If I Stay in Penguin's Point of View Books

Jul 16, 2009 Faye rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, contemporary

Just wow..... it was a beautiful and powerful story. It is a story filled with sadness and heartbreak, hope, and choices.It made me want to cry. I kept thinking what if i was Mia, what would i do?

It is a story that had every kind of love and every kind of loss.But more than anything it lifts music to another level. It begins them together. The main character in the story is the magic of music.The relationship between Mia and Adam is so honest. Kim is an amazing best friend, sarcastic and strong, ...more

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Jul 05, 2009 April rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, own

If there is one person I could blame for the tears I wept during If I Stay by Gayle Forman, it would be Jamie, as her enthusiasm is what FINALLY convinced me to set aside my review copies and pick up this book from my shelf.

Read the rest of my review here ...more

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Apr 02, 2011 Heidi (yabibliophile) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own

I know I'm way late to the party on this one. I've been reading about how amazing this book is for some time now but I just never sat down to read it. Honestly, I think I was a little afraid of it. From the description on the back of the book and what everyone was saying I knew it would be an emotional read. I just didn't know if I wanted to put myself through that. Now that I'm on the other side (having finished the book moments before starting this post) I can say that it was so totally worth I know I'm way late to the party on this one. I've been reading about how amazing this book is for some time now but I just never sat down to read it. Honestly, I think I was a little afraid of it. From the description on the back of the book and what everyone was saying I knew it would be an emotional read. I just didn't know if I wanted to put myself through that. Now that I'm on the other side (having finished the book moments before starting this post) I can say that it was so totally worth it! Yes, it was as heartbreaking as I anticipated... actually more so. But it was also beautiful. And hopeful. And it made me feel things and think things and remember things that were important to me.
My dad stopped by my house when I was about a third of the way in to the book and we had a great discussion about life and death and choices and healing. And then he left. I finished the book. And here I sit, trying to put in to words why I loved it and why it touched me the way it did. I don't think I can. I can (and will) tell you some "surface" things I loved about it. But the essence, the part that seeped in to my heart and took hold... that's personal. And I don't mean "none of your business" personal. I mean "shaped by my life experiences" personal. If I Stay is the kind of book that "hits" each person differently. The ways you've experienced life, death, love, hope, grief, loss, family, friendships, etc... will play a major role in how you read this book. Reading Mia's story felt intensely personal. I loved that about it.

Okay, so... some "surface" things I loved:

Mia is a teenager who, get this, LIKES her family! No, you did not read that wrong. He family is more than functional... they actually get along!

Her dad is a hippie turned middle school English teacher. I love me some middle school English teachers :)

Adam.

The jolt you get every time the story transitions from one aspect to the other (I don't want to say more about that for fear or ruining it for others.)

Kim.

NO INSTA-LOVE! Yea for actually knowing the person you are crushing on!

My least favorite part? The fact that I don't have a copy of Where She Went sitting here so I can devour it as well. ...more

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May 04, 2010 Kelly Hager rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is getting quite a bit of buzz in the YA community because (among other things), it's one of Catherine Hardwicke's next projects. She directed this movie, you may have heard of it...Twilight?

But there's also buzz because it's this amazing, heartbreaking book. And I'm just glad that I didn't read it right after The Book Thief, because I would not be able to handle two sad books in a row like that.

Anyway, it's about Mia, who is in a car accident with her parents and brother. They die; she is ...more

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Dec 08, 2009 Mollie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, 2010, october, own

Wow. I was completely blown away by If I Stay. This slim, wisp of a novel packs quite an emotional punch. Forman effortlessly balances humor, love, and loss in this unique twist on the traditional "teen death book". There are currently a lot of YA books out dealing with death; the loss of a parent, sibling, boyfriend, girlfriend or friend however, Forman has a unique twist on the topic.

In a dramatic twist of fate, the main character, Mia, has been in a car accident with her parents and younger ...more

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Jun 01, 2009 Nely rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own

On a wet, cold and snowy morning 17 year old Mia decides to take a ride with her parents and younger brother to visit family and friends. It’s a Snow Day for them and they’ve decided to make the best out of this impromptu day off. They jump in their car and head off... in the blink of an eye, Mia is standing by the side of the road watching as her injured body is being pulled out of the wreckage. As she travels in this state, between life and death, she watches as her body is transported and tre ...more

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May 18, 2009 Ashley rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: re-read, blog, favorites, own, audiobook

Originally reviewed on my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing.

If I Stay is easily one of the best books I have read this year. It's an intensely personal story about the struggle of a young girl whose world is changed in the blink of an eye.

Mia's life is full. She's been very blessed. She has a wonderful boyfriend, is an incredibly talented Cellist and she has a wonderful close family who gets her. She is close to her parents and younger brother, in a way that few people are really able t Originally reviewed on my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing.

If I Stay is easily one of the best books I have read this year. It's an intensely personal story about the struggle of a young girl whose world is changed in the blink of an eye.

Mia's life is full. She's been very blessed. She has a wonderful boyfriend, is an incredibly talented Cellist and she has a wonderful close family who gets her. She is close to her parents and younger brother, in a way that few people are really able to experience, especially as a teenager. We are given just enough time in the beginning of the book to meet Mia's family and in those few pages, we are able to see the connection this family shares.

