Before she met me door Julian Barnes

1. Title: Before she met me
2. Author: Julian Barnes
3. Publisher: Wolters-Noofdhoff
4. Edition: Blackbirds
Number of pages: 160

5. Title explanation

„³ Graham is obsessed thought Ann. He collects reviews from the movies that Ann acted in and wants to see all this movies. When Graham murdered Jack, Ann found the collecting of Graham. She sees all the movies where she has played are before she met him. She calls it ¡§Graham¡¦s record of the life before she met her.

6. Summary of the plot

„³ Graham Hendrix, the thirty-eight man in this book, is married with Barbara and have a daughter, named Alice. They have a marriage of fiftieth years. Then he met Ann, and committing adultery with her. As Barbara notices this, he leaves her and his daughter to live together with Ann. After a few times he married with her. On one day he goes with Alice to the movie. He sees that his second wife, Ann, is playing in it. On closer research, Graham find out that Ann had a career as an actress before he met her. She has played in a lot of B-movies. Graham wants to see all the movies. But how more Graham saw, how more obsessed he became about it. And this obsession grows when he thought that Ann had a lot of short relations, the same as the ¡§Ann¡¨ in the movies. This are driven Graham totally crazy. He wants to know everything about the ex-boyfriends of Ann. Ann want to divert him from this subject, because she sees that it isn¡¦t very well with Graham. For example she organised a party; Graham become drunk. When they want on holiday, Graham didn¡¦t want to a country where Ann slept with somebody else.
His obsession grows further and further. On one time he realise that his best friend Jack and Ann have had a relation with each other. This fact drives him mad. He thinks that they still have al relationship. He remarks that he maked a big mistake. He thought that his marriage with Barbara was boring, but this one is worse. He can¡¦t accept this fault.
Graham visit Jack; his friend is writing a book. Graham killed Jack with a knife, he stabs him to death. Ann is worried about the fact that Graham didn¡¦t come home and rings Jack. Jack didn¡¦t pick up the phone and the day after the murder, she visit Jack. Graham is still there, and Ann sees the body of Jack. Then ties Graham her up and commits suicide (he cut two times in his throat) in front of Ann. Ann calls the police and they come to help her.

7. The most interesting part of the book was chapter eleven (the Horse and the Crocodile); the end of the book. It is not a happy end, but it is a very exiting ending. That is the reason why I choose for this part of the book.
*** Chapter 11 *The Horse and the Crocodile), page 143 till 155.

8. The part I found least interesting is the part that Jack talks with Graham. They talk about women, sex, relations and other ¡§daily¡¨ subjects. It isn¡¦t very interesting because there don¡¦t happened more than that.
*** This is chapter 3 (The Cross-Eyed Bear), page 35 till 46.

9. There are a lot of differences between Grahams from the beginning with Graham at the end of the book. Graham is thirty-eight in the beginning of the book. He leads an invented life; he is married with Barbara, has a daughter Alice and is a teacher at the London University. But at the end of the book, he has been committed suicide. He was crazy and obsessed about his second wife.
*** At the beginning of the book is Graham very ¡§normal¡¨ „³ ¡§Of course, Barbara ... normally one Babinet behind.¡¨, page 9 till 14
*** At the end of the book Graham is flipped and obsessed „³ ¡§Well it would ... Ann turn round.¡¨, page 146 till 154

10. The character in this book which I like to be the most is Ann. I don¡¦t want to be Graham, because it seems terrible to me to be so dependent and obsessed about your wife. I don¡¦t want to commit suicide too. Jack is being murdered on the end of the book that is why I don¡¦t want to be him. And because I don¡¦t find it a very nice person, he talks a bit patronizing about women. Ann seems a nice person to me. It is true that she has had a lot of boyfriends, but she isn¡¦t a bad person. She loves her husband (Graham) and would do much for Graham. I don¡¦t believe she commit adultery with Jack in her relationship with Graham

11. I dislike Graham. I can¡¦t say that I hate him. He murdered Jack, but he does this because he¡¦s totally flipped and obsessed about Ann. But this isn¡¦t an excuse for murdering, so I don¡¦t like Graham. And he commits adultery when he has a marriage with Barbara. At that moment, he isn¡¦t yet crazy, so he knows what he is doing. Altogether I don¡¦t like Graham.
*** The scene that Graham murdered Jack and committed suicide „³ ¡§Well it would ... Ann turn round.¡¨, page 146 till 154

12. I¡¦m satisfied with the ending of the book. It isn¡¦t a happy ending, but it¡¦s very exiting and realistic, and I like that more than a happy but unrealistic ending. I find it very nice that you can read that Ann found help by the police too, and that the book doesn¡¦t stopped at the moment that Graham commit suicide.

13. The story is set in England. The names that the author used for the main characters are English. And Graham teaches history at a University in London. So they must live near by London, or in London. That isn¡¦t become clear during the book.
*** ¡§¡¥I¡¦m an academic,¡¦ he said. ¡¥I teach history at London University.¡¨, page 11. It isn¡¦t important to know because there aren¡¦t any differences between life here and there. So you don¡¦t have to notice that the story take place in England.

14. The story takes place in 1977 till 1981. On 22 April in 1977 Graham met Ann, and four years later he murdered Jack and committed suicide. It¡¦s isn¡¦t important to know when the story sets, because there aren¡¦t difference with our live.
*** (22 April 1977) ¡§The honey time ... to a girl parachutist.¡¨, page 9.
*** ( relationship during four years) ¡§I must say ... date things nowadays.¡¨, page 149

15. There has passed four years in this book. The story is a chronological one, but I think that the story is told after it happens all. But there aren¡¦t any flashbacks and big intervals.
*** (four years passed) „³ ) ¡§I must say ... date things nowadays.¡¨, page 149

16. We get the story from a narrator, a person who tells us the story. But most of the times he follows Graham. At these moments we can read Graham¡¦s thoughts and events.

17. There is a clear turning point in the story. This is in the beginning of the book; the moment when Graham meet Ann. From that moment, everything changes. Graham become a different person, he leave his old life with Barbara and Alice, and built a new one with Ann. But this fault, Graham sees that he make a mistake and he commit suicide.
*** ¡§The honey time had begun ... get out of?¡§, page 13.

18. I think this book is a love story or a drama/

19. I think that the author would let us see what a relationship can do with you. That it isn¡¦t always smart to leave your ¡§old, boring life¡¨, to build another one.
*** *** The scene that Graham murdered Jack and committed suicide„³ ¡§Well it would ... Ann turn round.¡¨, page 146 till 154

20. I recommend this book to others because it is very easy to read and it is an interesting story. Sometimes it is a bit long-lasting, but it is fine.