Short and sweet. The story was heartbreaking and beautifully told, but I feel like I've heard it before. ( )

The disparate feelings in the midst of tragedy are explored here: confusion, grief, any opposite of grief, a desire for routine, inappropriate thoughts and actions. And not just within the family but others affected as well. This book acknowledges the many ways of dealing with tragedy and does so in a way that's real, reassuring and hopeful. ( )

I’ve seen this game played a ton of times… Would you rather give up books for 10 years or never hear music again? Would you rather or . But this book is no game, in Would you, the main character is faced with the question of:

Would you rather know what's going to happen or not know?

Would you by Marthe Jocelyn takes place one fateful week Natalie’s world is turned upside down when her sister Claire suffers a horrific tragedy. It was the summer of new beginnings for Claire; she had just graduated high school, was on her way to college, but not before she made a decision to break-up with her boyfriend and walk home only to be struck by a car and slip into a coma.

This story explores the bond between sisters; the value of family and friendships; the grief that parents experience when their children are hurt; but most importantly, the fragility of life and how easily one moment can change the rest of your life. However, as the story progresses, you can help but continue to ask yourself… if you could, would you want to know what was going to happen even though you couldn’t change the end result? How would that change what you choose to do before that turning point?

I knew this story involved a tragedy, but I made some assumptions based on the art cover and the beginning of the story. Either way, when that scene occurred it was pretty harsh. It was definitely a journey filled with daunting possibilities. I don’t know how anyone who is a mother, sister, or even a friend can read this book without coming undone. Very emotional and definitely not an escape type book.( ( )

To be honest, this book would not have been on my radar were it not one of the Sequoyah nominated books. It’s a decent story about a family dealing with tragedy, but it doesn’t pack quite the punch that other books tackling this subject do.
Claire and Natalie’s sibling relationship is completely believable. They aren’t the best of friends, but neither are they at each other’s throats all the time. Natalie has trusted Claire with some big secrets, just as Claire has trusted Natalie, but of course they have secrets from each other, too. When Claire’s accident happens, Natalie is at a loss for how to live without the sister she’s always known.
I’m not sure if it’s that the book is so short or if it’s just because it is so focused on Natalie’s life in the days following the accident, but the characters lacked depth. I could empathize with the situation, but it didn’t feel very personal. The strong points of the book are the times when Natalie sits with Claire at the hospital and talks with her, reminiscing or expressing her sadness at the situation. Maybe it was the change in the narrative – from first-person present to second-person present – but in those visits I felt more of a connection with Natalie than at any other time.
This was a quick read for me, and the organization of the story made it easy for me to keep reading. While it does a good job of telling what a family might experience in a situation like this, it didn’t have a strong emotional impact. ( )

In Would You by Marthe Jocelyn, a Sequoyah Award nominee for high school, Natalie and her friends play an endless game of “Would you rather…” – “Would you rather lose all of your hair or all of your teeth?” They also engage in pool hopping, finding swimming pools in backyards and taking a quick dip before being caught by the owners. They work summer jobs, and bicycle around town. All of that changes when Natalie’s older sister Claire is hit by a car.
Natalie and her friends are likeable, believable characters. They are not the coolest kids in school and they aren’t troubled. This novel takes the reader inside a normal family in crisis. It also allows us to see how an average girl reacts to extraordinary circumstances. ( )