charlottecherry's review against another edition
5.0
This was exactly the guilty pleasure YA pool read I needed this summer!
Laying in the sun at 29 degrees Celsius turning a new page every second, I finished the book practically in a day.
I was severely disappointed in all the YA books I've read the past years. Fangirl, E&P, Mortal Instruments.. they just did not do anything for me. The only remarkable book was we were liars.
I knew by reading the blurb that I'd love it. It sounded so typically YA like I used tor read in my youth and I longed for a bit of nostalgia.
Anna was a great protagonist. She wasn't dumbed down and I really loved her aspirations. Honestly, this book gets an extra star for an aspiring female film critic protagonist. How cool is that. It was so different from the aspirations that most girls in YA books have so I thought it was refreshing.
Cinema is very important to my life too and so I could identify with Anna in that aspect. She seeked solace in cinemas and she couldn't be happier when she found out there were at least a thousand in Paris.
Also pluspoints for mentioning Sofia Coppola and one of my all time favourite movies Lost in Translation. She acknowledged the problem of the lack of female directors nominated for the Academy Awards too. That was a cool touch.
The book starts out with a few typical rich white girl problems. Oh no, my rich daddy is sending me a boarding school in Paris. Poor me!
Who knew she'd end up just loooving it there, right?! I did.
But the side characters add dimension to the story. Rashmi, Meredith, St. Clair (!), Josh, Bridgette, Toph (the jerk), Dave & Mike (the even bigger jerks).
It's not just a book about love and swooning, although it's a big part of the book. It's a book about friendship, forgiveness, a hint of how to handle mean girls - a book by Anna Oliphant & domestic problems, and even cancer plays a significant role.
One minus was that the book felt like it was written in the early 2000s. Why is there no Facebook, or text? Why do Anna and her home front communicate via email. Surely a 17 year old girl would be obsessed with her smartphone in this day & age. Much less send snail mail to her best friend to apologize. Of course Instagram and Facebook needn't dominate the narrative , but a little hint towards its existence wouldn't hurt either to add some realism. I understand it is way easier to have characters communicate via e mail, so the conversations aren't ridiculously long and useless like they tend to be on social media, but still..
Regardless, I looved this book!
Laying in the sun at 29 degrees Celsius turning a new page every second, I finished the book practically in a day.
I was severely disappointed in all the YA books I've read the past years. Fangirl, E&P, Mortal Instruments.. they just did not do anything for me. The only remarkable book was we were liars.
I knew by reading the blurb that I'd love it. It sounded so typically YA like I used tor read in my youth and I longed for a bit of nostalgia.
Anna was a great protagonist. She wasn't dumbed down and I really loved her aspirations. Honestly, this book gets an extra star for an aspiring female film critic protagonist. How cool is that. It was so different from the aspirations that most girls in YA books have so I thought it was refreshing.
Cinema is very important to my life too and so I could identify with Anna in that aspect. She seeked solace in cinemas and she couldn't be happier when she found out there were at least a thousand in Paris.
Also pluspoints for mentioning Sofia Coppola and one of my all time favourite movies Lost in Translation. She acknowledged the problem of the lack of female directors nominated for the Academy Awards too. That was a cool touch.
The book starts out with a few typical rich white girl problems. Oh no, my rich daddy is sending me a boarding school in Paris. Poor me!
Who knew she'd end up just loooving it there, right?! I did.
But the side characters add dimension to the story. Rashmi, Meredith, St. Clair (!), Josh, Bridgette, Toph (the jerk), Dave & Mike (the even bigger jerks).
It's not just a book about love and swooning, although it's a big part of the book. It's a book about friendship, forgiveness, a hint of how to handle mean girls - a book by Anna Oliphant & domestic problems, and even cancer plays a significant role.
One minus was that the book felt like it was written in the early 2000s. Why is there no Facebook, or text? Why do Anna and her home front communicate via email. Surely a 17 year old girl would be obsessed with her smartphone in this day & age. Much less send snail mail to her best friend to apologize. Of course Instagram and Facebook needn't dominate the narrative , but a little hint towards its existence wouldn't hurt either to add some realism. I understand it is way easier to have characters communicate via e mail, so the conversations aren't ridiculously long and useless like they tend to be on social media, but still..
