Before I Fall, Early Chapters, 1-2

[Rachel-K]

Hi all,

Please use any of the following questions to kick off our discussion of Before I Fall. Feel free to post your own questions and ideas for the rest of the group, too!

Please remember that this thread only covers the first two chapters!

What kind of person is Sam? What do we know about her family? Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress?

She and her friends go to great effort to fit in perfectly. How does Sam really fit in with this crowd?

Do we learn things about each Lindsay, Ally and Elody that make them individual and not so cookie-cutter perfect?

Lindsay's self proclaimed "theme song" is "No More Drama" by Mary J. Blige. Does this fit her?

What does Sam's longstanding--although estranged--friendship with Kent tell you about her?

If you were Sam, do you think there is one friend you would confide in when you woke up to start Friday the 12th over again?

[Zia01]

What kind of person is Sam? What do we know about her family? Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress? Sam is very self involved. The kind of girl you hate in high school. They treat everyone around them like dirt and get away with it. At the same time I see something a little different in Sam, a better person but who doesn't have the guts to let her show.

She and her friends go to great effort to fit in perfectly. How does Sam really fit in with this crowd? I think she fits in just fine on the outside. The inside I can't pinpoint it, I want to loathe this char but I see something in her somewhere.

Do we learn things about each Lindsay, Ally and Elody that make them individual and not so cookie-cutter perfect? Definitely! They all have one skeleton or another plaguing them.

What does Sam's longstanding--although estranged--friendship with Kent tell you about her? I think Sam really like's him deep down but is too afraid to be outed by her friends. Her need to fit in with her crowd is more important.

If you were Sam, do you think there is one friend you would confide in when you woke up to start Friday the 12th over again? I think Kent might be the only one who would even let her get past go. The others would laugh in her face.

[flarglepuf]

I absolutely agree with the "really really want to hate her, but see a glimmer of hope" thing.  She and her cronies seem absolutely self-absorbed, and the worst part is that I know many people like this.  However, I do feel a little sorry for her when Rob acts horribly to her at the party.  Sure they're both incredibly superficial, but no one deserves that kind of treatment.

I think we can see that Sam doesn't quite fit in perfectly into the crowd, especially at the party.

I also think that Sam is no longer good friends with Kent, not of her own choice, but because Lindsay, Ally, and Elody made her ditch him.  This is another reason I might almost feel sorry for her.

One more thing, and I know it's not the fault of either the character or the author, but I was incredibly annoyed by how clueless Sam was in the second chapter.  The fact that it took her until the end of the day to realize she was reliving the same day, when that was the first thing I knew about the story was just irking.

[momofprecious1]

What kind of person is Sam? The first word that comes to mind that describes Sam is "Shallow"! From the beginning of the book I could tell that she was not going to be very likable. I know that she is a teenager (most not all act this way toward their siblings) but it realy bothered me how mean she treated her little sister Izzy when all she was trying to do was remind her to take her gloves. When Sam finally realizes that she is reliving Cupid day you can tell she starts to appreciate the people in her life a bit more because of the accident.

She and her friends go to great effort to fit in perfectly. How does Sam really fit in with this crowd? Sam fits in just because she goes along with everything that Lindsay says or does. Lindsay is the ring leader in the group & the prettiest one of the girls so this automatically makes her popular. I am happy to see that after the accident Sam starts to realize who she really is & decides to start changing for the better.

Lindsay's self proclaimed "theme song" is "No More Drama" by Mary J. Blige. Does this fit her? Yes, because Lindsay is all about drama or starting drama.

What does Sam's longstanding--although estranged--friendship with Kent tell you about her? I think she really wants to be friends with Kent but can't (or won't) because it would ruin her reputation with her best friends. In her eyes, he is a total nerd & she would be ridiculed by her friends if she decided to be friends with Kent.

[Facepalm]

What kind of person is Sam? What do we know about her family? Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress?

 Sam seems to be someone who really could be nice deep down inside, but she hides it and does whatever she has to to fit in. We know that she has a younger sister who she seems to push away most of the time, even though the sister really loves her. Nothing about her has been surprising. She seems to be a typical stuck-up, "in-crowd" girl.

