If I Stay

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen-­year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, observing her broken body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces—to figure out what she’s lost and what she has left. If I Stay carefully walks the line on being an afterlife story because Mia is suspended--caught between life and death. But we’re suspended too, waiting for her to decide. I love books with tough choices, stories where there are no right or wrong answers, just decisions. This one… show more.

Mia, a teenage virtuoso on the cello, is in a coma following a car accident that has killed her parents and younger brother. Her spirit, separate from her physical body, explores the world around her, watches her family and friends grieve, and must decide if she will die or stay. And, if she chooses to stay…what would be the purpose if her family is gone? Another beautiful novel about grief and loss, If I Stay also explores themes of family, love, and self-reliance.

Mia is just 17 years old when her family is in a car accident and she is the only survivor. The gifted young cellist is left in a coma. Told through flashbacks of Mia’s life before the accident, including her love for her rock star boyfriend Adam, Mia ultimately has the power to decide whether to come back from the coma and be with Adam or give in and perish with her family. If I Stay is a tear-jerker that plucks at every heart string, romantic love, love of family, loss, and hope.