charmaineac's review against another edition
4.0
This book is not just one anything -- it's about everything. Gayle Forman knows how to express emotions with such commanding authority, and I leave feeling as if I've woken up from a dream. Forman's writing is breathtakingly poetic.
This is a book about coincidences. It's about fate. I had to flip through Just One Day to refresh my mind before reading this book, and I'm glad I did. There were so many glimpses, so many moments of what could have been, but wasn't. So many missed opportunities, from connecting with Patricia Foley to the unseen postcards. I'm glad I got this other perspective, because it showed that these two people were searching for each other all this time. It was crazy to think how often being at certain places at certain times made all the difference. It was amazing to think how much of his life was influenced by his decisions to take the wheel or to let go of his opportunities.
This book is about love. Perhaps it took more than a little suspension of disbelief to think one day could make such an impact on both these individuals; that they never really gave up. But I loved how Forman paired this with Willem's parents' love story, making it so much more familiar and grounded. Love is a strange thing, and it can creep up when you least expect it.
This book is about discovery. Self-discovery, and discovery of worlds unknown. I loved following Willem on his travels, even though he stopped gallivanting around Europe and instead was searching for home. Paris was reminiscent. Mexico was vibrant. India was alive. And Holland was home -- although perhaps only for a certain time in his life. Really, theatre was his community, and I loved seeing him go back to acting (in various forms: putting on a mask in real life, acting in Bollywood, and taking hold of Shakespeare).
I kind of wished this book had picked up from where the other one left off. A bit of it felt redundant, because I was reading the same story from the other side of the coin. I'm glad Kate was explained, but I wish there was some insight on the mysterious Wren in the previous book. Knowing Willem's future plans, I rest assured that Willem and Allyson will find their double happiness together -- but I wish I got to see some of it rather than the journey towards their reconciliation for a second time.
This is a book about coincidences. It's about fate. I had to flip through Just One Day to refresh my mind before reading this book, and I'm glad I did. There were so many glimpses, so many moments of what could have been, but wasn't. So many missed opportunities, from connecting with Patricia Foley to the unseen postcards. I'm glad I got this other perspective, because it showed that these two people were searching for each other all this time. It was crazy to think how often being at certain places at certain times made all the difference. It was amazing to think how much of his life was influenced by his decisions to take the wheel or to let go of his opportunities.
This book is about love. Perhaps it took more than a little suspension of disbelief to think one day could make such an impact on both these individuals; that they never really gave up. But I loved how Forman paired this with Willem's parents' love story, making it so much more familiar and grounded. Love is a strange thing, and it can creep up when you least expect it.
This book is about discovery. Self-discovery, and discovery of worlds unknown. I loved following Willem on his travels, even though he stopped gallivanting around Europe and instead was searching for home. Paris was reminiscent. Mexico was vibrant. India was alive. And Holland was home -- although perhaps only for a certain time in his life. Really, theatre was his community, and I loved seeing him go back to acting (in various forms: putting on a mask in real life, acting in Bollywood, and taking hold of Shakespeare).
I kind of wished this book had picked up from where the other one left off. A bit of it felt redundant, because I was reading the same story from the other side of the coin. I'm glad Kate was explained, but I wish there was some insight on the mysterious Wren in the previous book. Knowing Willem's future plans, I rest assured that Willem and Allyson will find their double happiness together -- but I wish I got to see some of it rather than the journey towards their reconciliation for a second time.
sottola99's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
gingerkaty's review against another edition
4.0
this book makes you think. mostly about double happiness.
octobertune's review against another edition
4.0
Read this review, and many more on my blog October Tune!
“Have you been gone for so long you’ve forgotten how to drink and drive a bike? How can you even call yourself Dutch anymore?”
