Last year, I read Gayle Forman's "If I Stay," the story of Mia Hall and her internal battle to decide whether or not to live after her family is in a horrific car accident. (Here's my review.) Forman just released the follow-up, which I guess spoils what Mia's decision at the end of "If I Stay" was. She stayed.
Five years later, we're in New York City with Adam Wilde, Mia's boyfriend from "If I Stay," who is now a rock star, dating a Hollywood actress and spiraling into major drug- and alcohol-induced train wreck status. Mia is nowhere.
Except she is. We see, via Adam's memories/flashbacks, what happened to his and Mia's relationship after the accident and during her recovery. We see Adam's rise to stardom. We see how even though Mia's not physically in his life anymore, she is in his every thought, dream and song (thanks to lyrics from the band's album, which could only be about Mia and which Forman includes at the beginnings of some of the chapters.)
Then, lo and behold, there is Mia in the flesh. She spends all night with Adam, catching up, reminiscing and getting down to brass tacks on what actually happened between them. I won't give away whether or not they reunite. You'll have to read it to find out.
One of my complaints about "If I Stay" was Forman's excessive references to bands, music and the cool kids who know about those things. There was much less of that in this book, and I appreciated that. I also appreciate the way she writes dialogue. It's very true to life.
I like Mia and Adam, and if Forman wanted to, she could figure out a way to continue their story. If she did, I'd be okay with it. If she doesn't, these two books can stand alone and leave the reader satisfied.
No comments:
Post a Comment