Title: Before I Fall
Author: Lauren Oliver
Series/Standalone: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction,
Pages: 470
Publisher: HarperCollins
Year Published: 2010
Format: Audiobook
"With this stunning debut novel, New York Times bestselling author Lauren Oliver emerged as one of today's foremost authors of young adult fiction. Like Jay Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why and Gayle Forman's If I Stay, Before I Fall raises thought-provoking questions about love, death, and how one person's life can affect so many others.
For popular high school senior Samantha Kingston, February 12th- 'Cupid Day'- should be one big party, a day of valentines and roses and the privileges that come with being at the top of the social pyramid. And it is... until she dies in a terrible accident that night.
However, she still wakes up the next morning. In fact, Sam lives the last day of her life seven times, until she realizes that by making even the slightest changes, she may hold more power than she ever imagined."
My Rating: 4/5
I didn't hope on this train either times it was really popular, both when it first came out and when the film was released this past year. I just missed the boat, but when I saw it available on audiobook through Overdrive I jumped at the chance to understand the conflict behind this book. And I do understand it. This book has triggers for mental illness, abuse, sexual assault, suicide, etc. There are problems with this book for sure, but that being said, this book does something similar to both Thirteen Reasons Why and If I Stay (both books I've enjoyed in the past). It asks questions about how your life affects those around you and what you would choose to do if you could change something. I thought that the author for the audiobook was very good and kept me interested. I would suggest this book to anyone who is a fan of the movie Mean Girls but be warned that this book deals with a few more series topics, rather than comedic ones.
Thanks for reading,
Sidny
So this book has been around for a hot minute. And I've just been skipping out on it because I wasn't sure if it was something I would enjoy, but when I saw it on Overdrive I couldn't resist. I heard a lot of my friends talking about how much they enjoyed the movie, and me being myself I couldn't watch the movie until I read the book. This book does hit on a lot of triggers such as sexual assault, suicide, depression, and that's just to name a few. So it's not that this book doesn't have flaws it most certainly does. But for a debut release (didn't realize this is how Lauren Oliver started), it's a gutsy novel. This story follows the popular girls in high school. You know the ones, hell maybe you were one or maybe you weren't but you know exactly who I'm talking about. You might even be thinking about someone as you read that last sentence. Hell, I was.
I think that those who enjoy Mean Girls might also get a kick out of the audiobook at least. The voice actor(s) did a marvellous job of portraying different characters and helped me to visualise the characters we saw in this gritty novel.
Characters:
Samantha: Her attitude at the first half of the book got me thinking about how the other half of my high school lived. I wouldn't say that I was popular but I had a group of very dorky friends, and as an adult, I'm grateful that it's who I ended up with. But at the time, popular girls did not make my life easy and this book really reminded me of that. I think that the change that Samantha undertakes is an interesting one. She doesn't leave her friends, which is what I expected after the first few times reliving her days, but by the end, she realized that someone had to pay for what they had done, and I guess she chose herself. I am interested to read more from Lauren Oliver, but I am hoping for some more likeable main characters.
Lindsay: I won't lie. I hated her. I'm sure the author tried to show her redeeming qualities. But there is no reason to ruin someone else's life. And I hope that her loss shows her that. But if anything I think she will hate Juliet more. Probably claim that she pushed Sam.
Ally: A bit ditsy, but sweet regardless. I do wonder about her future as well as her eating habits which are highlighted in this book but not truly dealt with.
Elody: I hope she straightens up her act because in the end she and Anna aren't so different... some food for thought for sure.
Rob: Ok, if you're an adult reading this I'm sure you could tell this guy was an ass hat from the first few chapters of this book, but if not I'm sure the ending really did it justice for you. He's a piece of crap guy. The type who gets what he deserves in the long run.
Kent: I love him. He's sweet and quirky. The kind of guy I started to fall for in high school and have spent 3 years with now. Needless to say, my kind of man.
Juliet: She broke my heart over and over. She is so many teenagers to me. And if we think that bullying has gotten better all you need to do is go to the internet and see how people are treated by their peers. I definitely related to her bullying experience, but I hope that she recovers in life and leads a different life. A happier one.
Anna: I think she's spunky but hope she does better than the ass hole she was seeing through the majority of the book. She deserves better.
Mr. Daimler: He is creepy. Which didn't really surprise me at all, but it's unfortunate that things played out the way they did.
Thanks for reading,
Sidny