In Just One Day, we read the story of Allyson, aka ‘Lulu’, who has an amazing day in Paris with the Dutch Willem. But the next morning, she wakes up all alone, Willem is nowhere to be found. Throughout the rest of the book, Allyson tries to both forget and find Willem, and at the end of the book we see that she does. But what has Willem done in that year? The answer to that question will be answered in Just One Year, the same story but from Willem’s point of view. We read of his journey to find his ‘Lulu’ again, of his travels and his acting. Of his friends, his (potential) lovers, and of his parents. If you haven’t read Just One Day, this review might have some minor spoilers.
I loved Just One Day, and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the sequel. But like so many other sequels, I postponed buying/reading Just One Year for a while. Not as long as normally, sometimes it takes me months or even years to read the following book in a series, but this time it only took me about five/six months. Still, that’s quite a while, but for me it’s short! Like I probably said before, I am not a huge fan of romance books, but JOD and JOY both grabbed me right from the start. Maybe it was the fact that Willem is Dutch, like me, and all the mentions of Dutch things, such as hagelslag, broodjes and a ‘white tower that looks like a giant penis’. But of course, I just liked way the story was written as well!
What I liked:
I liked all the traveling. Willem loves traveling, and he hates being stuck in one place for too long. But due to certain circumstances he stays in Amsterdam and/or Utrecht for at least half of the book. The other half, he is traveling to Mexico, to Mumbai, and not entirely without reason. He is trying to find his Lulu, but he doesn’t remember her real name. I personally thought all the Dutch things were very well written, because it happens a lot that when someone wants to show that a person is Dutch and they do it all wrong (by making them sound German mostly). This book actually corrects that (there have been a couple of times where Willem told people that he’s Dutch, not German). A tiny pet peeve of mine, is that they kept calling the Netherlands ‘Holland’. Yes, that might be a bit easier to type than ‘The Netherlands’ the entire time, but Holland really is just two of the provinces (North and South Holland).
We meet a lot of new characters in this book, including some of Willem’s friends. Robert-Jan, aka Broodje (sandwhich) was my favourite. He’s Willem’s best friend, and he’s just really awesome. In JOD he is described as a Hobbit, and that is what I pictured the entire time I read JOY; a Dutch hobbit named Broodje. There is also Henk and W, who is dating Lien, and a lot of other Dutch characters. All the Dutch names just made me incredibly happy, and also made me laugh out loud because it made me wonder how non-Dutch people were pronouncing them in their heads. There are also some of Willem’s ex girlfriends (or well, not sure if they were really girlfriends or just ‘flings’) and there was one in particular which just made me cringe. And there are the people that Willem meets on his new journeys, including Kate, which is my favourite. She helped him near the end of the book, for the play in het Vondelpark, where Allyson went to see him near the end of JOD.
I have to admit, I am a bit jealous of Willem, because he’s able to just travel anywhere he wants, whenever he wants. I wish I could do that sometimes, just pack a bag with just some clothes, money, a toothbrush, my phone, maybe a notebook and a camera, and just randomly pick a place to go to. Because that is what Willem was doing – or was planning on doing – at the beginning of the book. Though he is a traveler, he spends at least half of the story in the Netherlands, mostly in Amsterdam or Utrecht, but that didn’t bother me a lot, because I just loved reading about my country from the perspective of someone who wasn’t from here (I mean the author, of course). I have to say it again, Gayle Forman did a great job.
The writing in JOY was very good, but I hadn’t expected anything else. I loved JOD and If I Stay (still need to read Where She Went though, oops). It was so well written, that it took me less than twelve hours to finish the book, something I haven’t had in a while, I think.
What I didn’t like:
I have to say, there weren’t really things I disliked about this book, apart from the fact that sometimes Allyson and Willem were so close to seeing each other again, and then they didn’t. It actually made me a bit sad, haha. Also, the ending was quite disappointing, in my opinion (and I think almost everyone who’s read the book agrees with me). Because (spoiler? I think), it ends just the same as Just One Day, with them finding each other again in Amsterdam and that’s it. End of story. But, in answer to that, Gayle Forman has written ‘Just One Night’ a 40 page novella about what happens after this book, and I am reading it right now!
