Before I Fall
By: Lauren Oliver
Samantha Kingston has everything. She’s pretty, popular, and has an absolutely gorgeous boyfriend. Her life is perfect until disaster strikes on February 13 at 12:39 am. At that moment she and her friends get into a car crash while driving home from a party. Sam dies. The next morning she wakes up and it’s February 12 again. At first she thinks she just had a nightmare and the events that play out that day are just déjà vu, until she dies again. Then she wakes up and gets another chance to redeem herself, and the cycle continues several times as Sam attempts to set her life and death straight. In one of her lives she comes to the realization that in order to escape from limbo she must first save the life of a girl whom she and her friends had tormented for years. However this girl doesn’t want to be saved. Will Sam ever escape from limbo, or will she be stuck there for all eternity?
Before I Fall was such an amazing book. I loved to see Sam change from a selfish snob into a compassionate human being who really wanted to save another’s life, and not just for her own gain. It was also interesting to see how Sam dealt with her situation in different lifetimes, from disregarding all rules to skipping school to spend time with her little sister. I would recommend this book to girls ages 14 and up. Also, if you are a very sentimental person you will probably need a box of tissues by your side as you read this.
Emma Vitacco
