Week 6: Passage Person

Well, it's over! I actually got choked up at the end, which didn't happen very often for me throughout this story. Anyways, here are a few passages that I liked.

This is more of an entire section than a short passage, but I really like all of the description that was included. It also reminds me of something my family would do. Does your family have any holiday traditions? If so, what are they? Also, why do you think Mia was apprehensive about jamming with everyone at first, even though they were all supporting her?

This is the part where I started to get choked up. It was so nice to see the sheer love that Adam has for Mia, even though they had been going through a rough time. The reader gets to see a soft side of Adam in the section. Have you ever been surprised by any unexpected emotions from family members (ex: the tough brother crying at a movie, etc.)?

Lastly, this section is where Mia begins to feel things, as opposed to just observing them like she had been doing the entire time. I think these are pretty powerful moments in the story, because it is a turning point for Mia, Adam, and Mia's entire family. This is when they realize that she will be okay. What moment(s) in the story were particularly powerful to you?

Week 6: Connector

Mia finally makes her ultimate decision, almost unintentionally. Although I know it's nowhere near as drastic, I connect her decision to my decision to come to Middle College. While I hated every moment of being at my old school, I was still leaving behind a lot or friends and a past me that I knew I would never have again. My boyfriend, however supportive of my leaving he was, I still hated the idea of not seeing him everyday and reducing our time together to 1 or maybe 2 days a week as a posed to about 6. I still miss him all the time and sometimes regret leaving my old school, but I know it was for the best that I left. I think Mia will always have bouts of regret and miss her family, that I can very much relate to. However hard it gets it is important to know that you can't go back, and it can only get better. I also connect it to one of my favorite quotes:

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happen."

 By Theodor Geisel 

Did you have a hard time leaving your old life behind your old life and coming to Middle College? Do you ever feel regret? Can you relate anything else to this?

 

 

 

Week 6: Discussion Leader

Wow we have finally finished the book! Congratulations! So for this weeks discussion, I want to talk about more the whole book.

1. Do you like the way the book ended? Why or why not? What would you change? What was your absolute favorite part of the book?

2. Do you think Mia made the right decision? Why or why not? Would your decision compare to her's? Did you predict her decision correctly?

3. Other than the obvious differences, how do you think Mia's life will change now that she had made her decision? What do you expect for her future? Do you think you will read the next book in the series?

Week 5: Connector

In this section, we understand Mia's thoughts related to not only Teddy, but to death as well. Due to the rare situation depicted in the book it is difficult to find connections. However, Mia does talk about funerals, and how some people imagine their funerals and others don't. Have you thought about your funeral? Personally, I haven't really thought about it at all. Also, I have a little brother, although we are much closer in age than Teddy and Mia. My brother and I however, have a very different relationship. But still, I would be crushed to find out if any of my family members passed away. Do you have any siblings and if so, is your relationship with them as good as Mia's relationship with Teddy? In your response, you can also discuss the nature of Mia's grandpa, and how he started crying. Has anything like this ever happened to you or someone you know?

Week 5: Discussion Leader

In the end of the reading (sorry to go backwards) Mia starts reading the lyrics of her dad's songs and discovers what a wonderful writer he is. Mia can't seem to get the song out of her head and subconsciously sings it to Teddy. Does the song provide Mia with a better insight into her Dad? Does this make her feel more connected to him in a sense?

Mia recalls a family friend's funeral that she went to a year before. Her whole family is irritated that the service was not necessarily in his honor. Do you think Mia would want to plan her family's funeral to make it right for them? Do you have any funny expectations for your funeral (which won't be anytime soon)?

Mia finally sort of admits she wants to go away from the state she is in and be with her family. Do you think that she is leaning more toward leaving since she figures Teddy is gone to? Is it understandable or irrational for her to get so angry at the thought of the decision that lies ahead of her? Why?

Week 5: Passage Person

This section starts off with Mia racing to the children's area of the Hospitol to find Teddy (expecting him it to be there). 

