Name: If I Stay (If I Stay #1)
Rating: 3.79240412979351 (1356 reviews)
ISBN: 9780525421030

Gayle Forman

If I Stay (If I Stay #1)

Veronica Palmieri

If I Stay

Cara Stegemann

<br /><br />(Please note that my reviews are intended to be notes to myself - my memory is failing, and I need reminders about books I want to reread and books I didn’t finish. My reviews are not intended to be particularly useful for other readers.)

chloe rae

2018 re-read:

I’ve been wanting to re-read this book for a while and I feel like I picked the PERFECT time to do so. 
I honestly think this is one of my most favorite contemporaries of all time. It’s absolutely stunning. The writing in this book is both beautiful and simplistic. It’s not over-done and it’s absolutely heartbreaking. This book is just so SAD. I love how sad it is. And I love the love in this book; the love between Mia and Adam, but also the love between Mia and her family/best friend. I found the chapters about Mia and her best friend super emotional this time around. I love my best friend so much and this really made me appreciate her friendship and love. I love everything about this book; how it’s so short but can make me feel so much. Already can’t wait to re-read it a third time! 

Original review:

HOLY CRAP, this book is amazing. I remember picking it up in the bookstore and being like "eh, I'll give it a go" and I am sooo glad I did. This book is made up of memories and flashbacks and questions and love and loss. It's so sad but hopeful at the same time. Hope for Mia and Adam, and hope for the future in general. I'm so glad I randomly picked this book up off a shelf and decided to take a chance. You should too.

A girl whose fortunes have plummeted from wealthy aristocrat to servant-girl. A magic hazel twig. A prince. A desperate escape from danger. This is not the story of a girl whose fairy godmother arranges her future for her. This is the story of Selena, who will take charge of her own destiny, and learn that her magic is not to be feared but celebrated.

Annika Arguemore

Tragically beautiful, this book moved me. It was quite an emotional read near the end. I literally cried. Adam, kudos to you. You're too fugging sweet. I'd kill for someone like you.

Although, it was pretty much a cliff hanger, I still loved it to bits. This is just one of those books that I could read all over and over again. The details nestle into your thoughts and just... I can't fully describe it. You'll just have to read and see ;-)

★★★★☆ // i wish i experience that kind of intensity and passion in my life. that ending.

Samantha gust 

So I don’t really remember reading this the first time around butttt recently decided to pick this off pango books and give it another go. This book what interesting I do like the idea of being able to make decisions on staying or going. I feel like the romance was a little forced and back and forth. I loved teddy and her mom and dad. The reason it was not A higher rating is 1. I did not like how the ending just cuts off 2. There relationship could have been a bit more loving we hear a lot of mentions on how there fought and were different. Over all it was a 3.5/5

Lauren Grey

This is one of those books that I have been passing in bookstores for years, but it just never jumped out at me as a must read. I saw a trailer for the movie when I went to see The Fault in Our Stars and I figured I might get around to reading it before the movie comes out, but it still wasn’t a must read. Then I was looking at some of my favorite blogs and it seemed that everyone and their dog was reading If I Stay and they were loving it. It came highly recommended… so I bought it.

I have to agree with everyone else- this is a fantastic novel. I ended up reading it in just under two days. It really holds your attention and doesn’t let it go until you reach the last page. This was my first Gayle Forman novel to read and I really liked her writing style. It was like you were just listening to a friend tell a story. It flowed so well and I just kept flipping the pages.

It was rather short (only 234 pages), but it was packed with love, laughter, and tears. I didn’t necessarily find it that sad; I didn’t cry, but there were times when I thought “wow her life sucks”, but other times when I felt that she must feel super loved. I really liked the characters too. Mia, the main character, was very likable; I wanted her to succeed and to figure out life and to stay. Her parents were probably my favorite though; I felt they were so sweet and real and different… I like reading about parents, because all parent-characters are so different. It is fun to compare them to the parents you have or you know.

Overall it is a quick read, but will leave you pondering the question– “would I stay?” The novel has a sequel, but honestly it was good on it’s own and doesn’t really need one. I will definitely be reading more from Gayle Forman though.

Maria Shade

One of those books that stays with you, and leaves you with a lot of different feelings.

If you have ever wondered what to e line between life and death could be like. This book’s explanation is such an insight into the decisions that come with both living and dying 

Lea ;)

dija

So i was browsing YouTube at 1 am as you all do, and the trailer of this book's movie came up, so i watched it and it looked meh but i scrolled down to the comment section and of course all those "READ THE BOOK" got the better of me. 

So i did. 
This was good definitely not because it was short and fast paced  but not THAT good like meh-ingly good but i still enjoyed it and it kinda moved something inside of me while reading it so that's something.

Jeannette Ordas

I had high expectations for this book, but I was a bit disappointed. I didn't know anything about the story going in, but it was well told - loved the parents, and the family relationships, just not so much the main protagonist.

An short yet slow & amazing read. Emotional, passionate and heart tugging. 
I had huge expectations from this book, since it got really high ratings and came highly recommended. 

Mia's loss really tugged at my heart strings. Her bright, happy life made the loss more tragic. The words and narration made me very empathetic towards Mia, and I felt every single emotion on the pages so clearly as if they were mine. Im sure even the most shallow, self-centered person would feel bad for her. There is just so much emotion in this book. 

And of course, the narration. Thumbs up to miss Forman for the incredible writing. She did a wonderful job. It was entirely original, and the transition from Mia's memories without getting sidetracked from the story was pretty good. Through flash backing, you felt the loss more clearly, seeing how the characters were once so alive and colorful. The memories she had created more of a backstory than plot,and you could see how the events and memories pieced together. Gayle Forman is a genius.  Plus, her prose was beautiful. Like I said before, you were able to relate to Mia. 
The characters were part of which made me cry so much. The most interesting character was her Gramps. He was always in the background, and he was never the center of attention yet you felt his presence clearly. The moment he had with Mia was one of the most poignant parts of the book, and in that scene you could really feel the love he had for Mia. 

Such an achingly beautiful book.

An short yet slow & amazing read. Emotional, passionate and heart tugging. 
I had huge expectations from this book, since it got really high ratings and came highly recommended. 

Mia's loss really tugged at my heart strings. Her bright, happy life made the loss more tragic. The words and narration made me very empathetic towards Mia, and I felt every single emotion on the pages so clearly as if they were mine. Im sure even the most shallow, self-centered person would feel bad for her. There is just so much emotion in this book. 

And of course, the narration. Thumbs up to miss Forman for the incredible writing. She did a wonderful job. It was entirely original, and the transition from Mia's memories without getting sidetracked from the story was pretty good. Through flash backing, you felt the loss more clearly, seeing how the characters were once so alive and colorful. The memories she had created more of a backstory than plot,and you could see how the events and memories pieced together. Gayle Forman is a genius. Plus, her prose was beautiful. Like I said before, you were able to relate to Mia. 
The characters were part of which made me cry so much. The most interesting character was her Gramps. He was always in the background, and he was never the center of attention yet you felt his presence clearly. The moment he had with Mia was one of the most poignant parts of the book, and in that scene you could really feel the love he had for Mia. 

Such an achingly beautiful book.

If I Stay (If I Stay #1)

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