Publisher: PenguinPublished: January 8/October 10, 2013
Pages: 369/336
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 5 Stars
When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.
In short: Just One Day resonated SO deeply with me that my love for Gayle Forman has reached a whole new level.
It wasn't immediate love when I first began Just One Day. Of course I fell right into Gayle Forman's effortless writing and genuine characters right away, but it wasn't until I was most of the way through the book that I realized where the story and character arcs were going and how much it meant to me that Gayle was taking the route much less traveled. I had thought Just One Day was going to be another book about a girl "finding herself" in Europe with the help of a cute boy. But in reality, that cute boy is MIA for the rest of the book after the beginning. And then the girl does something remarkable: she "finds herself" on her own/with help from some good friends and WITHOUT the help of the cute boy, and she realizes she's made of tougher stuff.
I wasn't as in love with Just One Year as I was with Just One Day just simply because Willem's story wasn't as relatable to me as Allyson's. But the final moment of Just One Year got me GOOD because I can never resist a good coming-full-circle ending and this one was just perfection. I was already appreciative of Gayle Forman's writing from If I Stay, but Just One Day has taken me to a whole new level of LOVE for this woman and her profoundly meaningful stories. Just so much love.
Other Reviews:
Artsy Musings of a Bibliophile
Reading In Winter
YA Book Queen
Author Links:
Website
Goodreads
Oooooh, so interesting to read a review about how the Just One duology was more your thing than the If I Stay duology (I like If I Stay & Just One Day the most - so it's sort of like a tie with me, but I'd agree with you that it seems like people LOOOOVE the If I Stay duology). "I never quite felt that way with If I Stay, as much as I did love it." -- That being said, yes, I completely agree with you about this. If I Stay has a lovely premise and as you said, Gayle Forman does the emotional scenes well. But I do think Just One Day offers a more... generalized outlook at life and it's easier for us to relate to it.
ReplyDelete"I had thought Just One Day was going to be another book about a girl "finding herself" in Europe with the help of a cute boy. But in reality, that cute boy is MIA for the rest of the book after the beginning. And then the girl does something remarkable: she "finds herself" on her own/with help from some good friends and WITHOUT the help of the cute boy, and she realizes she's made of tougher stuff." -- YES. The second half of the book was why I'd loved the book. I do love the traveling descriptions and how that affects Allyson and later on her need to... discover herself in the second half, but YES YES YES the second half = much better. I read many, many reviews that also talked about loving that half more than the first half (I wonder if that has to do with whether or not you related to Willem? Or found him to be a cool love interest? I felt like he was too mysterious to care about him but Allyson, yes, go Lulu!).
"I wasn't as in love with Just One Year as I was with Just One Day just simply because Willem's story wasn't as relatable to me as Allyson's." -- Agreed. I actually thought Willem read a bit like a Gary Stu :( because he was so good at everything (even his character realizations, like how his theater roles, seemed to come easy) + his good looks and all the girls hitting on him :/. BUT ANYWHO Have you read Just One Night? If you liked how the story came full-circle, maybe you might also like the e-novella imagining of what happens when they're finally together?
Christina THIS COMMENT OMG!! You always have the best comments :D:D
DeleteYes, that is, in a nutshell, why I liked Just One Day more than If I Stay (but you were of course able to say it so much better than I ever could). If I Stay was super powerful, definitely, but can I relate to that story. THANK GOD I can't. Just One Day applied to me and my thoughts so much more.
Yes, it took me a while to truly get into the book, but it was really that second half that really drew me in, when she finally finds herself and loves herself.
I can see why you weren't a fan of Willem. He was a harder person to love. And I'm not into mysterious guys either. I wouldn't say he read like a Gary Stu to me because he definitely had flaws, but I can see why all those things you mentioned would lead to you having much less of a connection with him. In the end, I came to really appreciate him, but it def took longer than with Allyson.
And YES I have read Just One Night! I'm not sure I liked it as much as the full length novels. I might be alone in saying this, but I really loved the way Just One Year ended, kind of up in the air. It just seemed perfect for what the series was about. Just One Night was sweet, but kind of unnecessary IMO.
Thanks again for the amazing comment, Christina!!
I read If I Stay/Where She Went and I have read I Was here, but I haven't read these books, yet. Everyone seems to really love them, though, so I'm sure I'll eventually get to them...
ReplyDeleteKate @ Ex Libris
Oh yes, you must! I mean, if you liked Gayle's other books, then this duology is the next logical step.
DeleteI'm a huge fan of the If I Stay duology and have been hesitant to pick this series up even though I own it and it's staring at me from my book shelf everyday, but I don't know if I'm ready for an emotional read. I do hope to read it this year though. Glad you loved this one!