Regardless, I looved this book!
suziem's review against another edition
3.0
i was obsessed with this book like two years ago but now rereading it isn’t all that i thought it to be. don’t get me wrong it’s a cute and easy read, and the friends to lovers is a adorable. it was also a perfect fast paced book for vacation but probably not something i would read again. it was nice though so i think it deserves the 3 stars.
offinherownmind's review against another edition
4.0
4.5*
This almost made me cry from happiness! I love Etienne. Anna was a little annoying at first, but then she developed perfectly. And now I just want to smile and hug this book
This almost made me cry from happiness! I love Etienne. Anna was a little annoying at first, but then she developed perfectly. And now I just want to smile and hug this book
thisbookaffair's review against another edition
5.0
PURO AMOR POR ESTE LIBRO! <3
Era justo lo que necesitaba.
FLUFF, FLUFF, FLUFF.
Es uno de los mejores libros que he leído en romance juvenil. Desde la primera página la narrativa de la autora te cautiva: es rápida, entretenida y fluida. Tiene excelentes personajes principales y secundarios. La ubicación es París. Tienes todo para amar este libro y la verdad es que no consigo pensar en algo que no me haya gustado.
Anna, la protagonista y voz narrativa, fue un dulce. Que manera de reírme con su dialogo interno y su facilidad para entrar en desesperación. Fue fácil identificarme con ella en más de un aspecto. Desde el principio empezamos con cambios: Anna tiene que ir a vivir a otro país, en otro continente y sin ni siquiera conocer el idioma, lo cual asusta a cualquiera. Pero todo mejora en cuanto encuentra un grupo de amigos en su nueva escuela en París. No puedo dejar de mencionar que son de los mejores personajes secundarios que he leído, todos únicos e importantes, de verdad que la historia no tendría el mismo peso sin ellos.
Lo mejor: París. Siempre escuchamos de la ‘ciudad del amor’ pero gracias a la gran descripción que se realiza de la ciudad y sus lugares iconos es fácil transportarse, sentir el ambiente y enamorarse de la ciudad.
Hablemos del drama. Anna tiene mucho con que lidiar. Su nueva vida está provocando más cambios de los que le gustaría, y no solo en su entorno, en ella misma. Éttiene St. Clair puede que sea el mayor culpable: “Nombre francés, acento inglés, escuela americana. Anna confundida." Si leyeron mi reseña de Fangirl, sabrán que Levi me robó el corazón y que junto con Augustus son mis favoritos. Pero St.Clair me hizo cuestionarme mis lealtades. No es solo que sea guapo y un encanto, es la forma en que ama y lo demuestra. Y no es perfecto, lo cual lo hace más real.
El desarrollo de la relación de Anna y Éttiene fue todos menos aburrida. Disfruté leyendo sus conversaciones, ambos son graciosos y ver como su atracción por el otro aumentaba con el paso del tiempo fue una de las cosas más adorables. Llegaron a conocerse en un nivel profundo, a entender los temores del otro (no en el inicio, pero pero pero sucede!) y a aceptar que hay cosas que simplemente se escapan de su control.
A través de toda esta nueva experiencia Anna crece y llega a conocerse mejor a ella misma. Sus opiniones son más firmes, su confianza aumenta. Si bien es una historia sobre el amor y la amistad, también sobre enfrentar tus temores, aceptar tus errores y comenzar de nuevo. Cuando el enojo y la frustración te inundan es fácil culpar y venirse abajo, es importante tener la perspectiva correcta de las cosas y no dejarse llevar por las emociones.
En lo que va del año, puedo decir con toda seguridad que ha sido mi lectura favorita. Es de esas historias con el balance justo de romance, comedia y drama. No leer este libro es perderse de mucho.
Era justo lo que necesitaba.
FLUFF, FLUFF, FLUFF.
Es uno de los mejores libros que he leído en romance juvenil. Desde la primera página la narrativa de la autora te cautiva: es rápida, entretenida y fluida. Tiene excelentes personajes principales y secundarios. La ubicación es París. Tienes todo para amar este libro y la verdad es que no consigo pensar en algo que no me haya gustado.
