hornby is undeniably one of the most important British authors of the past 25 years, and this, from the reviews I've read so far, is set to become one of his finest works. Sure, the topic of a Brexit has been dealt with before, but for me, Hornby has made a better fist of things than, say, Jonathan Coe, whose 'Middle England' was nominated for the Booker Prize last year. In addition, his study of race-relations in post-Brexit Britain could not have come at a more important time, given the incredible response to the recent BLM movement. This was a funny, clever and timely novel, and I hope it will gain all the attention it deserves when it's published in September.

Was thrilled to be accepted to read the new Nick Hornby. I am a massive High Fidelity fan so was expecting great things. Unfortunately this wasn’t for me . I would say it’s a political romance almost. Deals with some issues that unfortunately are now so dated because of Covid. Brexit seems a million years ago now . I also didn’t feel the two main characters had a lot of chemistry and I wasn’t feeling ever to read it . Sorry