Sunday, May 5, 2013

Just One Day - Gayle Forman

I began this book,
a little nervous.
I was not a fan of
Gayle Forman's 
but did enjoy 

I was not sure what to expect with
Just One Day.

Allyson Healey
is a good girl.
She studies hard and
earned good grades.
For graduation,
her parents send her on
a European tour.
Along with her best friend,
Melanie,
they see the sights of Europe.
Each evening,
the students on the tour
hit a local bar/pub.
But not Allyson.
She's a good girl. 
She goes back to her hotel
and watches a movie.

On the last night of their trip
they are in a queue to watch
a production of Hamlet,
when a boy hands her a flyer
for another Shakespeare play.
Allyson has never been impulsive,
But something overcomes her
and she convinces Melanie to
blow Hamlet for this other performance.
Allyson is mesmerised
by this boy, Willem.

The following day,
Melanie and Allyson head back to London.
On the train,
they meet Willem
who is going back home to Holland.
Allyson mentions they had to cancel
the Paris portion of their trip
(due to a strike)
and Willem convinces her to 
change her plans and spend the day in Paris.

I loved these scenes. 
Paris came alive.
I revisited my trip there.

Allyson and Willem spend the day
and night together.
In the morning,
Allyson awakes.
Alone.

The rest of the book
is her change.
Her coming of age story.
I thought it would be about her
moping over this guy.
But it's more than that.
Willem called her Lulu.
He never knew her name.
And now Allyson is unsure of who she is.
Is she Allyson?
But where's Lulu?

The book goes through the effects
of this one day
on Allyson.
How her relationships with her parents
and Melanie have changed.
How she's become scared to get close 
to her roommates and classmates.
She spends a year
trying to find herself
before deciding to go back to Paris
to find the answers.
And perhaps
even Willem.



1 comment:

Susan Anderson said...

Sounds intriguing.

=)