I chose this passage from pages 160 and 161 because they evoke a lot of emotion. Do you think Teddy is still alive? If so, where do you think he is? Why emotions did you feel when reading this part? Do you agree with Mia that if only one of them could survive it should have been him, why or why not?

Also in this section, there is a lot of talk about death an funerals. Mia talks about her experience at the only funeral she has been to.

Do you think it's weird that they are talking about their own funerals? Have you ever thought about your own? If so, what details have you thought about or want to include in it? Do you agree with Kim's observations?

Week 4: Passage Person

We see a lot happen with Adam this section, but I'd like to focus more on Teddy and Kim and only a little on Adam. The first quote I'd like to discuss is about Kim and Mia's friendship. I feel like every friend ship has funny quirks like this.

Do you have a friendship like this that you can relate to? Do you think the world isreally divides like they say?

Next I want to talk a little more about 

Adam. We learned a lot more about her true feelings about him. 

Do you think Adam and Mia are just in puppy love? Or is is the real thing? Do you think he should sway her choice whether she stay or go?

Lastly, I'd like to talk more about Teddy. We find out that he too is gone. 

Do we know for sure that Teddy is gone, or could it just be a bad assumption? Do you have a younger sibling or friend you can relate this to? 

Week 4: The Connector

In this section Mia mentions the different types of people and what categories they fall under, "There are people who like classical music. People who like pop. There are city people. And country people. Coke drinkers. Pepsi drinkers. There are conformists and freethinkers . . . people who drank plain coffee and people who drank gussied-up caffeine drinks . . ." (108, 110). It's an insignificant part of the book but I think it made it more fun. It lightened up the mood. I connected to this though because, of course, I fell into a category for each one given. I consider myself a pepsi drinking freethinker city girl who happens to like poppier music and gussied up caffeine drinks. It is a simple connection but its all I could relate to in this section and I think it works. Do you relate or connect to this? Which categories do you fall in? Did you connect to anything else in this section? Is there any categories given that you cannot really choose?

Week 4: Discussion Leader

In less than 60 pages, we find out a lot about Mia, Kim, Adam, and Teddy, and are introduced to new characters in the process.

1. In this section, Mia describes the relationship between Adam and Kim. Mia wants them to be friends, but they both come from different parts of Mia's life. Although the both love Mia, they just don't blend with each other. However, when Adam wants (and has) to see Mia, he teams up with Kim, and they work really well together. Mia talks a little bit about her feelings toward this, but what do you think goes through her head when she sees them working together? Has this occurred in your life, when two people from different parts of your life love you, but don't mesh with one another? If so, how do you feel about it? Are Mia's feelings natural?

2. We also see Adam's attempt to see Mia, and we find out that he can be very determined when he wants something. Why do you think that is? Is there something about Adam that we might not know (yet)?

3. Mia comes to what might be a realization in this section: that Teddy is likely dead. Do you think Teddy dies?

4. Mia talks about music camp and how she always though the cello was a solitary instrument. But then, Mia actually makes friends at this music camp. This makes me think that Mia is the type of person who would rather have a few really good friends, as opposed to a lot of friends, who were really just acquaintances. Do you agree? Would you rather have just a few, really close friends, or a lot of acquaintances, and why?

Week 3: Passage Person

In this section, we are shown a turning point in Mia and Adam's relationship. In addition, Mia makes more discoveries about her injuries, time in the hospital, and power to decide her fate. The first passage that I picked is:

This is the first moment Mia realizes that she has power over how things will turn out. In addition to this, I picked:

This is the first real choice Mia is faced with. What would you do? Would you join your parents, or would you stay for your brother and boyfriend? Would you have as much trouble deciding as Mia?

Another section that stood out to me was the part about Adam's concert on Halloween. The passage reads:

This is the first time Mia has actually enjoyed one of Adam's concert (and probably one of the first times she's actually made as much of an effort to enjoy Adam's interests, as he made to enjoy her interests). Mia even wants to stay longer, and tells Adam:

What do you think sparked this change in Mia? Did it have anything to do with her halloween costume? Or do you think it had to do entirely with her experience?

