I bought this book yesterday from Waterstones for £6.99 (the joys of having a Waterstones near where I live, within WALKING DISTANCE!!!). I’m quite hard to please when it comes to books – I don’t like chick-lit very much, I’m not really into huge crime thrillers – Jodi Picoult is about as think-y as I get – and I’m starting to get beyond the stage of Artemis Fowl and Skulduggery Pleasant. I read “Before I Die” by Jenny Downham a while ago, and the little sticker under the book said “If you liked “Before I Die”, you’ll love this!”. I really did enjoy that book, and it’s a genre I like reading about, although I’m not really sure what you’d call it – YA tragic-romantic fiction, maybe? I like books that discuss the afterlife, and what happens when we die – or rather, in the case of this book, what happens when we’re lingering somewhere between life and death.
I’ll try not to spoil the book for anyone so I’ll just give a brief outline. Mia is a seventeen year old cellist who is very talented – she’s applied to Julliard – and she lives with her mother, father and little brother. When school is cancelled because of the snow, her family decide to take a drive, but the snow causes a crash with devastating consequences. Mia watches the following hours unfold from outside of her body, seeing the effect it has both on herself and on her family, friends and boyfriend Adam. The main body of the narrative, which takes place in the present, is peppered with “flashbacks” from the past – as Mia realizes that rather than her fate being decided for her, she is the one who chooses whether she lives or dies. The book follows her as she tries to make that decision, weighing up the impact that all she’s lost will have on her, with the impact that losing her will have on everyone else.
I’d never heard of this book before I picked it up in Waterstones yesterday. When I saw the cover and the title I rolled my eyes and was half expecting another supernatural “I fell in love with a vampire/werewolf/ghost” kind of story, but I read the blurb and it actually sounded pretty good. After a lot of deliberation and a sneaky peek inside to make sure it wasn’t badly written, I bit the bullet and bought it. That was at about half past four in the afternoon. By around half past seven I’d finished it, and it’s not a short book. I couldn’t stop reading; it had me hooked and I desperately wanted to find out what would happen next. When it ended – and it does end on quite a cliffhanger, I warn you – I was desperate to know more. Today I bought the sequel, “Where She Went”, and I’m a little dubious about it – from the description it sounds ok, but I’m not sure if t’ll live up to the amazing first book or not. Still, if you’re a fan of drawing your own conclusions, the book works well as a standalone title.
I’ve read a lot of books in my time, but I’ve got a feeling this one’s going to be one of my favourites for a long time to come. It’s graphic at times, sometimes upsetting, sometimes uplifting but always very honest and realistic, and the character is instantly likeable and believable, which is something I value in a book – I want to support the character every step of the way, unless the whole point of the book is that I’m not supposed to support a character. That’s where Twilight goes wrong – you’re meant to support and like Bella, but she’s such a whiney, annoying Mary-Sue that it’s just impossible – even when watching the film, you wish Cedric Diggory Edward had just let her die and then we could’ve had three more books of just the Cullens, who were a lot cooler when you get rid of Bella. Apart from the sparkly thing. This isn’t the time for a rant about Twilight though; this is about “If I Stay”, which creates believable characters for whom you want good things to happen. It’s a really engaging story and you feel like you’re part of it, experiencing it all alongisde Mia. It also raises questions – if you were in the same boat, what would you do? What would you pick? Would you choose to live, even though it’ll be painful and you’ve got to deal with life without some very important people – or would you choose death, leaving your loved ones behind?
There are some grisly moments in the book and a couple more elements that mean I’d recommend this book for people who are 13/14+, depending on their maturity. The descriptions of the car crash do leave some pretty vivid mental images – you’ll understand the phrases I’m referring to when you read it – so if you’re of a nervous disposition or get affected by that easily, I’d make sure you’re prepared for it before you read the book. Still, it is a brilliant book and I’d definitely recommend it. I’ll let you all know how the sequel is when I’ve finished it!
the life of a moomin 