Book Review : If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Book Details:

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday & Co Inc. (7 May 2009)
• ISBN-10: 0385616201
• ISBN-13: 978-0385616201

Synopsis:

Choices. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her first love— music—even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind? Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And it’s the only one that matters.

Review:

If I Stay by Gayle Forman is a bestseller and has received lots of compliments by book critics, bloggers and reviewers. Gayle weaves the past and present nicely, and as the story unfolds, Mia's past memories are being played like a movie. With each piece of memory, we know more about Mia's world before the accident: a happy and loving family, a great boyfriend, a passion for music.

An accident destroys everything, all except her love for music. Now, she can only hear, see and touch, but cannot feel anything. And no one senses her presence. She has a great choice to make - one that has tremendous effects on everyone around her, including herself - to stay and keep on living her life, or to leave and join her family in another world.

I really liked reading about Mia's love for music and her wonderful family. I think her boyfriend Adam is also a great character. He is caring, loving, and he has no intentions to give up on Mia although she is on the brink of life and death.

I'm confused about something, though. When Mia saw her dad lying dead on the road, she didn't feel anything. Wasn't she suppose to feel something? Grief, sadness, shock? And one more thing is that I find it lacking of suspense, and sometimes the story moves on a little bit too slowly.

Although I didn't feel emotionally connected to Mia, sometimes tears still come to my eyes. I'm sure that no one would find it easy to make choices were they in her shoes. If I Stay is moving and thought-provoking, and I'd recommend it to both teenagers and adults.

Rating: 8/10

I'd like to thank Gayle Forman and Ruth M from Random House UK for sending me a hardcover UK edition of If I Stay! Thank you!

Gayle Forman's Blog :: Gayle Forman's Website
If I Stay Official Website

Buy If I Stay:


US Version:
Amazon
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UK Version:
Amazon UK