If I Stay
Ratings346
Average rating3.6
Loved this book. Finished it in my history class and I was so annoyed by the ending that I slammed my hand onto the table, earning a look from my teacher.
Can't wait to read the next book and watch the movie.
Girl's entire family dies and now she gets to look over her body and reflect on her life and decide if she want to come back. Sad book good message. Life is worth living even in tragedy
It made me cry several times, I think owing to the timing of reading this book at that point in my life. Although the pace is quite slow, and there were way too many flashbacks (sometimes felt dragged on too long), there were a lot of moments in the book that really got to me. Especially moments in the present time, where it showed Mia's moments with her relatives and friends. It hit a little close to home.
I still give this 3.5 stars as I think there were a lot of moments where it could be written better. I didn't empathize much with the main character's backstory. But the best parts for me were towards the end.
was definitely not expecting the experience/storyline i experienced with this one. its soo soo good. I am trying to get ahold of the rest of the series now because I want more lol.
Meh. Incredibly predictable. Foreman's writing is sound but, ugh, what an uninteresting plot.
2.5 stars. tbh I only read this to fulfill a prompt for book bingo and I got exactly what I expected - a pretty average, middle-of-the-road, quick contemporary. it didn't do anything wrong but also didn't snatch my wig.
I liked it but not enough to recommend it. It's a solid read with an interesting premise but the style and the way it was plotted kind of ruins it for me.
I'm giving this 3.5/5 stars... I really loved this book. There was just a couple of things I didn't like. Like how Kim flat out said the r word. Just little details like that made me rate it 4.5. Other than that it was beautiful. I might've liked the movie a bit better (don't fight me). Only because I was so obsessed with the movie when it came out
I'm giving this 3.5/5 stars... I really loved this book. There was just a couple of things I didn't like. Like how Kim flat out said the r word. Just little details like that made me rate it 4.5. Other than that it was beautiful. I might've liked the movie a bit better (don't fight me). Only because I was so obsessed with the movie when it came out
Si pudiera le daría un 4.5, porque a pesar de haberme hecho llorar y sentirme en el “Cuerpo” de Mia, siento que hubo momentos en los que se repetían demasiadas cosas solo para no hacer el libro más corto, además que se pudieron escribir algunos temas en vez de otros.
Aún así el libro me ha gustado muchísimo, sentí empatia por la protagonista en lo que respecta a la amistad y la familia, a los amigos de sus padres, a sus abuelos, la verdad lo recomiendo mucho, en especial porque es un libro suprema mente corto, ideal para estos días de vacaciones de verano donde lo que más se da son las lecturas cortas, fáciles, pero buenas.
Luego profundizaré un poco más en mi reseña completa.
Really enjoyed this! It was beautifully written and it was a really cool way of storytelling, telling almost entirely through flashbacks
Reread July 2021: I decided to reread this book. It has been five years. I still like book one.
Rtc this week
This book was all right. I wish there wasn't SO MUCH swearing in it. Usually swearing in books doesn't bother me too much, but this book just had so much that didn't even seem to fit. Adam and Mia's relationship would just be getting to “super duper cute” and then someone would drop three f-bombs in a row and destroy the mood of the scene. If you swear in every other sentence then this book will probably feel very romantic and moving to you. To me, it seemed like the writing didn't even fit the story, which cut down my enjoyment of the book. I can't say I REGRET reading it; I just wish it had been different.
This was a hard book for me. It made me very emotional. I feel it is very well written. I have very different spiritual beliefs than what this book represents, but it is a interesting story and inspired a renewed love for my family and friends.
3.5
Con este libro tengo sentimientos encontrados, pero sobre todo me gustó bastante aunque tuviera un par de fallas que me hicieron disfrutarlo menos:
A veces Mia se va por las ramas y empieza a contar cosas que no ayudan a la historia y sólo están de relleno.
Gracias a esto, me hacía perder el hilo de la historia a veces.
Y además, parece que el desarrollo de toda la relación familiar fue un poco pobre a veces. Me hubiera gustado ver más interaciones familiares y conectar un poco más con ella también.
Sin embargo, me emocioné un par de veces, sobre todo cuando habla de su pasión por la música, la vida y su familia. Fue una lectura bastante rápida. Que nos hace valorar a la familia y a los amigos. Muy linda.
This book was boring.
Edit: I feel as if this review is lacking and I suppose I shall elaborate more about why this book was boring and my general thoughts.
The entire thing is filled with flashbacks. Normally, this wouldn't be weird and would actually be kind of enjoyable. But it was dragged on and on for many chapters when really, a few would be nice. I get that she's trying to build up sympathy for a family that just died in a car crash but it became tedious and hard to read those parts simply because I had this thought going through my head: “YES I REALIZE THIS IS WHY THE MOM IS AMAZING. YES I KNOW WHY THE DAD WOULD BE A MISSED PERSON. OH GOD WHY THE LITTLE INNOCENT KID?” The characters were flat, boring, and one-dimensional overall, because they had no flaws that were detrimental and it was viewed as this PERFECT family and PERFECTION = MORE EMOTION TO BE FELT FOR THEIR LOSS.
