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Now is Good (Also published as Before I Die) [Paperback]

Jenny Downham (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (226 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 30 Aug 2012

Tessa has just a few months to live.

Fighting back against hospital visits, endless tests and drugs with excruciating side-effects, Tessa compiles a list. It's her Before I Die list. And number one is sex. Starting tonight.

Released from the constraints of 'normal' life, Tessa tastes new experiences to make her feel alive while her failing body struggles to keep up. Her feelings, her relationships with her father and brother, her estranged mother, her best friend, and the powerful, bittersweet first love she finds with the boy next door - all are painfully yet beautifully crystallized in the precious weeks before Tessa's time finally runs out.

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Frequently Bought Together

Now is Good (Also published as Before I Die) + You Against Me + If I Stay
Price For All Three: £14.34

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  • You Against Me by Jenny Downham Paperback £5.24
  • If I Stay by Gayle Forman Paperback £5.24

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Product details

  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: David Fickling Books (PB) (30 Aug 2012)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1849921385
  • ISBN-13: 978-1849921381
  • Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 2.1 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (226 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 5,069 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

"Dealing frankly with teenage life, Before I Die will be the year's most talked-about novel . . . Novels for young teenagers do not usually feature drugs and casual sex within the first 20-odd pages. But most books for teenagers will not leave an adult reader's eyes so blurry with tears that it's hard to see the final chapters. Jenny Downham's extraordinary first novel does both" (The Sunday Times )

"Downham's prose is brave and bare, her characters relentlessly realistic" (Dinah Hall Sunday Telegraph )

"Destined to drive hundreds of thousands of readers to tears and to swift injunctions to all their friends to read it" (Observer )

"A novel that won't fail to touch those who read it, and despite the melancholy subject matter it manages to be hugely life-affirming. A book that will make you happy to be alive. 5 stars" (Jo Hoare Heat )

"A work of great humanity and profound empathy. I defy anyone not to cry reading this book" (Daily Express )

Book Description

The intensely moving and uncompromisingly honest story of 16-year-old Tessa, who is dying of leukaemia. A word-of-mouth bestseller, and now a major film starring Twilight's Dakota Fanning.
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
108 of 108 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Wish List 11 Sep 2007
By kehs TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
An intense story narrated by Tessa, who is 16 and has only a few months left to live. She has a list of `to do before I die' wishes and is working her way through them, number one on the list is to have sex. Along the way the reader hears about Tessa's observations on life, how she faces what fate has dealt her with grace but also with rebelliousness and anger. She thinks about what it will be like for her family once she is dead and whether she will be able to haunt them. We also learn what her family think, and how they are trying to come to terms with the knowledge that they are going to lose their daughter.

This book could have been unbearably painful to read, but Downham has allowed Tessa to retain a sense of humour about her situation, along with meeting her first (and only) true love. I admit to having been moved to tears a few times, especially when she has some special moments with her younger brother.

I found this to be an incredibly moving read, while at the same time it retains a sense of dignity and humour. Downham writes beautifully and her words just flow over the pages. This was a page-turner for me and I highly recommend it.
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77 of 80 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Before I Cry... 3 Nov 2007
By Luanne
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book not realising it was aimed at the teenage market, but I thought I would read it anyway. And I am so glad I did, because this is a book for everyone, regardless of age. It is the story of Tessa, 16 years old and dying of cancer. Tessa seems bolshy and defiant on the surface but, as you read on, you peel away the layers and find a mass of compicated emotions so powerful they grab you by the heart and tug very very painfully.

The writing is economical, simple to read. I read the book in two days. On the first day I felt mainly anger at Tessa's seemingly uncaring, selfish best friend ("It's always got to be about you!") and Tessa's flighty mother who is never there for her. On the second day I felt so many emotions I cannot possibly begin to write them down. The last twenty pages or so of the book were read through a veil of tears.

It is not, however, a sentimental read. Tessa is spirited and her humour shines through, but the raw emotion towards the end can make the book a difficult read, though I guarantee you will not be able to put it down. Even after you have finished, you will likely read the last few pages again.