Conclusion:
I loved Just One Year, absolutely loved it. Together with the first book, I think this series made me want to read more (well written) romance books. Yes, you heard it right, I am starting to like romance more, all thanks to Willem and Allyson (even though their relationship was kind of insta-love, which is still something I despise). If you want to read a nice story about love, one that is not a trilogy, you should definitely read Just One Day and Just One Year!
“Have you been gone for so long you’ve forgotten how to drink and drive a bike? How can you even call yourself Dutch anymore?”
In Just One Day, we read the story of Allyson, aka ‘Lulu’, who has an amazing day in Paris with the Dutch Willem. But the next morning, she wakes up all alone, Willem is nowhere to be found. Throughout the rest of the book, Allyson tries to both forget and find Willem, and at the end of the book we see that she does. But what has Willem done in that year? The answer to that question will be answered in Just One Year, the same story but from Willem’s point of view. We read of his journey to find his ‘Lulu’ again, of his travels and his acting. Of his friends, his (potential) lovers, and of his parents. If you haven’t read Just One Day, this review might have some minor spoilers.
I loved Just One Day, and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the sequel. But like so many other sequels, I postponed buying/reading Just One Year for a while. Not as long as normally, sometimes it takes me months or even years to read the following book in a series, but this time it only took me about five/six months. Still, that’s quite a while, but for me it’s short! Like I probably said before, I am not a huge fan of romance books, but JOD and JOY both grabbed me right from the start. Maybe it was the fact that Willem is Dutch, like me, and all the mentions of Dutch things, such as hagelslag, broodjes and a ‘white tower that looks like a giant penis’. But of course, I just liked way the story was written as well!
What I liked:
I liked all the traveling. Willem loves traveling, and he hates being stuck in one place for too long. But due to certain circumstances he stays in Amsterdam and/or Utrecht for at least half of the book. The other half, he is traveling to Mexico, to Mumbai, and not entirely without reason. He is trying to find his Lulu, but he doesn’t remember her real name. I personally thought all the Dutch things were very well written, because it happens a lot that when someone wants to show that a person is Dutch and they do it all wrong (by making them sound German mostly). This book actually corrects that (there have been a couple of times where Willem told people that he’s Dutch, not German). A tiny pet peeve of mine, is that they kept calling the Netherlands ‘Holland’. Yes, that might be a bit easier to type than ‘The Netherlands’ the entire time, but Holland really is just two of the provinces (North and South Holland).
We meet a lot of new characters in this book, including some of Willem’s friends. Robert-Jan, aka Broodje (sandwhich) was my favourite. He’s Willem’s best friend, and he’s just really awesome. In JOD he is described as a Hobbit, and that is what I pictured the entire time I read JOY; a Dutch hobbit named Broodje. There is also Henk and W, who is dating Lien, and a lot of other Dutch characters. All the Dutch names just made me incredibly happy, and also made me laugh out loud because it made me wonder how non-Dutch people were pronouncing them in their heads. There are also some of Willem’s ex girlfriends (or well, not sure if they were really girlfriends or just ‘flings’) and there was one in particular which just made me cringe. And there are the people that Willem meets on his new journeys, including Kate, which is my favourite. She helped him near the end of the book, for the play in het Vondelpark, where Allyson went to see him near the end of JOD.
I have to admit, I am a bit jealous of Willem, because he’s able to just travel anywhere he wants, whenever he wants. I wish I could do that sometimes, just pack a bag with just some clothes, money, a toothbrush, my phone, maybe a notebook and a camera, and just randomly pick a place to go to. Because that is what Willem was doing – or was planning on doing – at the beginning of the book. Though he is a traveler, he spends at least half of the story in the Netherlands, mostly in Amsterdam or Utrecht, but that didn’t bother me a lot, because I just loved reading about my country from the perspective of someone who wasn’t from here (I mean the author, of course). I have to say it again, Gayle Forman did a great job.
