Wednesday, December 9, 2009

If I Stay by Gayle Forman


3/5 Stars

B&N:


The last normal moment that Mia, a talented cellist, can remember is being in the car with her family. Then she is standing outside her body beside their mangled Buick and her parents' corpses, watching herself and her little brother being tended by paramedics. As she ponders her state ("Am I dead?I actually have to ask myself this"), Mia is whisked away to a hospital, where, her body in a coma, she reflects on the past and tries to decide whether to fight to live. Via Mia's thoughts and flashbacks, Forman (Sisters in Sanity) expertly explores the teenager's life, her passion for classical music and her strong relationships with her family, friends and boyfriend, Adam. Mia's singular perspective (which will recall Alice Sebold's adult novel, The Lovely Bones) also allows for powerful portraits of her friends and family as they cope: "Please don't die. If you die, there's going to be one of those cheesy Princess Diana memorials at school," prays Mia's friend Kim. "I know you'd hate that kind of thing." Intensely moving, the novel will force readers to take stock of their lives and the people and things that make them worth living.

My Review

I really enjoyed reading this book. I had heard some "blah" reviews about it, but it was put on my desk at school, so I read it. And I'm glad I did. It was really interesting to see the accident and what happened after. The author did a phenomenal job with that part. Towards the end I was getting a little restless with wanting to know what was going to happen. But, overall it was a good read. I do recommend it.

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