Book Review | I was Here – Infinity Reads

Title: I was Here

Author: Gayle Forman

Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary

Pages: 288

Australian Release Date: 1st of February 2015 Preorder now HERE

Synopsis

Cody and Meg were inseparable

Two peas in a pod.
Until . . . they weren’t anymore.When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, who broke Meg’s heart. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into question.I Was Here is Gayle Forman at her finest, a taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of unspeakable loss

Gayle Forman has written a book that captures the impact suicide has on loved ones creating the kind of book that stays with you.

Plot

This book is basically The Fault in Our Stars meets Paper Towns. Initially there is this whole intriguing mystery of Meg and the reason behind her suicide, whether her best friend Cody really knew her and then things pick up when Cody goes into full sleuthing mode. The story intensifies as the ugly aspects of the online world are exposed and some life lessons are learnt.

I congratulate Gayle Forman on writing one of the most realistic books I’ve ever read. Nothing is sugar coated and real world problems are dealt with. The integration of mental health into YA indicates progress and just how powerful this genre can become in impacting people’s lives.

Characters

In the beginning I felt detached from the characters but as I read more and invested myself in this story it all came together. The ending was so powerful because I could totally relate to the struggles that everyone must have been going through.

This book deals greatly with the impact Meg’s death has on her parents and especially Cody. I found Meg and Cody’s relationship somewhat a mystery and it’s better left that way I guess. I love the development between Cody and her mum because it’s so raw.

Writing

Gayle Forman’s writing is so emotionally powerful and she has created such a timeless story in the short frame of 200 pages.

If you enjoyed If I Stay and Where She Went I would recommend this book to you. Also John Green fans as it deals interestingly with the idea of death.