I urge everyone to read this book. It is raw and true, terribly sad and yet life-affirming, too. A marvellous achievement. Just thinking about it makes me feel like crying.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars heart rending 20 Feb 2008
By Mrs. Anne E. Burgess
Format:Hardcover
How I felt for Tessa and her urge to scramble as much into a few months as most of us would experience over many years. A book that could be so maudlin was exceptionally uplifting and even those who have never experienced the journey down this darkened path found insights into our own lives. When I was diagnosed with cancer as a middle aged adult how I experienced the panic of wanting to see my children happy and settled and not needing me - at least not too much. Tessa and her family touched my heart. Every time I speak to my daughter I find myself saying have you started that book yet. Thank you Jenny Downham for this wonderful read.
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83 of 89 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars The best book I have read 3 July 2007
By Polly Hall
Format:Hardcover
This is an amazing book - I laughed, cried, it made me feel as though I'd lost a best friend by the end. But it isn't depressing - in fact it's a book about death that made me feel exhilarated at the end - amazing. It reminded me in some way of THE LOVELY BONES by Alice Sebold - dealing with loss, death, love in the most incredible way. And when I remember what being a teenager was like I think the author has just put her finger on the extremes of feeling you have - let alone under such a life sentence. If there is any book you must read, this is the one! It certainly isn't just for teenagers - it's for everyone. Unforgettable.
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31 of 33 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Touching 1 Dec 2007
By Julia Flyte TOP 50 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
Tessa is 16 and dying of cancer. She knows that she has only months to live and she creates a list of things she wants to experience before she dies: having sex, trying drugs and falling in love being just three of them. This is not your usual teen lit fare. It is a very moving book that feels like a realistic account of a teenager struggling to come to terms with the fact that her life will be over almost before it's begun. Sometimes Tessa is self-pitying, angry or apathetic - but she is also real and brave and you care about her.

This is a quick book to read - it took me a day. It's fairly predictable and aside from Tessa, the characters are pretty sketchy. However its simplicity also makes it feels more genuine, as if it really was penned by a 16 year old. It makes you think about and appreciate your own friends, your family - your very life.

Despite the subject matter it doesn't endorse casual sex (indeed, the potential consequences are very clear!) nor drug use. I wouldn't hesitate to give it to a teenager to read, although I would probably hand over a large box of tissues along with it. It's the kind of book that touches your heart.
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41 of 44 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too 25 Sep 2007
By TeensReadToo TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
I devoured this book in two days. It called to me. Beckoned me across the room and begged me to pick it up and finish what I'd started. If I hadn't needed to eat and sleep, I'd have finished it in mere hours. It was that vital to keep going.

Tessa Scott keeps going, too. She keeps writing on the wall and adding to the list of things she wants to do before she dies. Tess's life is being driven from her by leukemia before she herself can even drive a car. It's not fair. She wants a boyfriend. She wants normal.

Tessa pushes. She pushes against the people who want to be near her. She pushes against the rules she's been forced to follow throughout her brief life. She pushes against death.

She keeps breathing. In and out. It's simple. Except, it's not that simple.

This book gives a promise. This book keeps its promise. This book is real. It is deep and winding and important. It is beautiful and strong and eloquent and everlasting. It is just beautiful.

Reviewed by: Julie M. Prince
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Moving but couldn't empathise fully
I found this a moving and thought provoking novel dealing with the thoughts and feelings of a terminally ill teenager. Read more
Published 11 days ago by myheart78
4.0 out of 5 stars great
This book is one of my favourite books and I really was excited when I ordered it and when it came I was not disappointed. Good quality
Published 18 days ago by huma
5.0 out of 5 stars Now is good
Amazing book, couldn't put it down! Don't think I've cried so much at a book! Touching and heart aching! Would recommend to anyone!
Published 22 days ago by Jade St. Romaine
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow.
What a wonderfully delightful book. It grasps at your heart strings and really pulls you into the reality that at some point, some sooner than others, we all join Tessa and no... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Louise
5.0 out of 5 stars weepy book.
This book arrived quickly and well packaged in great condition. I loved this book although I did cry quite a lot, certainly makes you think about life and death, and the cards some... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Andie
2.0 out of 5 stars Now is (not) good
Many have had their negative said on this book, and I'm just about to reflect their very impression and comments. Read more
Published 1 month ago by JR_82
4.0 out of 5 stars 'Now is good' really was good
I love this book... Had me in tears, couldn't stop reading. I would defiantly recommend you read it. Read more
Published 1 month ago by In my opinion...
5.0 out of 5 stars amazing story!!
OMG I cried so much while reading this book!! the girl is so mature yet so scared, I can't even imagine her feeling!!
Published 1 month ago by Anonyme
5.0 out of 5 stars Wowww
Incredible journey through life. Teaches you a lesson, fantastic book!

Shows that life doesn't stop for anyone and to not forget
Published 1 month ago by noelle loughran
4.0 out of 5 stars Heartwarming
A well written book that makes life real. Despite her situation it's a happy book, I want to go out there and live life, enjoy it for those who can't. Read more
Published 1 month ago by book_luva
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