Readergirlz: November 2010 + Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
Welcome to November, readergirlz! Micol Ostow, our newest readergirlz diva, put it best: "The new month brings with it a new format for all of our amazing featured titles; with this new approach, we'll be able to spotlight more books than ever."
Come on over to the readergirlz blog to discuss our first title: BEFORE I FALL by Lauren Oliver.
Before I Fall is, in my estimation, an absolutely amazing book. It explores the idea of time loops (one of my favorite concepts) with such depth of feeling and no-holds-barred realism that there's absolutely no way a reader can walk away from this book unchanged. It's a powerful book, to say the least. As I wrote in my article about Time Loops:
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver [is] an amazingly intriguing debut novel in which the main character, Samantha (Sam), is killed in an accident only 80 pages into the book - then wakes up in bed, unharmed, only to find that it's not the next day - instead, it's the same day, the morning of her last day. She relives the day, bewildered and disbelieving. That evening, tragedy strikes again. The day repeats again, and again, a few times over. Sam does different things each time, spending one day being more cautious, another throwing caution to the wind, still another being more appreciative. It's an amazing book, and I highly recommend it.
Like the novel The Time Traveler's Wife, Before I Fall has no overt sci-fi gadgets or gizmos or time machines. Neither of those books have wizened characters who assist the protagonists with magic or explain the rules of the game to them. Instead, Henry and Sam have to figure things out (or make things up) as they go along. However, while Henry has Clare to confide in, Sam tells no one; while Henry travels through time involuntarily, Sam keeps repeating the same day involuntarily.
Please go read the book. You won't be sorry.
This month's theme at readergirlz is Resilience. Micol asks: "How has resilience helped you in your life? Maybe like Sam, you've reached out to a friend even after a fight or fallout that seemed hopeless? Or maybe it's simply a case of pursuing your passion in the face of lousy odds, heavy competition, or the fear of rejection? Resilience is what keeps us moving forward!" Share your thoughts.
Learn more about the new format of readergirlz.
Check out the November issue of readergirlz.
Read my interview with Lauren Oliver.
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