Book Review: Just One Year by Gayle Forman

I think it's safe to say that nobody really hates love. Sure, some people might find over-the-top, ooey gooey declarations of how the mere sight of one's beloved sends their spirits soaring through the air and all that a tiny bit sickening. But no one actually hates love. Love is perennial, timeless. It's been there since Adam and Eve, to Romeo and Juliet, to Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr. In Gayle Forman's "Just One Year", we have Willem and Allyson. This sequel to "Just One Day", which, I kid you not, had me squealing on the edge of my seat, was released just last week, and I, hopeless romantic that I am, naturally had to grab it. ASAP.

Rewind one year. When Willem wakes up in a hospital, he doesn't know where he is, or why he's bruised and battered. All he knows is that he's alone once again, and that he needs to find a girl named Lulu. He remembers that one day they shared together in Paris, just one day in which Willem begins to wonder whether he's met the girl he's not going to fall in love with--but stay in love with. Determined to find her, Willem travels all over the world in an attempt to chase fate, from Mexico to India. But as a year passes by with no sign of Lulu, Willem begins to lose hope--and the belief that they were fated to be together.

While I absolutely loved both Lulu and Willem in "Just One Day", I have to reluctantly admit that I was a little disappointed with Willem's character in "Just One Year". The entire book kind of goes like this: 'Gasp I have to find a girl named Lulu', 'darn, pissed off my ex-girlfriend because I slept with her again (oops) so I can't just wait for Lulu when she comes to pick up her luggage', 'let's go to Mexico', 'let's go to (insert other country here)', 'oooh hot ex-girlfriend, time to sleep with her again', 'sad sad where's Lulu', etc. You catch my drift. I just felt like Willem was such a frustrating protagonist to follow throughout the novel, because there's so much he could do, but he just so easily gives in to his whims and fancies. I mean, this whole thing where he's sleeping with any and all of the ex-girlfriends he stumbles upon, even though he's still pining over the elusive Lulu? Sure, he's nice and charming and good looking and all, but I just couldn't help but feel like he was way too complacent. That being said, there is some character development going on, especially with his family issues and insecurities, and that was definitely one area in which I found myself sympathizing with Willem a little more. And yes, he is the type, because of those issues, to run away from commitment, whether to a girl, or places, or jobs, but I mean, come on, Willem! Snap out of it!

The plot of "Just One Year" was a little diminished by the whole wanting-to-slap-Willem-awake thing, but was pretty exciting nonetheless. Don't get me wrong, Willem isn't a character you end up hating. He's just frustrating, is all. It's really interesting to see things from Willem's perspective, after having spent "Just One Day" in Allyson/Lulu's, and meeting his friends and family and numerous ex-girlfriends coloured his character in a little more as well. What's especially exciting is that Willem, of course, travels all over the world, so Ms. Forman takes her readers across the globe from Mexico to India to Holland. It's like going on an adventure, seeing different cultures and types of people--like taking a little trip through reading. The people that Willem meets on his journeys are diverse and dynamic, and really added dimensions to the story and Willem himself as well.

Frustrations with Willem aside, I thought that the writing in "Just One Year", as always, was beautiful. Ms. Forman is able to create thoughtful, striking prose, with nuances that are both understated and poignant at the same time. And such incredible and balanced writing is necessary when dealing with Big Themes like love, since you don't want cliched, over-the-top tropes that you hear over and over again and become over-sensitized to. In fact, let me give you one of my favourite lines in the book:

There's a difference between losing something you knew you had and losing something you discovered you had. One is a disappointment. The other is truly a loss.

Like, wow. There's nothing flamboyant or crazy about those three short sentences. But the words capture such a powerful truth in the most perfect way, one that hits you right in the heart and makes you think, Exactly. It is really through Ms. Forman's prose that I found myself really being drawn into the story, seeking moments of connection and realization of so many truths in life, ones that you don't really notice until you see them written out just like that.

Overall, "Just One Year" is more of an okay sequel to "Just One Day", largely because of how frustrating Willem is throughout the novel! Nonetheless, there is some interesting character development going on, as well as some exciting adventures, and, of course, the beautiful, striking writing. I'd definitely recommend checking out the first book out--and maybe checking out "Just One Year" if you really want to hear more about Allyson and Willem.

Rating: 3/5

Book Review: Just One Day by Gayle Forman

I remember visiting Paris a few summers ago with my family during vacation. Sure, there were no buggies that came trundling down the street at the strike of midnight a la "Midnight in Paris", nor were there kisses with mysterious boys on the top of the Eiffel Tower (hey, I was like, fourteen years old then). Gayle Forman's new novel "Just One Day" whisks readers away to the much-adored city of love, where new and exciting discoveries await you in every corner.

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 stories like this one, where nothing fantastically extraordinary happens to the protagonist (e.g. dark, brooding boy turns out to be vampire, or a war against enemy soldiers can only be stopped by a single hero), characters are of utmost importance. Allyson is not a particularly extraordinary person, either, but that's what makes "Just One Day" that much more believable and poignant. She may not be the bravest, or most kick-ass heroine I've met while reading, but Allyson is a normal girl trying to find herself--the one journey every single person out there takes at some point in their lives--and this is precisely what drives the story. I like Allyson because she reminds me quite a lot of myself.  In fact, there's something every reader can relate to in Allyson. She's worked so hard at school to come to where she is now, but, in the end, book smarts just isn't enough. As cheesy as this sounds, it's the real world out there that matters, and it's the experiences and mistakes and moments of fate that really make life, life. 

Willem was the perfect person in the book to show Allyson this truth about life, and I couldn't think of a better character to do that. Not only is he an undeniably good-looking fella, but he's so exciting and so dynamic--the ideal foil to Allyson's character. That being said, Willem also has his flaws. He's a player, and harbours an uncomfortable past back in Holland. But all the better to really push Allyson, the sheltered good girl, out of her comfort zone and into the real world. Willem and Allyson really got me thinking, that if every Allyson out there is able to encounter their Willem, amazing things could happen.  And that's the thing about this book: it's so applicable to our own lives, and, in this way, all the more inspiring.

Philosophical musings about characters aside, the setting of "Just One Day" was, without a doubt, magical without idealizing Paris. Ms. Forman has done an incredible job of showing her readers a new side of the much-idolized city, one straying away from the archetypal Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, and one that opens up our eyes to another side of Paris, one with art shacks and unknown channels that are enchanting in their own way. It's obvious that Ms. Forman has done a lot of research into the city and its language, and the acknowledgements at the end of the book reveal the extent of her investigations and work.

Although the first half or so of the book follows Allyson and Willem on their one-day journey in Paris, the latter half covers the span of a year as Allyson trudges through her freshman year in college. I do think that this section was a bit slow at times--there were many moments when I felt like nothing was really happening and it was just "I need to discover myself" sprinkled at the end of each chapter. Having said that, the wonderful cast of characters such as the effervescent Dee and the sweet family of Cafe Finlay definitely made it a lot more interesting, and the pace picked right back up again in the last quarter. My heart was racing as my eyes sped over the last couple of chapters!

All in all, "Just One Day" is an beautifully poignant book about real life and self-discovery. Allyson and Willem were the perfect characters to illustrate this, and Paris--a place of excitement and magic--certainly didn't hurt either. Ms. Forman's books really have a tendency to touch their readers in that way--I remember feeling amazed and at once pensive after reading her "If I Stay" series. I even let out a little squeal when I saw at the end of the book that the story continues, told from Willem's point of view in "Just One Year"!!!! It's so cute how it's a romantic duet of novels. I absolutely cannot wait to see how everything turns out!

Rating: 5/5