Anna and the French Kiss

Anna and the French Kiss
Stephanie Perkins

My rating: ★★★★

ISBN: 978-0525423270
Publisher: Dutton
Date of publication: December 2, 2010
Age: Grades 9 - 12
Genre: Romance, Realistic Fiction

Themes: boarding school, father relationships, friendship, Paris

Anna is looking forward to her senior year with her best friend and crush. But when her dad surprises with enrollment in a French boarding school, she's sure she'll never like it. She in no way wants to live in a foreign country by herself, even if it is Paris, France. That is, until she meets Étienne St. Clair. He's smart, charming, handsome...and taken. Sure, they can be best friends, but what if she wants something more?

Adorable. Stephanie Perkins has a way with cute romances. I thought Anna was a rather interesting character (I loved that she wants to be a movie critic) but her lack of self-confidence was annoying (isn't that the case with a lot of romances?). St Clair is, of course, perfectly attractive in his British-accent sort of way, but I especially loved his depth of character shown through his family relationships. The last quarter of the book, however... Just sort of dragged out the inevitable. More drama drama blah blah and then it hits sort of suddenly. I wanted it to be a five-star, but it just didn't quite fill it for me.

Warning: Explicit Content
Language
Some sexuality

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My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories

My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories
Edited by Stephanie Perkins

My rating: ★★★

ISBN: 978-1250059307
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Date of publication: October 14, 2014
Age: Grades 9 and up
Genre: Romance

Themes: love, winter, holidays, anthology

This is an anthology of holiday love stories from popular YA authors including: Rainbow Rowell, Kelly Link, Matt De La Pena, Jenny Han, Stephanie Perkins (who also compiled/edited), David Levithan, Holly Black, Gayle Forman, Myra McEntire, Kiersten White, Ally Carter, and Laini Taylor. Ranging from Hanukkah to Christmas, fantasy/folklore to contemporary/realistic, there's a little bit of everything for everyone.

It seemed like the appropriate time of year to read this book! I have never reviewed an anthology before, and am now realizing how hard it is. Overall, sure, my rating is three stars, but that's just the average. There were some really, really fantastic stories. And some really weird, totally not-my-style stories. And the in-betweens. So I can honestly recommend this to most anyone that likes cheesy holiday romances because there is a really good chance at least one story will impress.

In interest of space and time, I'll talk about the authors/stories that impressed me the most. My favorite favorite was Stephanie Perkins (who I haven't read before, but will now be seeking out more!) and her short called, "It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown." It's impressive how quickly she builds a realistic romance between two complex characters. And how quickly I fell into it--I want more! Also (for same reasons), Gayle Forman's and Rainbow Rowell's stories are impressive.

As for complexity in setting, concept, and character, the award goes to....(drum roll)... Laini Taylor. I haven't read her work before either, but her story (which wraps up the anthology, for obvious reasons) is above and beyond the cutesy contemporary romance. It's a intricate, folklore-ish, deep tale of admiration and love. Maybe not totally my style, but impressive nontheless.

So give it a try. Read it however you want; I won't judge.

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