Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Description: 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. Goodreads

Wins:

• What I loved most about this book were the places. England, France, Holland, and others. Forman has such a way with settings, literally putting you into these place. It makes me want to travel, to get lost in another country on purpose. That is not an easy feat. 
• Just One Day isn't about travel nor is it really about romance. It is however about finding out just who you really are, who you are away from your friends, family, out of your comfort zone. Allyson is forced to face her true self, to figure out that self of hers. 
• Allyson- Timid, scared, and totally lost. She was lost on who she was and what she wanted. A confused and lonely person, who can't relate to that?
• Willem- He is the catalyst in this story. He tears down everything that Allyson thought was set in stone in her life. He changes her whole life in one day. Of course he's totally adorable even if half the time you aren't sure if he's a total player or a sweetheart. 
• The friends that Allyson makes on her journey are some crazy awesome people. These are all her guides pushing and pulling her in the right direction. 
• Forman presents Allyson with the idea of 'accidents', or in other words coincidences. I loved how all these little accidents played into the story. 
• "The sound is clear and strong as a bell, and it fills me with joy, and it's like, for the first time in my life, I understand that this is the point of laughter, to spread happiness." (pg 83 in the ARC)

Overview: A coming of age, nay a coming of self story, about a girl, the boy she loved, and just one day. I am seriously ecstatic to read Willem's point of view, Just One Year! I wasn't kidding when I said I want to travel because of this book. I think I'll start with England...

-Kare Out-