Thursday, February 7, 2013

JUST ONE DAY by Gayle Forman

Hi guys! So, I found myself at the airport last week in need of a book. I'd been reading Snow Crash on the flight down, and I'm sorry to report the middle went flat on me, page after page of philosophical pondering and history lesson that, while kind of cool, were not serving to keep me awake at 11 pm through the sleep-inducing thrum of flying (I do plan to continue, as there is much much MUCH brilliance in that book). So I went into the bookstore and browsed, accrued some contenders, and then ... WHAM. 

The new Gayle Forman book is out. 

Easy decision. YAY! Have you read the previous Gayle Forman books, If I Stay and Where She Went? If not, get them. But get them both, because you will want them both. 

But on to Just One Day.




I'm not going to do a review, because I need to go write my book, but I will say two things: 

1) As a teenager, I would have read this book over and over. It has everything that my teenage self would have swooned for: Europe, Shakespeare, adventure, sleuthery, growth, ROMANCE. 

2) As an adult, it kept me wide awake on the airplane and long into the night once I was home. I love Gayle Forman's books, and I. Cannot wait. For the next one. Oh Willem, who are you? I sense that I will want to hug you when the truth comes out. 


Okay, so here's what the publisher has to say about it:

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.
Just One Day is the first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!



Interested? As it happens, last fall I was in Paris and Amsterdam, two of the book's main locations, and I thought it would be fun to post some pics that remind me of the book:




Allyson's Paris, for the most part, is not "tourist Paris." But there is a moment when she climbs some stairs -- lots of stairs -- while wandering lost (good lost, not bad lost) and sees the above, and asks someone what it is. It's funny, that one could stumble upon Sacre Coeur! Imagine what a marvelous surprise it would, to be caught unawares by such a sight. Here are some likely Montmartre stairs:




Wonderfully, Allyson has made a promise to eat a macaron a day while in Paris. I think that's a promise I could keep ...




Later, in Amsterdam, Allyson rides a pink bike, and I happened to have this pic of a pink bike!




(And the store behind it is my new favorite store in the Universe: Exota, selling the King Louie brand.)

There was a mention of bike parking, which is just ... a sight to behold in Amsterdam. As here:




And finally, she bikes along behind a tram, so here's an Amsterdam street scene, tram included:




Read the book if you'd like to be transported to Europe. It's a treat :-)

Okay, now, to work!







7 comments:

Connie Onnie said...

I wasn't sure if I was going to like Allyson at first, how can you be friends with someone who doesn't like Nutella? I had my doubts but watching her grow was lovely and then she made it up by having macarons. I may have cursed Gayle's name at the end of the book, I can't wait for Just One Year to come out.

Anonymous said...

These pictures are making me swoon. I will definitely be adding this book to my to-read list.

BURIED IN BOOKS said...

When I read Just One Day I first wanted to go to Paris and have a "good accident". Then I just wanted to be there without a guide book or anything and just wander for days.
My review of Just One Day was so short an probably not helpful, but the book felt like a guide to life. It was just everything to me. And yes I've read her other two books and I even have Sisters in Sanity to read.
But Just One Day is amazing. Thanks for the pictures! I love the pink bike! And the stairs to Sacre Couer. And thank you for showing me what a macaron looks like. I'm pretty sure I'd like the pink ones and the yellow ones the best!

Heather

Melanie Conklin said...

Those photos are such lovely and PERFECT accompaniments to JUST ONE DAY. I, too, am fan-girling over this novel and stomping my feet for the sequel. Such a straight-forward premise, but so WELL DONE.

Laurence King said...

I am reading this book right now as a matter of fact...and I am swept off my feet just like I was with If I Stay and Where She Went. Her descriptions of Paris made me home sick (that's where I'm from!)I haven't reached the Amsterdam part yet, but I am sure it will be just as delicious.

Jennifer said...

Thank you for the recommendation and pictures - definitely added this book (and author) to my TBR pile.

I just wanted to say - I felt the same way in the middle of Snow Crash! It was like brilliant, amazig, whiz bang, awesome - and then it became pedantic, plebian, blah. I found my focus shifting away from Hiro as a result and more onto YT. I am interested to know what you think of the ending. Some parts of it shocked me a little. All in all - a brilliant book though!

Anonymous said...

these pictures look like they were out of the movie that i'm guessing we're all waiting for. Really they are amazing and fit perfectly. And you were so right i am a teenager and i read especially the ending over and over and over again these books are just amazing and outstanding i love gayle forman and can'T wait to read more from her (it i stay and where she went are brilliant as well :) )

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