Anna and the French Kiss (Stephanie Perkins)

Title: Anna and the French Kiss

Author: Stephanie Perkins

Publisher: Dutton Books (Penquin)

Length: 372 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

Anna is shipped off to a Parisian boarding school for her senior year, far away from her hometown of Atlanta, where her crush who was just on the verge of becoming more still resides. Anna is not thrilled. She doesn’t even know French! But then she meets Etienne St. Clair: handsome, funny, and with a British accent, he’s hard to resist. Unfortunately, he’s already got a girlfriend. Misunderstandings occur, friendships are tested and many films in French theatres are viewed. Can Anna find love in a city known most for its romance?

This book started off like “eh” and ended like “WOAH.” The premise of Anna being shipped off seemed a little flimsy at first: her dad is an awful yet famous writer who wants to seem cultured, so he ships his eldest daughter to boarding school in France. Who does this?

But after this, I found myself really relating to Anna and her situation. Anyone who has experienced being on their own for the first time (whether it be college, studying abroad or hey, attending boarding school) can relate to Anna as she struggles to fit in with a new style of living and a new culture. Anyone who will eventually do these things can gain a lot of insight from how Anna deals with living away from home- Stephanie Perkins nails it perfectly. There’s the drama that comes from living with your friends, the anxiety of not knowing how to behave in another culture/new situation, and even the struggles of returning home a changed person for breaks.

Anna is a great strong, contemporary female lead who doesn’t just sit around waiting longingly for a boy she can’t have. She discovers her own agency, and uses it not to manipulate boys, but to explore Paris. While at first the novel seems just about the romance, there is some wonderful character growth, and who doesn’t like the scenery of Paris as a backdrop? I also appreciated that both Anna and Etienne are good-looking in unconventional ways. A tribute to Stephanie’s writing that I liked Etienne even though he was short (I once decided Daniel Radcliff and I couldn’t date because he is shorter than me).

If you want a contemporary romance that’s more than just fluff, Anna and the French Kiss is a great read. (Special thanks to my cousin for loaning me this book!)

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Sherman Alexie)

Title: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Author: Sherman Alexie

Publisher: Hachette Book Group

Length: audio book: 5 hours

Rating: 4.5/5

Born dirt-poor on the Spokane Indian reservation with water on the brain, Arnold “Junior” Spirit emerges disadvantaged. But despite his alcoholic parents, recluse sister, violent best friend, and lopsided body used as target practice for many feet, this book-loving, comic-drawing narrator refuses to give up on his sizable dreams. He realizes that he can only fulfill his dreams if he leaves the reservation, so he transfers to Reardan High School, where he is the only non-white kid, and in doing so, becomes the most hated person on the rez.

Hearing all sorts of good reviews about this book, I picked it up in audio form for a road trip. You may remember that I usually dislike audio books, but this one was wonderful! The semi-autobiographical tale is narrated by the author himself, and his voice is full of humor, heart-break, and it perfectly captures the trials of a part-time Indian. Alone in my car, I laughed, I cried, and I felt like I really got to know Arnold and his many plights. The only thing I missed were the hand-drawn cartoons scattered throughout the physical version of the book (but a quick flip through a book story copy made it all better). Both the audio and regular book are definitely worth your time.

This book covered a lot of serious topics, but boy was it funny! It was very refreshing to read a book that didn’t take itself so seriously, yet dealt with serious subjects like racism and death. I learned a lot about Indian culture, and white culture too, as Arnold navigated both as an exile and an immigrant. And even though I’d read about basketball, first love, and friendship before, everything in Alexie’s voice seemed fresh and new and funny.

Is it too cliché to say “a wonderful addition to YA literature”? Well too bad, I just said it. 

How to Say Goodbye in Robot (Natalie Standiford)

Title: How to Say Goodbye in Robot

Author: Natalie Standiford

Publisher: Scholastic

Length: 273 pages

Rating: 3/5

Today’s post is a nostalgic read, as I’m feeling rather melancholy this Monday. For the record, I really like robots and really dislike goodbyes.

Bea is new in town, and somehow she becomes best friends with Ghost Boy (Jonah), who hasn’t made a new friend since third grade, and who is so pale people think he might disappear. Jonah and Bea’s friendship isn’t your topical high school friendship. It’s powerful, and while it’s not quite romantic, it’s love, as Bea and Jonah have finally found that other person just like themselves.

This is a book about the power of friendship. I’m quite taken with the idea of true friendship. But I was a little worried for Bea in this book. Yes, it’s important to always be there for your best friend, but not to the determent of yourself! Bea is just trying to find her place in the new town, and Jonah wants her all for himself, but without giving himself fully. This isn’t healthy and frustrated me as a reader. But it’s all part of the learning process. Friends can be the best teaching tool about oneself that exist. Plus, Bea needs Jonah to teach her to not be an emotionless robot, even if it’s safer to go through life that way.

Another thing that made this book unique is the sounds of a late night radio show peppered throughout the book that Bea and Jonah listen to and connect over. I liked that this book was quirky and completely different than anything I’ve read before, just like the quirky likability of true friends.