*Originally Review on Pages Of Forbidden LoveOne second…Got to wipe away an extra stray tear. I thought this was a very sad book. I haven’t had a book make me cry in a while but this one sure did. I couldn’t imagine going through what Mia went through but through the whole book that is what I was doing. What if this really happened to me or even someone close to me? How would I handle it? What would I choose? Too many questions I definitely wouldn’t want to have to answer. Mia on the other hand doesn’t have a choice. She thought she had hard decisions to make before but after a tragic car accident there is only really one decision that is going to matter and it definitely will affect the people in Mia’s life. This decision has Mia asking herself whether if this decision is really in her own hands or is it up to someone else. It would so much easier if it wasn’t up to Mia but the longer she has to watch herself and the people around her while she floats around outside of her body the more she wonders whether she can handle waking up and whether she wants to stay in the first place. Either way nothing will be the same for anyone.Mia had such a hard decision in front of her. For a while I couldn’t help but think that the decision wasn’t that hard. There are people that care about you, you’re young, and you have such a long life ahead of you. As I kept reading and kept thinking about it I still wanted it to be a simple decision but it really wasn’t. Mia had a lot to think about.I really liked how If I Stay went back and forth between Mia walking around the hospital, thinking about what she might do and observing the people around her, to the past where the reader gets to know more about her, her life and the people in it. It was one of my favorite parts of the book and it was what made it easier to see how hard the choices Mia had to make were to make.I really liked all the characters in this book. Mia was just a teenage girl with a family, a boyfriend, best friend, and a passion for classical music. She played the Cello and was even on her way to getting in to Julliard. Her parents were awesome. They were loving, fun, and supporting. I absolutely loved her dad. Her little brother was also really adorable. Her grandparents seemed like really good people and her grandpa just about broke my heart. Kim, Mia’s best friend, was nice to read about. The development of their relationship was great. And then there was Adam, her boyfriend. I loved reading about their relationship. They were two very different people who both had a passion for different music. Adam was in a rock band. Although they were different they each tried things to be a part of the others world. I loved that it took a while for them to be a couple and even then Mia talked about how things weren’t perfect between them, they still had their ups and downs.Overall, If I Stay was a quick read that really got me thinking. It also had me very emotional. It just shows that life isn’t easy and anything could happen. The choices we think are hard today may mean nothing tomorrow. Gayle Forman did a wonderful job at helping me really relate and understand Mia and the decisions in front of her. The only thing I didn’t love was the ending. For most people I am sure they were/would be satisfied with it but no it had me saying “No! What now?!” So although for some this could be a standalone I am extremely grateful that their is a second one told from a different point of view and I am hoping to read it very soon.
