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A review by annashiv
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
3.0
Most of the time this book is fine, but then a sentence or scene will really catch me off guard for being so...weird. Like wanting to lick her new boyfriend's sweat off his face (she doesn't, but still) and particularly their intimate moment where they play each other like instruments. It just perplexed me the entire time I read it. It was so jarring. There's no way teenagers do that. I don't care how much they love music.
It's basically about what you expect. It's predictable, but meant to be. It's about exploring an idea, about having a choice to stay or go. I felt the case to go wasn't made quite strong enough. I think it could have been explored more. It's more of a study of a young girl's life and the people she loves. I wish those parts of the story had engaged me better, but it was a quick read, so it's fine.
Overall, I think you generally know if this is the kind of book you'd be into or not. It's emotional. It's sometimes cheesy. It's not particularly deep or revelatory. I feel weird saying this, but it's just a fun book, and it does that well enough, especially for teenage girls.
It's basically about what you expect. It's predictable, but meant to be. It's about exploring an idea, about having a choice to stay or go. I felt the case to go wasn't made quite strong enough. I think it could have been explored more. It's more of a study of a young girl's life and the people she loves. I wish those parts of the story had engaged me better, but it was a quick read, so it's fine.
Overall, I think you generally know if this is the kind of book you'd be into or not. It's emotional. It's sometimes cheesy. It's not particularly deep or revelatory. I feel weird saying this, but it's just a fun book, and it does that well enough, especially for teenage girls.