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A review by sandiet
Before I Fall Enhanced by Lauren Oliver
4.0
Most of the time I never know what inspires me to read any one particular book. Sometimes I like the cover; you know that saying “a picture is worth a thousand words,” sometimes it’s the synopsis on the back….although I have read many a book that hasn’t lived up to the description and of course sometimes I just have to read a book for book club.
Before I Fall actually fell into two of these categories; the cover was intriguing and the plot was interesting.
How would you live your life if you knew you only had one day to live? That’s the premise of the book Before I Fall. In fact, Samantha Kingston gets 7 days to live her last day, 7 chances to make things right, 7 chances to change her ways.
Samantha and her 3 best friends Lindsay, Elody and Ally are part of the “in” crowd at Thomas Jefferson High. They are not kind to anyone they come into contact with and they really aren’t even kind to each other. Sam, Elody and Ally blindly follow Lindsay even though I believe deep down they know she is not the friend or the role model they should aspire to be. In the 7 days she gets to relive her last day, Sam tries to find her true self and the meaning of her life.
The book is geared toward the young adult reader and I had some trouble getting into it, but once I persevered I began to understand where the author was taking the reader. I found it difficult to comprehend why these teens were so mean and flippant to each other. It troubled me to the point that I felt compelled to ask my daughter if this type of behaviour was the norm and I was saddened to learn that yes in fact it is. You might think reading the same plot over and over would make it a tad tedious and boring but it wasn’t at all because you never knew what aspect of Sam’s “last day” was going to change.
When I finished reading Before I Fall my first thought was “strange story but good,” but when weeks later I was still thinking about it I realized the plot really had deep spiritual meaning. I found myself wondering what would I do if I knew it was my last day? Who would I make amends to? Did I treat people well? Did I live my life the best way I could have? Who would miss me? When a book can get you to ask questions of yourself I think it has served a great purpose.
One line from the book that stuck with me is; “so many things become beautiful when you really look.” Isn’t that what life should be like? Shouldn’t we take time to enjoy the people and things around us before it’s too late?
Why not live each day as if it was your last and see the beauty in everything, today and always.
Before I Fall actually fell into two of these categories; the cover was intriguing and the plot was interesting.
How would you live your life if you knew you only had one day to live? That’s the premise of the book Before I Fall. In fact, Samantha Kingston gets 7 days to live her last day, 7 chances to make things right, 7 chances to change her ways.
Samantha and her 3 best friends Lindsay, Elody and Ally are part of the “in” crowd at Thomas Jefferson High. They are not kind to anyone they come into contact with and they really aren’t even kind to each other. Sam, Elody and Ally blindly follow Lindsay even though I believe deep down they know she is not the friend or the role model they should aspire to be. In the 7 days she gets to relive her last day, Sam tries to find her true self and the meaning of her life.
The book is geared toward the young adult reader and I had some trouble getting into it, but once I persevered I began to understand where the author was taking the reader. I found it difficult to comprehend why these teens were so mean and flippant to each other. It troubled me to the point that I felt compelled to ask my daughter if this type of behaviour was the norm and I was saddened to learn that yes in fact it is. You might think reading the same plot over and over would make it a tad tedious and boring but it wasn’t at all because you never knew what aspect of Sam’s “last day” was going to change.
When I finished reading Before I Fall my first thought was “strange story but good,” but when weeks later I was still thinking about it I realized the plot really had deep spiritual meaning. I found myself wondering what would I do if I knew it was my last day? Who would I make amends to? Did I treat people well? Did I live my life the best way I could have? Who would miss me? When a book can get you to ask questions of yourself I think it has served a great purpose.
One line from the book that stuck with me is; “so many things become beautiful when you really look.” Isn’t that what life should be like? Shouldn’t we take time to enjoy the people and things around us before it’s too late?
Why not live each day as if it was your last and see the beauty in everything, today and always.