Her family is involved in a horrible accident, and Mia is rushed to the hospital in a coma. She watches everything around her trying to understand the changes to her life, and where to go from there. Because she realizes it's her choice. She can choose to live or die. And what would you decide?

The book is Mia's struggle to make that all important choice. The story is told in flashed between then and now. We switch between scenes with Mia and her family and friends in the hospital, and her memories of the important people in her life. We are introduced to everyone through Mia's memories as she lays in a coma in the hospital, in limbo between life and death. It's heart wrenching to watch as each loved one comes to her bedside to talk. They give her words of hope, love, encouragement, understanding, and peace. They plead for her to remain, even while understanding why it's so hard. Every page teams with emotion and every memory tears at your heart.

I won't go into detail about the complete impact and effect music has to this story other than to say it is essential to almost every character. Music is a way of life for these people and it's changed each of them. Mia's boyfriend Adam is in a band that might be about to make it big, Mia's been playing the Cello for years, her father used to be in a band and on and on.

The writing in this book is incredibly powerful. There is a genuine connection to each character and a realness that makes you believe in them. I would say that Forman is a genuinely gifted writer. I can't remember the last time I believed in people so much, felt so much like the people I was reading about were real. I had tears streaming down my face for the vast majority of the book, and I was unable to put it down. It's a short book, and I read it in one sitting, but that in no way takes away from its impact. This book is beyond a doubt powerful, emotional, and compelling. Never doubt that its important. ...more

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Dec 21, 2008 Yan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

When I cracked open the first page of If I Stay I expected to go in crying my eyes out, snot running down my nose, and stacks of used tissues besides me. Well, call me the ice queen because that did not happen. But! I feel that I have to say that I did happen to read this book while in school…during an important test…in a classroom filled with silence and many many classmates. And I am a loud crier. So I held it in. So thus explains the non-waterworks.

Gayle Forman presents the reader an interest When I cracked open the first page of If I Stay I expected to go in crying my eyes out, snot running down my nose, and stacks of used tissues besides me. Well, call me the ice queen because that did not happen. But! I feel that I have to say that I did happen to read this book while in school…during an important test…in a classroom filled with silence and many many classmates. And I am a loud crier. So I held it in. So thus explains the non-waterworks.

Gayle Forman presents the reader an interesting question in her novel. What would indeed happen if I did decide to stay instead of letting go? What will I lose? What will I gain? What is there to live for? There were moments where the intensity, the heartache came full throttle at me that I needed a break. My eyes, teary, were blinking vigorously to stop the sobs from coming. I had to breathe in and out, close my eyes then venture back into Mia’s tale. I was that much of a sadist to be reading this in school.

The pace was exquisite. The way she switched back and forth from the hospital to the Mia’s past. She delved into Mia’s relationship between the family members—mother, father, brother, grandparents, her friendship, her love of the cello. Sometimes happy, others nostalgic, all great. Then it reverts back to the hospital—the painful experience of watching and waiting, hoping for the best in the end. Up and down, the emotions flew from page to page. What I love most about this method was the fact that I had a breather every few minutes. I could collect my thoughts and also the novelty of it all. If the hospital scenes were stretch out or if there were no “happy” scenes, I probably, most likely, will end up bored.

The characters were flawed—meaning it was well executed. Scratching your heads at that? Well how would you feel reading about a character who was so perfect? Annoyed? I definitely would be. So it was pleasant to read a book that had problems, people who aren’t so darn prefect, and ones that seem more human than a false image in your mind.

Overall: An amazing read that leaves me wanting and expecting more from Gayle. ...more

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Dec 18, 2008 Lauren rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own

Before starting If I Stay, I had high exceptions. Since, I had heard some great things about it. Though, I wondered, in the back of my mind, if this could possibly be as good as people were saying, and it was, but even better!

If I Stay was a heartfelt, amazing, and thought provoking novel that I quickly devoured in two days. Between breaks at school, during study hall, basically any time I had free time, I would always be caught reading this. It was just that EXCELLENT!

I loved the characters, ...more

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Feb 19, 2010 Shanyn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

There is a word in the provided book summary that explains my feelings about this book exactly: heartache. As you can imagine, the topic of this novel is quite heavy.

Our author, Gayle Forman, writes so beautifully that you are able to read the main character's thoughts without turning away from sadness, as long as you are able to handle a little of the aforementioned heartache. We are simply bystanders (in more than one sense of the word) as the events in this book unfold - we are forced to go a ...more

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Jun 13, 2009 Katie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I couldn't put this down - read it in less than 24 hours! And, it's going to be a movie directed by Catherine Hardwicke! ...more

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Mar 10, 2010 Karen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: at-bjhs, ya-or-mg-reads, favorites

Yes, I cried. And I started reading and had to force myself to stop. The way Forman handles the car accident in the beginning of the book is genius: it happens so abruptly, just like it would in real life and spins the entire book on its axis. This is one of those books that is written from the YA perspective, but it shouldn't be automatically shelved YA- it has mass appeal, I think. I waited so long to read it because I was afraid I would be depressed, and it is depressing, but a great read. ...more

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