It was predictable also. Like why wouldn't she choose to live? You know what would have been unpredictable? Her death. That would've been interesting.
I was not impressed. After all the hype I heard about this book, I was looking for an engaging, heart rendering read and it didn't even come close. I feel as though this book was written backwards. The big incident occurs within the first few pages and then the memories come, laying a foundation after the tense moment. There needed to be a longer build up, allowing Mia and Adam to find a place in your heart instead of trying to capture the readers after the fact. I honestly didn't really care about Mia and Adam's situation until the last few pages. The only thing I found remotely interesting was the concept of Mia' s out of body experience. As these books are relatively short and the next one is from Adam's prospective I will give it a try.
If I Stay came to my attention through a trailer for the current film adaptation of this young adult novel, around the time that John Green ‘ s The Fault In My Stars was receiving great interest. As regular readers of my reviews will know I hate watching films adapted from books without reading their original book forms first. With this in mind I decided to break away from my recent Outlander obsession and try a little young adult fiction with Gayle Forman's novel.
I was very surprised to find how short this book was, it seemed to be a little way between a short story and a novel. So surprised was I that I actually was checking to see my entire download had transferred to my ereader correctly. Maybe I had unrealistic expectations of a young adults book but I was worried that there was enough content for a book that had been adapted to a movie.
This was the story of Mia, who setting out one unexpectedly snowy day with her family on a car journey finds herself the victim of a serious car crash which leaves her an orphan and fighting for her life in a coma. Through Mia ‘ s out of body experiences we view her thoughts after the accident and her observations of what it's like to have to choose whether to fight for her life or pass over into death. This was beautifully interspersed with flashbacks to her life before the accident and her close knit family life and bright future as a talented cellist.
It was a very touching book exploring the themes not only of choosing whether to stay in life but also whether prior to the accident Mia should stay with her boyfriend Adam and go to college near home or whether she should go to New York and study at Julliard.
The book zipped past, it had only started and it was done but for all that it was thoroughly engaging and beautifully written. Forman has pitched the balance between the emotion of the situation and the pricking of our own sense of how grave Mia ‘ s decisions are perfectly. For young adults I can understand why it achieved such high regard and it would be an ideal text to study with young teens. As an adult I found the characters engaging and the writing excellent. I am certainly looking forward to reading the sequel to this book, entitled ‘Where She Went'.
I love reading young adult fiction on occasion because it allows us to remain aware of where our reading started, the stages we've gone through in life and where our own children will explore as they grow. It also allows me to have books I can recommend to my children as they grow and share because I've read them too but that aren't too dated or out of touch. I'm looking forward to the film adaptation and think it's one I'd share with my daughter as she grows. an excellent book, perhaps worthy of another 100 pages but not detrimentally affected by its length.
4.5 stars
this book is really great. It is not perfect; it had its flaws. But I really really really really loved it. And I think writing a full review on the excellent points of the story kind of ruins it. It is like dissecting a very beautiful flower. This story is great as a whole. The music, the passion, the honesty. I loved it... I just did. And I recommend it to whoever thinks that he/she will truly understand it.
I felt connected to this story, by my passion towards classic music AND YES METAL MUSIC AT THE SAME TIME (SUE ME MIA!!), towards my piano, and that want to just give up but still fight even though you don't know why.
I'm not sure what to say about this one other than it wasn't for me. Partially due to the narration style, partially due to the actual plot.
Mia's voice seemed cold, clinical. I found it really hard to empathize with her because she seemed so stiff even during the most heartbreaking moments of the book. I couldn't feel her love for her family, her boyfriend or her music. Her memories seemed just these detached recollections about things that were long gone. Maybe I felt like that because I just didn't like Mia's character. This was partially due to her wooden personality and partially because I kept picturing Chloë Moretz, as I saw the trailer for the movie. I used to like her, but not anymore, not since Carrie. Now I can barely stand her acting.
On paper, the other characters look great. I liked her family, her parents seemed amazing. Adam was interesting enough. Their passion for music was a nice angle, except that I couldn't feel it. I would have loved all of that, but I didn't because I was seeing it all through Mia's eyes.
And probably the biggest turn off for me was basically the foundation of this book. The out-of-body experience. It's not something I can take seriously. I might have been more open to it if I had actually enjoyed the main character. But the combination of these two elements didn't set well with me.
Technically, I know that it's a sad story, but to me it didn't feel genuine, it felt like a Lifetime drama. Needless to say I'm not dying to see the movie. But I did read the sequel and I'll write a few words about that too.