Monday, May 10, 2010

Book Club: If I Stay

Our first official YA Book Club met last week at Joseph Beth Booksellers in Legacy Village. The book we chose was If I Stay by Gayle Forman:




From Publishers Weekly:

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.


The space was able to be reserved monthly by the infamous LiLa, from Lisa and Laura Write, because, you know, everyone (including book store owners) falls all over themselves to get them what they want. Or something like that. ;-)

We all agreed that we liked the book and then debated the finer details:

*We appreciated how her relationship with Adam unfolded in the story.

*We scratched our heads and grinned over the "playing the guitar" bedroom scene--uh huh.

*We wished she had played up her grief about losing her parents and possible future physical ailments.

*We heard Summit bought the movie rights and that a sequel is planned. We discussed what the sequel might look like.

Here are some pics of us debating it all:



I was the picture taker so I'm not in any of them (yep, planned it that way).

The next meeting is June 10th and the book is LIAR.

Any fellow Clevelanders want to join us?


P.S. The winner of the signed copy of WAKE by Lisa McMann is CATRYNE! Congratulations! Email me your address!

24 comments:

lisa and laura said...

Such a fun night! Can't wait for the next one!

Unknown said...

What fun!!! I need to join a book club, I've tried but haven't found the right now yet!

Great pictures and great book choice!

Anonymous said...

I have a great book club. Yours look like it's gonna' be a good one.

What? I didn't win the contest! Okay, I'll try next time :-)
Mary

Niki Smith said...

Great photos! See you next month :)

Lydia Kang said...

I'm jealous. Don't belong to a book club, but I'd like to!

Maddy said...

So jealous! I participate in the online book club, but I would love to have a "real" book club meeting with cookies and coffee. It's not the same online :(

Adele said...

I think I should join a book club.
- Adele
moltocuriosa.com

Pamela Gold said...

I am overly jealous. I need to start up a local book club at my BAM because their coffee is fab!

Alicia said...

how fun!! i wish we had a local book club as fun as that! i really should look into it more!

Rachele Alpine said...

Awww...I'm bummed I missed this month's bookclub, but I'll be there in June! I need to get my copy of Liar!

The Blonde Duck said...

What fun! I'm sure all this great exposure to other writers will help improve your own writing. I know when I read more, I get better!

Lourie said...

I haven't been in a book club for nearly 10 years. I know this because I was pregnant with baby number two at the time. And the last time I went, I kept having contractions. To me, they were the practice kind. Someone said, "Are you trying to go into labor?" I laughed and said no. HA! SURPRISE! I guess it is time to get back into it.

Shannon said...

looks like so much! wish i lived nearby.

Talli Roland said...

Sounds like a great time! I wish I was in Cleveland!

Jeannie, Jane, Angel, Mommy, etc.. said...

THat sounds like fun! I don't know that I am smart enough for a book club, but I wonder if it would help me with trying to write? I think I might have to go pickup that book by the way. I loved The Lovely Bones.

K. M. Walton said...

Man do I wish I lived in Cleveland.

Portia said...

Looks like a great book! Might be just the right one for my next book club pick :-)

kiri said...

Awesome pics! Can't wait for next month, for more insight into you writerly types ;)

Melissa B. said...

What a lot of fun! As the school year winds down, I've been looking for titles to add to my TBR list. Thanks!

Jonathon Arntson said...

I sure wish I was a Clevelander, but alas, I am stuck on the shores of a different Great Lake. I am very interested to see what you think of LIAR.

Little Ms J said...

I want to come!

Clara said...

Omg this seems to be so much fun...I wish I didn´t live in Switzerland...And are you guys fancy or wha? U even got a reservation!

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

That is SO cool that you all were able to score a monthly space like that!

Tina L. Hook said...

If I lived in Cleveland I would be there.

I tend to read old books that no one cares for anymore, so I might not be the best book club candidate.

PS I adore the vintage photos of the ladies sitting on the tree limb.