Lastly, I want to point out a phrase that I have actually quoted a lot:

Are there any times that you have had to "fake it till you make it?" If so (and if comfortable sharing), what?

Week 3: Discussion Leader

1. After the social worker leaves Gran and Gramps alone with Mia, a nurse come in and reassures them that Mia is aware of everything that is going on so they should encourage Mia to come back but take as much time as she needs. How do you think the nurse knows all this information? Do you think she went through a situation similar to Mia's? Do you think the nurse's information comforted Mia's grandparents or just made them uncomfortable?

2. Regarding the nurse's information, do you think she is correct? If so, which option you think Mia will choose, live or move on, and why? If she chooses to stay, what do you think will be different (other than the obvious differences like her parents being gone)?

3. Mia's Halloween costume brought out a whole new personality that she did not recognize as her own. Do you agree with Adam that it was still her same personality that she has everyday, why? Do you think the costume will help her break out of her shell more often and not just that one night? Do you think she will actually enjoy Adam's shows from now on?

Week 3 Connector

Mia talks a lot about how she feels somewhat disjointed from Adam and his world of music. She doesn't understand why anyone would want to go to a smokey bar to listen to overly loud music. I connect to this on a personal level being that my brother has his own rock-type band. It's taken me a long time to learn to appreciate his rowdier shows and why anyone would ever want part in anything like it. However, like Mia, I learned to just sort of go with the flow, relax, and just be about to enjoy myself. Do you think Adam has had to go through this same process to appreciate Mia's taste music? Do you connect with Mia in the same sence of fitting in where you seem to be the only one who doesn't understand why people like what they like? Is this a valid connection?

Week 2: Connector

In my opinion, the part of this book written in the present tense is difficult to connect to, simply because the situation at hand is so unique and definitely doesn't happen to many people. The parts I find that I am connecting to more are Mia's flashbacks. One thing I connected with is college and the long shot that Juilliard is. Because Mia is only a little bit older than I am, many school experiences are similar. She is auditioning for colleges and I am looking at colleges. Although I don't want to go to Juilliard, I am really looking into Carnegie Mellon, where they accept 4 guys and 4 girls into their theatre program. As much of a long shot as it is, I am still going to audition because it is one of the best musical theatre schools in the country. I can also relate to Mia when she talks about leaving home. While I want to go to New York or study abroad, I can't even imagine leaving my family, which is why I am still looking and schools near by and schools in state. I think that college is one of the most stressful decisions teenagers make, and many people all over the world can relate to Mia on this level. Can you relate to Mia in any ways? What about her relationship with Adam? I've never had a boyfriend so I wouldn't know, but if you are in a relationship, does your relationship have anything in common with Mia and Adam's?

Week 2: Discussion Leader

1. We learned a lot about Mia and her boyfriend Adam in this weeks readings and how their relationship began. What do you think Mia's parents thought of Adam? Is he a good or bad influence on her and why? Do you thinks the good things outweigh the bad?

2. When Mia is being operated on, her mind wonders away from what's happening to her body and begins thinking about why she's not connected to her body and wonders if there are others like her. Do you think that there are others out there that Mia can communicate with? Or is Mia just a special case? Do you think that there are others like her out there, but they cannot see or hear each other?

3. Mia talks about her history with Juilliard; her application, audition, and her family and friends cheer her on to go there. However, Mia never exactly tells us how she feels about going to Juilliard. How do you think she honestly feels about it? If she ever wakes up do you think she will end up going there? Is there any foreshadowing?  

Week 2: Passage Person

In this section of the book, Mia shares a lot of flashbacks. All of them mention her loved ones like her parents, Teddy, Adam, and her grandparents. So the first passage I chose is the first memory she had that took up it's own section/chapter starting on page 32 and ending on page 40.

I chose this because I think she is trying to remember the good time in order to get her through her current situation. Why do you think this flashback was incorporated? Why do you think the author wrote a whole section just for this one memory? Did your mood change when you went from reading the helicopter and hospital scene to reading this recollection?