She and her friends go to great effort to fit in perfectly. How does Sam really fit in with this crowd?

 She only fits in, as far as I can tell, because she wants to be popular, just like the rest of them do. I don't think she's really quite as cold hearted as the rest of them, but she is enough that she's willing to hurt other people to stay on top.

Do we learn things about each Lindsay, Ally and Elody that make them individual and not so cookie-cutter perfect?

 They're alike in several different ways, but they seem to have just enough personality to make them distinguishable.

What does Sam's longstanding--although estranged--friendship with Kent tell you about her?

 That she would do anything to be popular, even abandon a long-time, not to mention true, friend. He's the only person who really gets her, and wouldn't judge her.

If you were Sam, do you think there is one friend you would confide in when you woke up to start Friday the 12th over again?

No. They'd think you're insane and put you in an asylum. On the plus side, you wouldn't die in the car crash.

[Millersville_U…]

I know everyone is really not going to like this, but, I like this Sam in day 1 and 2. Every character that I've read in the other books is always the hero and has a happy look, with some sort of problem, and chases his or her way to the end. I hope and pray Sam is not like that, because then the book would just be like every other one. I love how Sam is so different from the other 'heroes' in teen novels who have the good friends and the loving guy. Instead she has this bad group and a horndog of a boyfriend! I love it!

But I'm a pessimist person like that so that's how I just see it.

If I could relive a day and tell somebody I wouldn't want to tell anybody. Although I am already crazy, I wouldn't want to be put in an asylum, although I feel that's right around the corner, just kidding.

[Christalina_St…]

Sam is one of those girls that act perfect and makes sure everyone thinks they are perfect. But really they aren't perfect, they are just like you and me but with their head in the clouds. She believes that in order to have people like you and enjoy your presence is to have power and popularity. Even if that means bullying others and pushing them down.

I don't think that the song "No more drama" fits Lindsay. She basically lives off drama. She is a drama sucker. Its like in order to have happiness in life she has to start trouble and screw up other peoples lives.

I believe that Sam does not fit in with that type of crowd because as the chapters progress, you start to see her weaknesses and emotional side and you can tell she has a soft side that does not stand for any of that drama. She use to be just like those kids that they make fun of and she knows what its like and I know she doesn't like it.

If I were Sam I would confide in Kent. I would put aside the so called "differences" that seem to separate the highschool students into groups with social standards. I would be up front and apologize for the way I have acted in the past years and agree that I was cold hearted and that I didn't care what the jocks or cheerleaders thought anymore and that I needed help. I wouldn't keep doing the stupidest things over and over again.

[Bethie2]

Sam like to be popular.  She hasn't always been as popular as she is now.  I think she is the kind of person who follows what others do.  She feels like if she doesn't follow, she won't be part of the in crowd.  I don't think she really fits in as well as she pretends to.  At one time, Sam was close to Kent.  She didn't always care about what people think.   Kent would be the person I confide it after I woke up from the accident.

[horsefreak13]

In the first two chapters, Sam is always caught up in herself and popularity. She never thinks for anyone else, only for herself and her friends. The theme song I think is kind of ironic because they cause all the drama and snotty attitude in the school. They are always so mean to everyone and never care about anything but them. If I was Sam, I would have a multitude of friends to wake up to. Being in her position I would be mortally horrified of what's happened to me and that I'm still alive. But my friends would be with me through the end and I have them to thank for that! Sam's friendship with Kent seems a bit odd in the beginning. I could definitely see some potential for both of them being together and I think that they would make a cute couple.

[Lizzy96]

I don't think the song "No More Drama" describes Lindsay because she is the type of girl that just looks for drama in her life and in other people's lives. she seems to love drama because it makes life more interesting. if she is going to parties and trying to have the most flowers on cupid day and she wants to drive home drunk and things like that, obviously she knows that drama is the core neccessity of her life. so if her song if "No More Drama", that dosent describe her life, it describes her greatest fear, in my opinion.

[bootzie_bday]

Sam seems like she can be nice, but she acts like she's too far down in her lifestyle to change her appearance (to become nice). It's never too late, though!  She's popular and shallow, pretending like she doesn't care. If I were to go through the same day over and over, and knew I was going to die because of a fire from a cigarette in a car--I'd make throw the cigarette pack out the window! Then, Elody wouldn't be able to use the cigarette and make the fire of the car. I can't wait for what happens next!

