Age Group: Young Adult
"Just Listen," Adam says with a voice that sounds like shrapnel. I open my eyes wide now. I sit up as much as I can. And I listen.
"Stay," he says.
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.
When I first saw If I Stay in the mail I was excited. The cover was simple, but beautiful. I had already read the synopsis on Amazon and on Gayle Forman's website, but I never really got what the story was completely about. I sat for a few minutes staring at the cover, wondering why the cover looked the way it did. Trying to see if it would tell anything about the story.
I admit, when I first tried to read If I Stay, I couldn't get into it. So, I moved onto another novel and came back to it at the beginning of April. I started reading and got farther into it, past where I had left off the second time, and I'm really glad I did.
This is one of those novels that really get you thinking about your own life as you progress through the story.
Though I didn't shed any tears at all, it did bring up a lot of emotions that made me stop reading it a couple of times. Especially when I was reading it on my break at work.
Mia was a wonderful character. The love she had for her family, best friend Kim, boyfriend Adam and music, especially her Cello, was extremely real. I could feel how much she loved them and I know it made her decision to stay or to go that much harder.
Usually I don't like when a book jumps from past to present, but in If I Stay it wouldn't have worked any other way and throw off as much emotion as it did.
Honestly, I don't even know what to really say about this novel. I'm having trouble with words and expressing my feelings about it. So please, forgive me.
Gayle Forman's writing was unique and a bit lyrical. It was easy to read, but at times confusing. It didn't take away from the overall story, though.
Overall it was a beautiful read and I will definitely remember it. A part of it will always stay with me, it really got me thinking about what I would do in Mia's situation and really makes me appreciate what I have. Even though my parents drive me completely insane sometimes, I know they love me and I'm not sure what I would do without them when it comes right down to it.
