Cody and Meg were best friend. Considered inseparable all through their school years the girls were constantly together until Meg receives a full scholarship and goes away to college. They still communicated by email and phone calls but life gets busy… and the calls are more infrequent…
Then Cody is shocked when an email arrives from Meg telling Cody that by the time she read the message, it is already too late.
And it is.
Cody is confused by her friends suicide. What signs did she miss? When Cody goes to Meg’s college to collect her things she learns a lot more about the girl she thought she knew. As Cody looks through Meg’s laptop she finds things that may be clues, including an encrypted file in the recycle bin that may hold more that Cody bargained for.
I enjoyed listening to I Was Here on audio. This book deals with the hard subject of suicide and what happens after to those who are left behind. Jorjeana Marie was an excellent narrator for this book, she held the right voice.
The basic story line of this book is good and I think author Gayle Forman in on the right track with Cody discovering a side to her friend she didn’t know existed, however some things did not work for me in the story.
Meg’s parents come off as distant and I get grief, but the fact that they did not go to the college themselves to pick up Meg’s things seemed odd.
Cody’s actions throughout the book are off as well. I felt as though in the end I knew Meg more than I knew Cody.
Do not get me wrong, I did like I Was Here as a whole. It tells a good story of a major loss. I was very impressed with the epilogue which included the author giving a statement on suicide as well as help lines(including phone numbers!) for those who are having suicidal thoughts.
While I did not fully connect with the book, it was a good listen.
Gayle Forman is also the author of the book If I Stay which this last year was a major motion picture.
- Listening Length: 7 hours and 42 minutes
- Program Type: Audiobook
- Version: Unabridged
- Publisher: Listening Library
- Audible.com Release Date: January 27, 2015
Book Journey 
I’ve read IF I STAY and WHERE SHE WENT, and wondered about picking up the rest of her books. Someday. After I put a sizable dent in the pile I have now, of course. 🙂
I have read those two books as well. 😀
I recently loved IF I Stay and have Where She Went on my iPad. I am a new fan of Gale Forman. However, I would not expect novels to be equally as good. Thanks for your great review Sheila.
I like her too Pat. This one was good, I just had some questions 😀
looks like another gut-wrenching masterpiece from the Gayle herself 🙂 I was only able to read If I stay a couple of years ago. I’ll check this one out.
Yes – excellent topic.
This sounds like a touching novel about a very serious subject. I’m glad it lists resources at the end of the book. Thanks for your honest review, Sheila.
I was impressed with the resources too. She talks about the seriousness of depression and suicide. It is well done.
How does this compare with Jay Asher’s 13 Reasons Why? This sounds like a not-as-good version.
No comparison. 13 Reasons Why was so much clearer as to what was going on. Excellent question, I forgot about how much I enjoyed 13 Reasons Why.
I happen to be listening to I Was Here on audio right now myself!
I am enjoying it – it has more depth than I expected, and I like the added mystery element in addition to the emotional drama that I expected. This is the first Gayle Forman book I have read/listened to.
Sue
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