If I Stay- film review

Mia Hall has reached a crossroads in her life, will she head off to Julliard in New York to fulfil a childhood dream or will she stay at home with rocker boyfriend, Adam. But suddenly she is thrown into a whole new situation and she has one decision to make- will she stay? (Cryptic I know!) 

If you have read my book review of If I Stay then you will know that I wasn't particularly captivated by it. So I didnt go into the cinema with high hopes. Sadly I was dissapointed for a second time.

The film was actually a very true adaptation of the book. I felt as though every major point was covered and all of the characters were true to how they were in the book. In fact I can't fault the adaptation at all. For me it just wasn't exciting, it was predictable and I hate to say it, but I got a bit bored. But for me, this was no different from the book which I also felt lacked excitement. Also the film didn't get any emotional reaction from me, which is a major fault considering the premise of the story. I don't know if this was a fault in the acting or characters but I felt no emotional attachment. I felt that Moretzs reaction to her circumstance wasn't believable and therefore I found it really hard to sympathise with her. 

If there is one thing I enjoyed it would be the soundtrack. There were a brilliant selection of songs and maybe I will purchase the soundtrack but I definitely won't be buying the DVD. 

I didn't get any pleasure from disliking the book and film of If I Stay, in fact I really wanted to enjoy it, but sadly I didn't. I am sure this is an unpopular opinion and many people will have enjoyed both the film and book. Please let me know in the comments whether or not you enjoyed it!

Eilidh 

Anna and the French Kiss- Stephanie Perkins

Anna is sent to Paris to study for a year before she goes off to college- the city of lights renowned for romance and love, but Anna doesn't see it like that. Anna is resentful and angry to be leaving behind best friend Bridgette and heart throb of the moment- Toph (a ridiculous nickname for Christopher). Anna arrives in a foreign city, knowing no more that Oui and Merci, but she soon finds her place amongst a group of friends- Meredith, Josh, Rashmi and of course, Etienne St Clair- a British...French...American...oh who knows...boy who goes by his last name and manages to capture the heart of homesick Anna despite a considerable lack in the height department- a feature that is brought up many a time throughout the book.

I liked Anna from the word go, she was feisty yet innocent and everything that I would expect of a teenage girl. I liked that she had a good sense of humour and she held her own again the boys when it would have been easy to write a female character without a backbone. Sadly I felt as though she lost this in the later part of the book as her whole being came to be about her obsession with St Clair. I felt as though I lost the Anna that I had so enjoyed reading about and I didn't like how she turned from strong and feisty to weak and lovesick within a matter of pages, I don't think that it was necessary for Anna to turn in to what is arguably a stereotypical girl in love, I would have liked it if Anna could have subverted the stereotype. I also couldn't stand how she started to refer to St Clair by his first name, I understand the intention but it just made me cringe.

At first I wanted to dislike St Claire- I mean who goes by their surname? To me it came across as a bit pretentious but I warmed to him very quickly despite it. All the characters had good humour and many of them stood out in their own right. I believed that Anna loved St Clair and I believed he loved her too. The only part that fell short for me was Anna's obsession with Toph, I didn't really believe it and therefore I found it hard to sympathise when she encountered difficulties with her 'relationship' with him.

Overall I really did enjoy the book, I devoured it within a couple of hours and that is always a sign of a good book. Also despite the odd occasion where the characters made me squirm with embarrassment, I have come to the conclusion that teen life and teen love is all about embarrassing yourself and a good teen romance wouldn't be complete without a few cringe inducing moments! The book is full of angst and drama but isn't that what teen life is all about?

Eilidh

The Great Gatsby Obsession

I am not at all the sort of person who buys multiples of books, nor do I reread. I tend to give the book one read through and then it gets a place on my book shelf. Even many of my favourite books have only been read once. But for some reason The Great Gatsby was different. Not only have I read it countless times but I also can't resist picking up another copy when I see a different cover. I know that it is a very obvious book to like, but I genuinely enjoy it so much! 

As you can see, I am building up quite a collection! 

This was my first copy of The Great Gatsby which I bought when I studied it for A-Level

I love these Penguin covers- I would love to build up a collection of these! 

I found this in Selfridges- It was amongst other books with covers in a similar style

Another brilliant cover and it's in hardback! 

A beautiful cover, the metallic curves catch the light too! 

One of the less abstract covers but equally as beautiful

This for me is the original Gatsby cover and I love it! I have seen many poster versions of it and it may soon find it's way into my room! 

So that is my collection so far and I can't see myself stopping anytime soon! 

Eilidh 

Where She Went- Gayle Forman

The problem with hype is that it can really ruin a book. I read If I Stay in the run up to the release of the film. There was talk of it everywhere and I went into reading it with absolutely humongous expectations. The book unsurprisingly fell short- through no fault of its own but rather because I was expecting the world and it gave me a continent. As I said in my review, it wasn't that I didn't enjoy it, it's just I found it a bit predictable, the book tried to make you think you didn't know how it would end but I could have told you the ending after the first couple of pages. The follow up- Where She Went- is arguably just as predictable, the one difference being that it wasn't really trying to be hugely dramatic or unpredictable and therefore I didn't expect to be surprised. 

The book begins three years on from its predecessor, this time it is narrated by Adam and it follows a similar structure, alternating between past and present. I enjoyed this structure as it allowed the story to skip three years but I still felt as though I was up to date with what had gone on. Adam is at a low point, his carer as a musician means that he has hit the big time, but problems with band mates and the inability to live a 'normal' life when faced with fans and insensitive journalists means that he isn't coping. He is a shell of a human and ready to quit the band- only made worse by the fact that he is doing it without Mia, the love of his life. Enter Mia. It has been three years without a word and suddenly he is faced with her, the book follows their journey through nighttime New York as Adam learns of why she left him and whether they can make another go of it. 

