With the most popular of her books being ‘If I Stay,’ Gayle Forman went on to produce other interesting books, with the most notable being ‘Where She Went,’ ‘Just One Day,’ and ‘Just One Year.’
If I Stay
‘If I Stay’ remains Gayle Forman’s most notable novel to date. ‘If I Stay’ made Gayle Forman a New York Times bestseller, and in 2014, it was made into a film of the same name.
‘If I Stay’ tells the story of Mia Hall, a 17-year-old high school girl who played the Cello and was in love with classical music. Mia finds herself in a difficult situation after an accident claims the lives of her father, mother, and little brother. Experiencing an out-of-body experience, Mia realizes she has to choose whether to stay and live without her family or to leave. Mia reminisces about her past, her relationship with her boyfriend, Adam, and how her choice will affect the lives of everyone who wants her to stay.
Where She Went
‘Where She Went’ is the sequel to Gayle Forman’s best novel, ‘If I Stay,’ and it narrates events that happen three years after Mia’s family tragedy.
Narrating from Adam’s point of view, ‘Where She Went’ tells the story of how Adam gets abandoned by Mia after she leaves for Julliard. Not knowing why she left, Adam falls into a tormented reality of sadness and reluctance to live on, and though he becomes a superstar with the band, he still feels alone and sad.
After attending a show where Mia plays, Adam meets Mia, and they stay in each other’s company the whole night. After what seems like a night of stories and adventure, Adam confronts Mia asking why she left without saying anything. Adam asks Mia why she left him alone and sad, but Mia gives no definitive answer. Mia later tells Adam she left him because she hated him for making her stay, and Adam is beyond shocked that she remembered the promise he had made. Finally parting ways with Mia, Adam felt some sense of closure, but the sadness lingers, and surprisingly Mia returns with them, heading to her house where the flames of their love rekindle.
Just One Day
‘Just One Day’ is a story of love, fate, and desire, and it follows the story of Allyson, a young high school graduate who travels around Europe and meets Willem, an actor from the Netherlands. After a great adventure, Allyson falls in love with Willem and decides to go to Paris with him, which is what she would never have done. After a falling out with Willem, Allyson vanishes after less than a day, and on returning home, feels sad about leaving the love of her life, and later begins a journey to find Willem.
Just One Year
‘Just One Year’ sequels ‘Just One Day,’ but this time, it narrates from Willem’s perspective. The novel follows the journey of Willem after Allyson left him in Paris, and it showed his longing for her and his journey of transformation and self-reflection. ‘Just One Day’ provides an answer to what happened with Willem the year he and Allyson were away from each other.