[-Cia-]

What kind of person is sam?What do we know about her family?Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress? Sam is the kind of person who is really self-centered and one of the 'popular' people in school She and her friends do everything to be with the in-crowd. However, I think that Sam really wants to just not worry about fitting in and pleasing her friends. She just can't find it in her to stand up to them for once. I can really tell that she tries her hardest to fit, but it's also noticable that she still doesn't belong in this group of people. There is someone nice inside of Sam, but she only lets people see the mean and bitter side. She's pretending to be someone she's not and hopefully she'll realize this and get out of this bad crowd.

[breathless]

What kind of person is Sam? What do we know about her family? Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress? It's very obvious what kind of person Sam is in the first couple of chapters; she's very self-absorbed, thinks little of others, beyond what they will think of what she's wearing, and what she wants more than anything is to fit in with her friends.

She and her friends go to great effort to fit in perfectly. How does Sam really fit in with this crowd? .Sam and her friends fit in with a small portion of any school; the fakers. The ones who want you to believe that they are really perfect in every way, even though they're obviously not. These people believe that they're the king of the hill, and don't seem to have noticed that everyone else loathes them. i guess what I'm trying to say is that she fits in with only a small portion of the school community.

Do we learn things about each Lindsay, Ally and Elody that make them individual and not so cookie-cutter perfect? Yes. Even in the first few pages, you can see that all of them have something that they buried under layers of makeup and expensive clothes, though it's not immediately obvious what.

What does Sam's longstanding--although estranged--friendship with Kent tell you about her? I think that this shows the true Sam. She really wants to be real friends with Kent, but its obvious that she can't because her friends wouldn't.

If you were Sam, do you think there is one friend you would confide in when you woke up to start Friday the 12th over again? No, I really don't think that I would tell anyone, nor that confiding in anyone would help. Besides, for the entire first day, Sam is convinced that she is having a rather strong case of deja-vu.

[stopper19]

What does Sam's longstanding, although estranged, friendship with Kent tell you about her? Well first of all it tells you that she is very shallow and cares WAY to much about what other people think about her. It said that Sam used to be best friends with Kent but then she started to become popular and no longer felt like she could be friends with Kent. She was so focused on being popular and fitting in that she just left Kent in her tracks. This shows us that in the beginning of the book she was just focused on herself and that she was too shallow to realize that Kent was her only true friend even if he was "different" than everybody else.

[DSaff]

As I finished the first chapter, I wasn't sure I would find anything redeeming about Sam. But, by the end of chapter 2, I was feeing sorry for her, so I guess that is a step forward. <grin>

Sam wants to be liked. It is essential for her to fit in and her friendships hinge on who is the right person to hang with. That leads to big problems - drinking, dangerous driving, meanness to others, etc. She also doesn't seem to have time for her family, choosing to stay away from them, or shoo away her sister. A part of me doesn't want to believe that Sam is this shallow, or her friends either for that matter. I want to believe that she can change, that she is good-hearted deep down, and can affect a change in her friends. I guess I will see more as I read the next section.

Drama seems to be the main focus of their lives, although these girls don't think so. The matching outfits, music, desire for the roses, and mean comments made at others publicly, show that they want to have everyone looking at them.They are following each other, yet, I hope there are redeeming qualities in all of them!

Kent seems to want to fit in, hence the keg party. But, I don't really think that is his personality. He isn't in the "in" crowd, but this is a way to get them all at his house. Is this really just a way to get Sam there? Kent seems to genuinely care about Sam, something she needs to pay attention to.

I do have a friend or two I would talk to if I was reliving a day. I am hoping that Kent is Sam's quality friend.

[kpatton]

I believe that Sam is on the edge of her group.  She sees some of their flaws and she isn't always happy with the way they treat each other and others.  Sam doesn't however want to risk no being popular and challenging any of this.  I keep thinking that this dejavu experience may help her to see that life can be short and to value what is important in life.