Also in this section, Mia connects a lot of what is going on around her to familiar things she knows. She compares her surroundings to family situations she went through before, her mother, games she played as a child, and scenes she has seen on the television. The next passage I chose is when she shares a contrast between the surgical operation and the game operation on page 42. 

Why do you think she is comparing everything to what she is familiar with? Do you think making these comparison make her more comfortable or uncomfortable? Do you think she expected to see something different? 

Week 1: Passage Person

Forman's writing is very descriptive and you know exactly what she means as you read. She makes Mia and her family very relatable, personable, and ordinary. The way she describes Mia's parents in particular stood out to me and I could picture them both perfectly. Therefore, the first passage I would like to look at is about her Dad.

"Dad slips behind the wheel. He likes to drive now. He'd stubbornly refused to get a license for years, insisting on riding his bike everywhere. Back when he played music, his ban on driving meant the his bandmates were the ones stuck behind the wheel on tours. They used to roll their eyes at him."(11-12)

Personally, this personifies a man who uses the environment as an excuse for his laziness, but who wants to go the the DMV anyway? What do you think about him? Do you think this passage is a reasonable representation of Mia's dad? Why or why not?

Next is Mia's mom. Her mom seems like the real rock of the family that will put her family before anything else, like any mother would. I think this next passage really creates a perfect vision of a mother figure; it is said just after the accident when Mia learns her mother was hit first.

"I can't think about that, about Mom seeping. So instead I think how fitting it is that she was hit first, that she was the one to buffer us from the blow. It wasn't her choice, obviously, but it was her way" (20)

The last sentence of that is the most well written in my opinion. What do you think about her Mom? Did she have as much personality as her dad?  Do you connect with her mother as the rock of the family? Why or why not?

Week 1: The Discussion Leader

1. Gayle Foreman writes using a first-person point of view. Why do you think that she has decided to write this way. Consider the specific section where Mia is viewing the scene after the crash.

2. If I Stay is not written in chapter form, but is written in times throughout the day. I think that Foreman uses the times to provide a more immediate and active description of the thought going through Mia's head. What do you think the significance of using times instead of chapters is?

3. Describe each member of Mia's family, including herself. What are their personality traits? In addition, what do the flashbacks (specifically the one about Mia's first cello performance) reveal about each member of her family?

Week 1: The Connector

The whole story occurs because of the car accident Mia and her family suffered. Right now, it sounds like Mia is the only survivor. Her father is dead, her mother is dead, and Mia could not find her 8 year old brother Teddy anywhere. This made me interested in the likelihood of this ever really happening. So I searched the web for "car accidents with only one survivor" and I found http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2326960/One-year-old-British-baby-survivor-Mecca-car-crash-BODY-BAG-taken-mortuary-rescuers-realised-alive.html. This article is about a one year old boy who was the only survivor out of 5 passengers. But the interesting part is that the first responders originally thought the boy was dead like the rest of the travelers he was with; so, along with the others, he was bagged and brought to a mortuary. The stories relate because they are both about only one family member surviving and that family member being a child. Do you think the article and book relate? What are some similarities and differences? What interested you about the article?

Introduction

Hello fellow bloggers, our blogging group consists of Adi Mullen, Marissa Telles, and Katie Walsh. We are students writing for Mrs. Baker's English class at Grossmont Middle College. We will be reviewing the book If I Stay by Gayle Forman. We chose this book because of the recent movie that came out based on this book. If it was worth making into a movie, it must be a good book! If I Stay is about a girl named Mia who enjoys a perfect life. She has a loving boyfriend, a wonderful family, and a promising music career. One day, her family gets into a disastrous car accident leaving Mia in the Intensive Care Unit. While at the ICU, she is stuck in-between life and death. She eventually has to make the tough decision of staying and living a life that is completely the opposite of what she knows or move on and leave this world. Through this blog experience, we hope to learn how to pay more attention to detail while reading books and analyze the text better. We hope you enjoy our blog!