In the novel, Mia finds out she got into Julliard before her car accident, also, and in the movie, I believe someone opens the letter for her (I think Adam does, but not 100% sure on that) and finds out that she was accepted, while she's still in a coma. The book also gives a lot more backstory on Mia's best friend, Kim, and her feelings towards Adam in the movie, we see how they initially meet, at their school (he's a rocker in a band, she's a cellist) and certain parts of their relationship, but not all of it.

One great scene in the movie involved Mia playing cello, Adam (her boyfriend) playing guitar, and everyone jamming out at a BBQ at her house, and this is included in the book as well.

Both the book and the movie show Mia's life in flashbacks (in the present, she's struggling for life in the ICU) but the movie is a little more choosy on what it shows from the book material.

I had forgotten that the movie is very different from the novel upon which it's based, in this instance. I gave the movie 3 out of 5 stars, but would like to watch it again to re-evaluate sometimes my initial impressions aren't always correct, or my opinions can change upon a second viewing. If I Stay is a heartachingly beautiful book about the power of love, the true meaning of family, and the choices we all make. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her first love-music-even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind? Just listen, Adam says with a voice that sounds like shrapnel.Ĭhoices. I was glad I reread If I Stay recently, because I had completely forgotten there were so many differences between the movie and the book adaptations. I also was able to see the film adaptation of the book back in August 2014, and I reviewed it over on my film blog. I read the novel If I Stay by Gayle Forman back in 2010 or '11, and recently picked it up again to reread.

The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. *Disclosure: I received If I Stay on Blu-ray combo pack plus a copy of the novel in exchange for this post.

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