Module 7 - If I Stay

Bibliographic Information

Forman, G. (2009). If I stay. New York: Penguin Group.

Summary

This story starts out as a normal day for Mia and her family.  Mia is a 17 year old girl who is a very gifted musician about to be accepted into Julliard.  She is facing the decision whether to use her talent and follow her dreams or stay at home with her parents and be close to her boyfriend Adam.  Adam is also a talented musician, but his love is not for classical music like Mia.  His music takes him traveling to rock concerts all over the country.

Mia has a little brother named Teddy that she adores.  Teddy is much younger and loves his sister.  Mia’s father is an ex-punk rocker who is now a teacher.  Her mother is a feisty travel agent who is very involved in Mia’s life.  She encourages Mia to use her talent.  They are a very happy family.

On this normal day, school is cancelled due to snow.  Mia’s mother takes off work, and they decide to have a family outing.  In a single moment on the Oregon road wet with snow, an accident changes everything.  Mia is stunned to see her parents were killed on impact.  She finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken away from the wreck in an ambulance.

The rest of the story is an account of the 24 hours after the accident.  Mia is somehow able to see her own surgeries and watch the doctors and nurses working so hard to save her life.  She doesn’t feel anything, but is sad as she witnesses expressions of grief in her grandparents’ and friends’ eyes.  She starts to remember all the wonderful things in her life.  Good memories and the good things her parents did for her.  She finally realizes that her brother Teddy has also died in the accident.  She doesn’t know if she wants to continue living without her family.

Finally, her boyfriend Adam gets to the hospital.  She sees how hard it is on him not to be allowed to see her in the ICU because he’s not a family member.  After a while a nurse lets Adam see her.  She watched from a corner and sees the love he has for her.  Mia must make a decision.  “Should I stay?”  She didn’t know if she could go on without her family.

At the end of the story, Mia goes back into her injured body with a strong will to live and face the future even if it’s without her family.  She knows that would be what her family would want for her.

Impressions

This was not my favorite book to read.  No one would ever want to be in Mia’s situation and be forced with the decision to continue to live without your family or to let go and die.  I felt there was a reason she was allowed to be outside of her body and view what was going on.  She realized she still had important things in her life to live for, but it was not a “feel good” story.  I thought it was interesting how the author wrote the events as seen through Mia’s eyes.  If is recommended for older readers because of some of the content which related to trauma and sex.  

Reviews

The last normal moment that Mia, a talented cellist, can remember is being in the car with her family. Then she is standing outside her body beside their mangled Buick and her parents' corpses, watching herself and her little brother being tended by paramedics. As she ponders her state ("Am I dead? I actually have to ask myself this"), Mia is whisked away to a hospital, where, her body in a coma, she reflects on the past and tries to decide whether to fight to live. Via Mia's thoughts and flashbacks, Forman (Sisters in Sanity) expertly explores the teenager's life, her passion for classical music and her strong relationships with her family, friends and boyfriend, Adam. Mia's singular perspective (which will recall Alice Sebold's adult novel, The Lovely Bones) also allows for powerful portraits of her friends and family as they cope: "Please don't die. If you die, there's going to be one of those cheesy Princess Diana memorials at school," prays Mia's friend Kim. "I know you'd hate that kind of thing." Intensely moving, the novel will force readers to take stock of their lives and the people and things that make them worth living.

(2009, March 2). [Review of If I Stay]. Publishers Weekly. Retrieved from

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/reviews/search/index.html

The Lovely Bones meets It’s a Wonderful Life. Mia has a big decision to make. One snowy day, her family is killed in a catastrophic accident, while she is thrown from the car and left in a coma. Now it’s up to her. Should she stay here or move on, leaving the pain and struggle of life as an orphan? Mia’s spirit hovers in the critical care unit as she sorts through her feelings about her family, her music, her boyfriend, and her best friend, Kim. Death would mean the end of hard decisions but also the end of love.
Why It Is for Us: Mia’s decision is not an easy one. If she moves on, she will join her loving family in whatever comes after but will miss out on life. If she stays, there's so much to enjoy, but she’ll face grief and an uncertain future. This honest yet affirming story confronts the truth that all life is a struggle. Every reader who’s ever wanted to avoid a painful decision will be compelled by the choice Mia must make.

Benedetti, Angelina. (1997). 13 going on 35: Summer reading. Library Journal. Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/reviewsgenrefiction/855190-280/35_going_on_13_summer.html.csp

Library Use

This book could be used by special reading groups dealing with traumatic incidents in their own lives.  It is realistic fiction that brings up unique emotions a lot of people aren’t comfortable with and will all feel at some point in life, but maybe not quite to this extent.  It could also be recommended for counselor use by the librarian for specific students needed something to relate to in regards to their own personal experiences.

Book Trailer by Diana Pemberton