The sequel to If I Stay is told through Adam, I much preferred his narrative and I really did feel a strong emotional connection with the poor boy who three years on from being left by Mia is not in a good state. I felt that the first book lacked character development and the sequel really allowed me to learn about the characters. I believed their emotions more and I was more invested in their story because of it. As with the first book I did shed a tear. It wasn't so blatently sad but just upsetting to see Adam at only 21 struggling through life.

All in all it was a much better book and I can see why it has really grabbed the book reading community. It is a quick and easy read which will send you on an emotional roller-coaster! 

Eilidh  

The Secret Garden

Well when it comes to childhood favourites, The Secret Garden features in the top 10. It is a brilliant book that I must have read over and over again. I have a well worn copy sitting on my book shelf and it is one of the few that survived the book cull that took place when my mum insisted that it was time to pass on my books to younger cousins. 

For those of you who have never read The Secret Garden- firstly, where have you been! Secondly, here is a very short summary...

The book is about a girl called Mary who is sent from India to live in England with her uncle following the death of her parents. Mary slowly befriends the gardener and some of the other servants and she also discovers a secret garden. Along the way she loses some of her spoilt and bad natured tenancies. She then learns of a boy, her cousin Colin, who is hidden away in the house- ill and unable to walk. They form an unlikely friendship and Mary lets Colin in on the secret of the garden, with the hope that its magic will help him. 

The other day I popped into the Waterstones with the intention of not spending a penny- my bank balance can't handle it at the mo! But I made a beeline for the reduced section and my eyes fell upon this. It is a beautiful cloth covered hardback version of The Secret Garden to celebrate it's 100th anniversary. It also has lovely illustrations and I couldn't believe it when I saw it was reduced from £25 to £5. The book has no damage- I can only assume that it was a display copy! 

This was one of those purchases that left me on a high for the rest of the day and I know that it will remain in my book collection for a long time- I definitely won't be passing it on any time soon!

Have you found any bargains recently? Does The Secret Garden feature in your childhood favourites?

Eilidh

Paris

As of a month ago Paris did not feature on my list of top 5 cities to visit. Not that I didn't appreciate the beauty of the city, but rather that as a Classics student, Italy had always held a solid first place in my heart with Greece coming a close second- Rome, Florence and Athens were the cities I dreamt of visiting. But, when my friends decided to go to Paris I was happy to be going away with them, any city would have done. But I well and truly fell in love with Paris, I would go as far as to say that out of all the cities I have visited, it is my favourite.

(view down the Champs-Elysees from the top of the Arc de Triomphe)

(The Eiffel Tower at night)

(at the top of the Eiffel Tower, embracing the wind)

(view from the Eiffel Tower)

All is all I had a brilliant time, we did all the incredibly touristy things, we went up the Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower. Spent a couple of hours in the Louvre and then battled through the masses to catch a glimpse of the Mona Lisa. We went to the Sacre Coeur, went on a boat tour down the river Seine and did a night bus tour around Paris. Whilst I enjoyed every moment, I can understand why there is a reputation for Parisians leaving the city in the summer, the tourists really took over the city, all traveling in huge groups and I finally saw the infamous selfie stick being used. Ideally I would go back to the city at another time of the year and see it in a different light.

Have you ever been to Paris? What is your favourite city?

Eilidh

If I Stay- Gayle Forman

I picked this up at Naples airport on my way back from Italy. I was limited to the small selection of English books they had and this one called out to me- mainly because it has obviously been made into a film and I love to compare book to film adaptations! It is hard to write about this book without including spoilers so I have split the review into two parts. The first half is spoiler free but don't read the second half if you have yet to read the book! 

Mia is a 17 year old with everything to live for- a brilliant family, a boyfriend who shares her love for music and an amazing best friend. But then she is involved in an accident and suddenly she's not sure what she has left to live for. The book follows Mia as she attempts to decide whether or not she should stay.

The book has a good if not a bit predictable story line, to me it was nothing exceptional but neither was it awful. I loved the music references and I really felt asthough the characters had a genuine love for music. I thought all of the characters were good but none of them were developed as much as I would have liked, most likely because the book was quite short. 

It's not so much that I didn't like the book, I just didn't think it was amazing. I wouldn't actively recommend it to anyone but nor would I discourage someone from reading it. It was a quick and easy read and from reading other reviews I know it is a well loved book. 

CONTAINS SPOILERS

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

CONTAINS SPOILERS 

Can you control your death? This question seems to dominate the book. Mia is a teen with her life ahead of her, one quarter of a happy family, girl friend to punk rocker Adam and best friend to budding photographer Kim. Everything is just as it should be, with prospects of Julliard on the horizon, her future is bright. Cue car crash. Mum dead, dad dead, brother dead. Just like that. A bit predictable, but heartbreaking none the less. The accident was a bit too expected for my liking, what else is going to happen when a family decide to go for a drive just after snow has settled. I always look for the shock factor and sadly this book did not have it. The disappointing start aside, I actually quite enjoyed the book, the rest of the book followed Mia as she had an out of body experience, allowing her to view herself in intensive care, watch her friends and family suffer and give the reader an insight into her life. I liked the narrative voice and I warmed to Mia as well as the other characters that featured in the story. I did however feel that the characters fell short in a number of ways, I couldn't quite picture Mia in my head and I didn't feel asthough I had enough time to get to know Adam, Kim and Mia's family either. Maybe a 100 or so extra pages would have done the job. Despite all of this, it still managed to tug at my heart strings and there were many points where I couldn't contain the tears. It was good enough to prompt me to order the sequel but I wouldn't reread it and nor will I be shouting from the rooftops about it. 

Eilidh