The writing in JOY was very good, but I hadn’t expected anything else. I loved JOD and If I Stay (still need to read Where She Went though, oops). It was so well written, that it took me less than twelve hours to finish the book, something I haven’t had in a while, I think.
What I didn’t like:
I have to say, there weren’t really things I disliked about this book, apart from the fact that sometimes Allyson and Willem were so close to seeing each other again, and then they didn’t. It actually made me a bit sad, haha. Also, the ending was quite disappointing, in my opinion (and I think almost everyone who’s read the book agrees with me). Because (spoiler? I think), it ends just the same as Just One Day, with them finding each other again in Amsterdam and that’s it. End of story. But, in answer to that, Gayle Forman has written ‘Just One Night’ a 40 page novella about what happens after this book, and I am reading it right now!
Conclusion:
I loved Just One Year, absolutely loved it. Together with the first book, I think this series made me want to read more (well written) romance books. Yes, you heard it right, I am starting to like romance more, all thanks to Willem and Allyson (even though their relationship was kind of insta-love, which is still something I despise). If you want to read a nice story about love, one that is not a trilogy, you should definitely read Just One Day and Just One Year!
jenbsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
So ... NOT a sequel. This doesn't pick up where the first book left off, in fact, it ends in almost exactly the same spot! But I really liked it. The first book had Part 1 ... the "One Day" of the book title, and then Part 2, where we jump one year later, following Allyson's life and search, until the end of the book. This book, starts right where Part 1 ends ... and we follow Willem for that year, until the end of book 1 and the end of book 2 come together.
It was good to get Willem's perspective, and back story, and little peeks at things we were aware of from the "Just One Day" story.
It is NOT the end ... there is a novella which will hopefully bring this to a conclusion!
It was good to get Willem's perspective, and back story, and little peeks at things we were aware of from the "Just One Day" story.
It is NOT the end ... there is a novella which will hopefully bring this to a conclusion!
hanne's review against another edition
4.0
Definetly what I needed after reading Just One Day. Well done Gayle Forman.
booksandpajamas's review against another edition
5.0
“There’s a difference between losing something you knew you had and losing something you discovered you had. One is a disappointment. The other feels like losing a piece of yourself.”
In the first story we follow Allyson Healey, also known as Lulu. In this story, we follow Willem.
Willem's a player and has never been in love before. He has fallen in love though, as he's said to Allyson, he just didn't stay in love. But with Allyson he realizes it's different. He is stained, as he calls it and it won't come off.
I thought this was a wonderful story. Especially because Willem has never been in love before and he realizes he now is. He doesn't feel like himself anymore and he can't get Lulu out of his head. So, as the noble thing to do, he goes on this journey, just like Allyson, to find her. During the journey he realizes it's harder than he'd imagined, because he has absolutely no lead. Only a name he gave to her. We follow him all the way through the year, just like we did with Allyson. We see him change.
“Accidents. It's all about the accidents.”
This is the main thing in the book. Willem is a true believer of accidents. He thinks it was an accident he and Allyson spent that day in Paris, but actually it was just his decision to stay one more day abroad. His decision to show Allyson Paris.
Somehow it felt like fate let them to each other and fate that kept them away from each other. Like Wolfgang and Kate told them in the book. They just weren't ready to see each other.
Forman did a great job! The book literally swallowed me up, because I just wanted to keep reading. Such an extraordinary story. Brilliant.
analovesboo's review
4.0
Really excited for the 3rd book.
Was going to wait for the portuguese version, as I've read the first two in portuguese, but, honestly, I'm thinking of just going with the original.
Gayle Forman never disappoints.
Was going to wait for the portuguese version, as I've read the first two in portuguese, but, honestly, I'm thinking of just going with the original.
Gayle Forman never disappoints.