If I Stay....Where She Went

Title: Where She Went

Author: Gayle Forman

Grade Level Recommendation: 8+, 9-12

In a continuation of If I Stay, readers learn the fate of Mia Hall in her decision to stay.  Some background information- Mia Hall was home with her family on what deemed a snow day in Oregon.  Her parents took the day as an opportunity to spend some time together, go for an outing.  What should have been a day to remember turned into a nightmare when a horrific car crash killed Mia's parents instantly and her brother Teddy in an emergency room.  Mia, left in a coma (see book review below) wavered back and forth between staying wither her grandparents and her boyfriend Adam, or be with her family.
Right away, we see the perspective of Where She Went is from Adam's point of view.  He has moved on to a successful music career, a common theme Gayle Forman brings to her characters.  We learn Mia has been accepted into Juilliard in NYC. Her decision to stay, yet leave her loved ones behind, is a mystery that Forman brings the reader through.

On fate, chance, and coincidence- Adam runs into Mia in NYC at Zankel, Carnegie Hall. Her success had brought her to graduate from Juilliard in three years and start touring as a solo cellist.  Adam, also a successful musician in a punk-rock band, went to see her performance.  They have not spoken since Mia cuts ties with him when she left for New York.

The author brings their chaotic love story in a maze of reminiscing moments of her parents, high school memories, and explanations of why things happened the way they did.  The reader can't help but think, it is all too coincidental they came to find each other, and spend the night meandering through New York, Brooklyn, the ferry.. Since this novel is from Adam's perspective, we see the questions, the heartbreak, and his own insecurities of why she left.

It isn't until the end of the novel that they really have a discussion about the past, why she left, and what her reasoning was.  There is a happy ending, through many tears and spoken emotions of resentment, hate, and moving on.

Because of language and content intended for older audiences,  I wouldn't recommend this to anyone younger than 8th (even eighth grade being questionable).