If I Stay discussion

Hi everyone,
In this disscusion I want to talk about the climaxes and resolutions in If I Stay. I do not only want to talk about the main conflicts but also the smaller conflicts and climaxes since I have not completed the book yet. PLEASE NO SPOILERS!! I am on page 145. Thanks!!!

I think the climax of this book is the car crash. I think that this is the major conflict because the whole story revolves around it. Without this big event Mia would not be in the state she is in and no decision would have to be made.

I sort of agree with you but I think that the car crash is the origin of Mia's internal conflict:if she should stay or die. I think that the climax of the book--which I haven't gotten to--but I'm assuming that the climax is when she makes her "decision" of sorts.

I think that the flash backs really show her minor conflicts that shes had in the past that resolve in other flashbacks or in the present. I think this a really cool way of writing the story. An example of this, is when she has the external conflict with Adam and Kim because she wants them to be friends but they really don't click, we learn this through a flashback of Mia's. Later on in the book, as Mia is watching in the hospital, Adam and Kim bond over trying to get in to see Mia. This is a resolution to this smaller conflict and in the chaos it provides the reader with a bit of calm.

I never thought about that conflict and resolution but I think that is a very important one to the books plot. This is because, as Mia mentions, aside from her family they are the two most important people in her life. I also really enjoyed how Forman executed this conflict and resolution. It was unexpected and it was unique. What do you think?

It's difficult to establish the climax it we can't do spoilers... the climax is after your page :) and it's similar to an ER episode.

I agree with you Ella I really like the style of the author and the way she executes her conflicts

As I'm getting nearer to the climax the conflicts are really building up and Mia is starting to lean towards not staying. I think that Teddy's death really effected the plot because he was really what Mia was hoping that would stay alive. She already knew that her parents were dead but she was unsure about Teddy. The moment she found out he was dead, she really started to lose hope and now she is leaning towards not staying

I think Gayle Forman does a great job of convincing the readers that Mia wants to die. Do you think it is possible that she does this purposely? Maybe a red herring.

I agree with you, Marie-Helene. Teddy dying put a huge impact on the story. It just adds one more reason that Mia would leave. If you would think of it like a balance scale, one side with staying and the other with leaving, the one with leaving would be a lot lower. This is because there are so many reasons that she should want to leave - everyone else in her family has died. And the only reason that she should stay is because of Adam. That is three family members vs. one boyfriend that could brake up with her at any time. So at this point the decision is a bit obvious, but it could always change.

Yea, I think that the author maybe trying to lay a red herring because it is really a hard plot to predict. I think that Mia staying or not staying is equally likely and the author may want the reader to be tilted into a different direction so that when the decision comes it isn't just like oh It could have gone either way but whoa that was such a plot twist.