4. If I Stay by Gayle Forman

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

ISBN: 978-0-525-42103-0

Dutton Books, New York, 2009

196 p.

Plot Summary

Mia is a 17-year-old girl with a passion for music (particularly her cello), a unique family consisting of a younger brother and two punk-era parents, and a rock star boyfriend.  When going for a drive with her family, a collision changes Mia’s world forever as her parents are instantly killed and her younger brother is fighting for his life.  Looking at the scene, Mia starts to realize that she, too, is lying by the side of the road, gravely injured, and she is having an out-of-body experience.  Following her body to the hospital, she watches as doctors work upon her comatose body.  She quickly learns that her brother was taken to another hospital and, unaware of his state, Mia ponders whether she should stay in this life or move on to be with her family.  Wandering around the hospital, Mia sees extended family members and friends who come to visit her, but she is unable to interact with them.  The story is told through a series of flashbacks, as Mia thinks back upon various moments from her life and tries to decide if the tragedy she has experiences is simply too much to live through or if it is worth it to continue on.

Critical Evaluation

If I Stay by Gayle Forman is told through first-person narrative, helping to connect the reader to Mia’s situation.  As she looks down upon her body, Mia comes to the realization that it is her choice whether she lives or dies and only she can make that choice.  This main issue of the novel is something that deeply resonated with me, and has the ability to resonate with many readers.  From the moment the accident happens, the reader can easily imagine being in the same situation.  Especially considering the closeness of Mia’s family, one can understand the debate going on in her head.  When the tragedy is simply too monstrous, the option of dying can seem like the easier thing to do rather than dealing with the pain and sadness goes along with losing loved ones.  Also, Mia’s ability to express her insecurities, particularly when recalling her relationship with her boyfriend, makes her all the more relatable.  Although the novel has supernatural elements through Mia’s out-of-body existence, Forman is able to convey a very realistic story that left me thinking about whether I would make the same choice as Mia.

Reader's Annotation

After a car accident that killed her parents and left Mia and her brother both fighting for their lives, Mia must decide whether a life without her family is even worth living.  Thinking back on her memories of family and friends, Mia tries to decide whether she should stay or move on.

Information About the Author

Forman started her writing career as a journalist who reported on young adult social-justice issues in SeventeenJane, Elle, and The Nation.  After traveling around the world for a year, Forman published her first book, You Can’t Get There From Here: A Year on the Fringes of a Shrinking World, a travel memoir.  Returning home, Forman and her husband had a child and she no longer had the freedom to travel around reporting with a baby at home.  magazine, later becoming a freelance writer for magazines such as

Feeling most passionate about telling stories of young adults, Forman decided to write YA novels, allowing her to still go on journeys, but of her own creation.  In her biography on her website, Forman sums up her story by writing, “I suppose the short version of this bio could simply read: My name is Gayle Forman and I love to write young-adult novels.”  (Information retrieved from author’s website: http://www.gayleforman.com/bio/)

Genre

Young Adult – Drama with elements of Fantasy

Curriculum Ties

N/A

Booktalking Ideas

1. Discuss the definition of family.

2. Focus on the tragedy that Mia faces and the conflict she feels about staying in this world.
3. Talk about the relationship between Mia and Adam.

Reading Level/Interest Age

13+

Challenge Issues

I do not sense that any challenge issues would arise.  

However, when confronted with complaints about this novel, librarians should become familiar with the material and its content.  Turn to reviews from publications such as Publisher’s Weekly, School Library Journal, and Booklist, as well as reviews from teens that have read it.  Also, it is beneficial for librarians to present reasons backed by the ALA in support of intellectual freedom.  As stated in the Library Bill of Rights:

I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

Why Include Book in Selection? 

I have seen this novel several times at the bookstore and the synopsis had intrigued me, so I decided to read it for this project.