The Measure Of Your Life Lies Within

I recently finished reading The Measure by Nikki Erlick. This was my book club's November book. *POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT* Rating: 4.25/5 stars

"Eight ordinary people. One extraordinary choice.

It seems like any other day. You wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and head out.

But today, when you open your front door, waiting for you is a small wooden box. This box holds your fate inside: the answer to the exact number of years you will live.

From suburban doorsteps to desert tents, every person on every continent receives the same box. In an instant, the world is thrust into a collective frenzy. Where did these boxes come from? What do they mean? Is there truth to what they promise?

As society comes together and pulls apart, everyone faces the same shocking choice: Do they wish to know how long they’ll live? And, if so, what will they do with that knowledge?

The Measure charts the dawn of this new world through an unforgettable cast of characters whose decisions and fates interweave with one another: best friends whose dreams are forever entwined, pen pals finding refuge in the unknown, a couple who thought they didn’t have to rush, a doctor who cannot save himself, and a politician whose box becomes the powder keg that ultimately changes everything."

If a small wooden box arrives on your doorstep inscribed “the measure of your life lies within“ would you open it? This is the scenario here as every adult over the age of 22 is confronted with small brown boxes inside, under a small piece of delicate fabric, is a length of string denoting your lifeline. What does it mean? Where have they come from? Why now – why this moment in time? Are they real and true? This is the dilemma confronting multiple millions and initially a new world order emerges and it’s very far from pretty. The story is told from several points of you which works really well.

First of all, if this sounds too grim for you after all we’ve been through in the last couple of years and the people of Ukraine are going through right now and that’s understandable. However, the book looks at the impact over several years and its ultimate message is actually very positive and hopeful as it forces an examination of your priorities and what is the most important thing to you in spite of the length of your life. In places, it is very philosophical and it does make you reflect on yourself and your hopes and dreams. It’s extremely good at looking at the impact on the recipients and we get a whole range of reactions from scepticism to grief, from sadness and impotence to despair and joy.

You feel the tension as boxes are open and the emotions they elicit from defiance to resignation but also embrace the time left and live as happily as possible. The fear is palpable and initially a huge chasm emerges between short and long stringers with all its dangerous implications and I really like how the storytelling goes in waves but settles positively.

There is a bit of everything here there is happiness and sadness, tragedy and sacrifice, it’s poignant and there’s a good message about prejudice and injustice. There are some very likable characters to pin your hopes on and root for and ones you definitely don’t. The ending is emotional but it feels right.

Overall this is a thoughtful and thought-provoking rollercoaster read: if you received a box informing you of how long you'd live for, would you open it?

Check out The Measure, and decide for yourself, the following question: would you open your box? Happy Reading :)