“Coma” Back To Mia

The+cover+of+Where+She+Went+by+Gayle+Forman

The cover of “Where She Went” by Gayle Forman

Melanie Schlesser, Staff Writer

“Where She Went” by Gayle Forman is a sequel to “If I Stay,” which was made into a movie in 2014. The novel takes place three years after the events of the first book and is told from Adam’s perspective, Mia’s boyfriend during the first novel. Unlike “If I Stay,” Adam is not debating between life and death but love. The basis of the novel is that Adam and Mia have grown apart since Mia recovered at the end of the the previous novel. Adam’s band had grown to be world stars and that is what brings them together in New York. Mia went off to college to Juilliard in New York and Adam is recording with his band at a local studio. Adam goes to Mia’s performance at Carnegie Hall on an impulse and she notices. This starts a chain reaction of events of the night that leads to their love being rekindled.
“Where She Went” is, in my personal opinion, better than “If I Stay.” Both books are brilliant and give you warm feelings during the cute parts. “Where She Went” isn’t as nostalgic as the first novel, since If I Stay was about deciding whether to live or let go. There are the occasional flashbacks, but they aren’t as intense. This novel gives hope and makes you think twice about Adam, since he had done a complete 180 after Mia left him. All-in-all, the novel answers questions you would have had at the end of the first novel but without directly starting after it. The characters have grown and it’s like learning them all over again. This is definitely one of my favorite novels, so that makes it hard to actually say anything because I just love it so much. I highly recommend this for anyone high school and up. It’s a quick, fun read for both boys and girls and is well worth it, even if it starts kind of slow.