STAY AWAKE, AGATHA BOOK REVIEW

A BOOK REVIEW OF THE STORY

STAY AWAKE, AGATHE (2018) BY SERIALSLEEPER

*The story’s genre is fiction and romance novel. It was about two special teenagers, Agatha and Cooper, fighting for their ill-fated love. A little background, Agatha suffers from an illness called “Kleine-Levin Syndrome”, a disorder characterized by persistent episodic hypersomnia which means a person who has this illness needs an excessive amount of sleep and food intake. While Cooper has Multiple Myeloma Blood Cancer, a cancer of plasma cells, a growing of too many plasma cells. Either of them wanted to live a normal life despite their illnesses. In a hospital where Agatha met Cooper, a boy who’s naughty and idiotic. Cooper drew on Agatha’s face while she was asleep, and Agatha suddenly woke up, and when she did, she asked for Cooper’s name and went home. This was the first meeting of the two teenagers, it was unexpected yet special. For me it was not a coincidence that Agatha suddenly woke up when Cooper had finished drawing on her face, it was for a reason.

7 years later, Agatha was again confined in the hospital. For those 7 years, Cooper did not leave the hospital because he needed continuous treatment for his cancer.  They met again, but this time they had a chance to get to know each other and become close to each other. Eventually, they become lovers.

            The doctors had developed a medicine for Agatha’s illness, yet it is still not 100% safe and proven. They proposed to her if she can be the first person to get tested with the medicine, and she agreed. Agatha slept normally for the first month after she intakes the medicine. For this month, Agatha and Cooper spent their time together, making bonds and sharing love, and they even created a 10-boyfriend command. My realization of this is that, don’t waste any chances if there is, don’t hesitate to grab it for we don’t know what will happen in the future and we cannot bring back time.

After a month, Agatha’s illness struck again. She slept for 8 months, and when she woke up, she looked for Cooper but sadly he recovered from his cancer and had left the hospital, so she did not find him at the hospital. In the middle of her, looking for Cooper. Her friend Rema (Agatha’s Friend who has bipolar disorder) introduced her to Trent (A brother of a patient in the hospital where Agatha is staying). Trent asked Agatha to go to a party so she can feel normal life. While they are at the party, they saw Cooper, Trent asked Cooper if they know each other and Cooper replied: “Yes, Elementary friend ko”. When Agatha heard his reply, she walked away and cry on the balcony. My thoughts on this are to never deny the person you love even for any reason because if you love the person, you will be happy and proud of him/her.

            Trent and Agatha, later on, leave the party and went to a convenience store to eat some noodles, but unfortunately, her nose bled, and again her illness strikes. She slept for three days. The nurse told her friends that her illness is getting worst, so her friends told Cooper. Agatha and Cooper met at the coffee, but when they met, she suddenly got dizzy, then he carried her to his house and told her that he cannot go back to the hospital again, she understood and went to the hospital alone. When she got back to the hospital, she overheard that her illness is getting worst because of the medicine that she intake several months ago. She went to the seaside where Cooper followed her and comfort her, they retain their love after this moment. The lesson here is that no secret cannot be revealed, and also love will conquer everything if what you feel about that person is true.

Afterward, Agatha found out that her life had a time limit, so she cried. Nurse Leo talked to her and told her to see her family since she had always been at the hospital. Agatha went home and spent time with her family. then she went back to the hospital and Cooper's cancer relapsed. She told Cooper that she wanted to rest but at first, he did not let her, but eventually, he permitted her. Agatha became brain-dead. The machine is the only thing that is keeping her alive. When Cooper was dying he decided to stop the machine in his last breath because he is dying that Agatha should be with him forever and not suffer more. On April 12th, at 9:30 P.M. Cooper Alvarez died and Agatha Grace Tanya at 9:32 is their date and time of death. 

*While reading the story I felt heaviness and flattery in my heart at the same time. Sadness because of Agatha’s faith, the medicine she intakes did not cure his illness. Therefore, she did not fulfill her dream to live a normal life, yet it’s heart flattering for the reason that, Cooper’s love for her is unconditional even though he knew that Agatha will die in the end, he still chooses to stay with her in the last minute of her life. This is the real love, “will be with you until the end even though I knew that we won’t be lasting forever being like this”.

ANALYSIS

* Reader-Response Criticism - The Story Stay Awake Agathe can have different interpretations depending on the reader. For example, I find this story romantic because of the courage of the two main characters to keep their love together. However, some readers might find it sad because both of the main characters died.

* Psychological Criticism - if you will look deeper into the intention of the writer is to give the readers a sense of bravery and courage to fight for love even in the hardest time. This personality definitely reflects the writer because she might have found her greatest love but did not end well. Just like what happened in the story Agatha and Cooper bravely fight for their love up to their death.

*Sociological Criticism - The people who surround Agatha in the story played a key role in giving her motivation and reasons to keep living. especially Cooper and Nurse Leon who had been loyal to her since they eve met Agatha. this shows the value of society, the writer wants to make the reader understand that it is important to be careful in choosing the people who surround you.