If I were Sam, and Friday the 12th started over, I don't think I would feel comfortable confiding in anyone.  It would just be too wierd.  How could you ever try to explain what you were experiencing to anyone- no matter how close you were to them?

Kathy

---

Rachel-K wrote:

Hi all,

Please use any of the following questions to kick off our discussion of Before I Fall. Feel free to post your own questions and ideas for the rest of the group, too!

Please remember that this thread only covers the first two chapters!

What kind of person is Sam? What do we know about her family? Do we learn anything surprising about her as these first two chapters progress?

If you were Sam, do you think there is one friend you would confide in when you woke up to start Friday the 12th over again?

---

[Facepalm]

---

Millersville_U_Queen11 wrote:

I know everyone is really not going to like this, but, I like this Sam in day 1 and 2. Every character that I've read in the other books is always the hero and has a happy look, with some sort of problem, and chases his or her way to the end. I hope and pray Sam is not like that, because then the book would just be like every other one. I love how Sam is so different from the other 'heroes' in teen novels who have the good friends and the loving guy. Instead she has this bad group and a horndog of a boyfriend! I love it!

But I'm a pessimist person like that so that's how I just see it.

If I could relive a day and tell somebody I wouldn't want to tell anybody. Although I am already crazy, I wouldn't want to be put in an asylum, although I feel that's right around the corner, just kidding.

---

I agree, actually. I couldn't feel too mad at her because really, she isn't that different from so many people I've met in school. Also, as far as all the popular girls in this story go, Sam seems to be the nicest. She only purposely put someone down once each day, and that was Juliet Sykes.

[kpatton]

flarglepuf- I thought some of Sam's "cluelessness" in the second chapter was very appropriate for a teenager.  I'm not sure any of us would put all of the pieces together quickly.  Who would believe that you were living a day over and that this was a day when you would die?

Kathy

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flarglepuf wrote:

I absolutely agree with the "really really want to hate her, but see a glimmer of hope" thing.  She and her cronies seem absolutely self-absorbed, and the worst part is that I know many people like this.  However, I do feel a little sorry for her when Rob acts horribly to her at the party.  Sure they're both incredibly superficial, but no one deserves that kind of treatment.

I think we can see that Sam doesn't quite fit in perfectly into the crowd, especially at the party.

I also think that Sam is no longer good friends with Kent, not of her own choice, but because Lindsay, Ally, and Elody made her ditch him.  This is another reason I might almost feel sorry for her.

One more thing, and I know it's not the fault of either the character or the author, but I was incredibly annoyed by how clueless Sam was in the second chapter.  The fact that it took her until the end of the day to realize she was reliving the same day, when that was the first thing I knew about the story was just irking.

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[kpatton]

I'm glad you like Sam and said so.  I definitely see her as a character that feels real.  Those teen years are such a struggle!  I can't quite go so far as to say I like Sam, but I certainly don't dislike her.

Kathy

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Millersville_U_Queen11 wrote:

I know everyone is really not going to like this, but, I like this Sam in day 1 and 2. Every character that I've read in the other books is always the hero and has a happy look, with some sort of problem, and chases his or her way to the end. I hope and pray Sam is not like that, because then the book would just be like every other one. I love how Sam is so different from the other 'heroes' in teen novels who have the good friends and the loving guy. Instead she has this bad group and a horndog of a boyfriend! I love it!

But I'm a pessimist person like that so that's how I just see it.

If I could relive a day and tell somebody I wouldn't want to tell anybody. Although I am already crazy, I wouldn't want to be put in an asylum, although I feel that's right around the corner, just kidding.

---

[thewanderingjew]

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Rachel-K wrote:

Feel free to post your own questions and ideas for the rest of the group, too!

Okay, I may ask this question again, when the author comes on, but until then, I was wondering, does anyone know how a book is designated for young adults? I realize the book is about teenagers and the problems they face, but it seems appropriate for a wider range of readers.
I have read several YA books and they all engaged me and did not seem to be written for a single audience...i.e, The Hunger Games, Chasing Fire, The Book Thief, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas...and now this, Before I Fall. All of these covered themes that could easily be enjoyed by older readers as well.
Is it because the main characters are young?
Is it simply easier to get published in this genre?
Is it about shelf space?
Does anyone know?