ReplyDeleteI get that. I will say though that this duology wasn't anywhere NEAR as emotional as If I Stay. It has a much more hopefully thoughtful tone to it rather than poignant like If I Stay. Hope you love it as much as you loved If I Stay!
DeleteSo I'm the only person who didn't like Just One day lol
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you did though!
Karen @For What It's Worth
Heh, it happens. Not everyone is going to love every book. Though I'm pretty sure you aren't the only one I've heard of who didn't like this book...
DeleteA contemporary book like this isn't my cup of tea, but I've heard things about Just One Day (like the main character being independent of a boy, yay!) that make me think it might be a book worth getting out of my comfort zone for.
ReplyDeleteHeh, I never thought it would be my cup of tea either! Somehow it just worked for me. So I would definitely recommend giving it a shot even if you think it's out of your comfort zone (yay independent women!).
DeleteYES! I really liked IIS + WSW, but Just One Day was the book that resonated with me the most. So many emotions while reading that book!
ReplyDelete"And then the girl does something remarkable: she "finds herself" on her own/with help from some good friends and WITHOUT the help of the cute boy, and she realizes she's made of tougher stuff." - Agreed. That was a genuinely pleasant surprise. It's nice that Forman decided to focus on developing her MC this way.
I still need to get Just One Year, but you have me curious about the ending!
Lovely review, Aylee! :)
Yayy!! :) Good to hear that someone for sure agrees with me about Just One Day. And it really was a pleasant surprise! I was NOT expecting her to go in that direction and yet was SO pleased when she did. I hope you love Just One Year when you have a chance to get to it!
DeleteI loved the traveling aspect of this one, Aylee, but for some reason didn't connect with Just One Day as much as I did with If I Stay/Where She Went. So, I didn't even bother reading Just One Year. Also, I wasn't too crazy about Willem so that was another reason I didn't read Just One Year. I'm curious to try Forman's latest novel though. Have you read I Was Here yet?
ReplyDeleteAw, that's too bad. I think I wasn't too crazy about Willem either after reading Just One Day. After reading Just One Year is a different story though... it takes a while, but I came to appreciate what was going on with Willem and I liked him in the end. I haven't read I Was Here yet - I didn't even know it was released!
DeleteI think Gayle Forman's greatest strength is writing emotional scenes! They can feel pretty realistic and believable, which makes it easy for her readers to really empathize with. I loved If I Stay and felt the exact same way. I haven't gotten around to these books, but I'm glad you liked it.
ReplyDeleteIt's true! They come across as completely genuine and believable and I totally admire her for that skill. It's also the reason why it hits so hard!! Heh. I think you would love this one too :)
DeleteWell it will come as no big surprise that I have yet to read anything by Gayle Forman but your review for these is sorely tempting me to change that. My favorite part is that you said that the MC finds herself, on her own, WITHOUT some cute boy to help her along! That coupled with the author's obvious writing skills prove to me that I am missing out here Sigh, I wish the urge to read contemporaries struck me more often...but I swear that when it does, these will be on my list^^ Glad you enjoyed these so much :)
ReplyDeleteHeh, I know you haven't and that contemporary isn't your thing and that's okay. But who knows, maybe that will change for you someday... I know it certainly changed for me. I used to read exclusively speculative fiction and now I read a mix. It helps when the lead is an independent gal!
DeleteI may be the sole reader who has not picked up ANY of Gayle Forman's books. Oops... but this duology sounds so good! I may just start with these books and work my way backwards xD awesome review ;D
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm sure that's not true! I can think of a few people off the tp of my head who haven't, anyways. And I was one of them until not too long ago!
DeleteI have been meaning to check out these two books but I haven't yet!! You made Allyson's story sounds so awesome.
ReplyDeleteI actually like Where She Went more than I do If I Stay, though I do love both books and they make me cry like a baby.
Thanks for the review, now I'm looking forward to reading these two again.
Yay, you really should check these out! I wonder which you would like more out of these two. These ones aren't as emotionally intense, but still great!
DeleteReading this made me happy. I really loved Just One Day a lot, I also connected with Allyson's story. It made me not so afraid of travelling alone. I am SO glad this one resonated so much with you. Loved reading your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteYeah!! I'm SO happy you got me to read this one because it just inspired me so much. I'd like to think that if ever I was feeling alone while travelling, I could look back at this book and draw experience and inspiration from it and Allyson :)
DeleteI remember reading this review of yours in my mail, Aylee, and I was blown away!
ReplyDeleteI thought Gayle Forman used up all my emotions with If I Stay and Where She Went, but Just One Day and Just One Year sounds just as great.
Like you, I love that the girl is alone in Europe for a major part of the book. That is what makes me want to pick these books up ASAP.
I'm super glad you loved them, and I hope I do too.
Great review!
Sarika @ The Readdicts
YAY!! I really think you would love them, Sarika! Especially if you're already a previous fan of Gayle's :D:D
Delete