Anna, la protagonista y voz narrativa, fue un dulce. Que manera de reírme con su dialogo interno y su facilidad para entrar en desesperación. Fue fácil identificarme con ella en más de un aspecto. Desde el principio empezamos con cambios: Anna tiene que ir a vivir a otro país, en otro continente y sin ni siquiera conocer el idioma, lo cual asusta a cualquiera. Pero todo mejora en cuanto encuentra un grupo de amigos en su nueva escuela en París. No puedo dejar de mencionar que son de los mejores personajes secundarios que he leído, todos únicos e importantes, de verdad que la historia no tendría el mismo peso sin ellos.
Lo mejor: París. Siempre escuchamos de la ‘ciudad del amor’ pero gracias a la gran descripción que se realiza de la ciudad y sus lugares iconos es fácil transportarse, sentir el ambiente y enamorarse de la ciudad.
Hablemos del drama. Anna tiene mucho con que lidiar. Su nueva vida está provocando más cambios de los que le gustaría, y no solo en su entorno, en ella misma. Éttiene St. Clair puede que sea el mayor culpable: “Nombre francés, acento inglés, escuela americana. Anna confundida." Si leyeron mi reseña de Fangirl, sabrán que Levi me robó el corazón y que junto con Augustus son mis favoritos. Pero St.Clair me hizo cuestionarme mis lealtades. No es solo que sea guapo y un encanto, es la forma en que ama y lo demuestra. Y no es perfecto, lo cual lo hace más real.
El desarrollo de la relación de Anna y Éttiene fue todos menos aburrida. Disfruté leyendo sus conversaciones, ambos son graciosos y ver como su atracción por el otro aumentaba con el paso del tiempo fue una de las cosas más adorables. Llegaron a conocerse en un nivel profundo, a entender los temores del otro (no en el inicio, pero pero pero sucede!) y a aceptar que hay cosas que simplemente se escapan de su control.
A través de toda esta nueva experiencia Anna crece y llega a conocerse mejor a ella misma. Sus opiniones son más firmes, su confianza aumenta. Si bien es una historia sobre el amor y la amistad, también sobre enfrentar tus temores, aceptar tus errores y comenzar de nuevo. Cuando el enojo y la frustración te inundan es fácil culpar y venirse abajo, es importante tener la perspectiva correcta de las cosas y no dejarse llevar por las emociones.
En lo que va del año, puedo decir con toda seguridad que ha sido mi lectura favorita. Es de esas historias con el balance justo de romance, comedia y drama. No leer este libro es perderse de mucho.
alexa_gr's review against another edition
4.0
Ok, it looks like I've been found out. I was one of those who thought this would be a story like so many others. Nothing special, but I was deeply disappointed. In a good way, because it was so beautiful and sweet. I'll tell you why.
First. The clichés in this book weren't annoying, or at least not as I expected them to be. Yes, they are part of the story, but I found myself smiling at them.
Second. I liked the writing. It's a fast read and in my opinion very catchy.
And Third. I liked the characters. I have to admit that I don't think Anna is that clever. Sometimes I felt like 'how old is this girl? Thirteen?', but I also had the feeling she was never supposed to be smart. It belongs to her charms that she's a little awkward sometimes and that was ok for me. St. Clair was lovely too. Maybe a little bit overloaded with clichés, but I mentioned above that in this case, I liked it. I also liked the relationship between them, because it makes them stronger if you know what I mean. And the supporting characters get close to my heart too.
All in all, it was a read I enjoyed. I'd recommend it for a read during a car trip - maybe to Paris. Somehow this book makes me want to go to Paris myself.
First. The clichés in this book weren't annoying, or at least not as I expected them to be. Yes, they are part of the story, but I found myself smiling at them.
Second. I liked the writing. It's a fast read and in my opinion very catchy.
And Third. I liked the characters. I have to admit that I don't think Anna is that clever. Sometimes I felt like 'how old is this girl? Thirteen?', but I also had the feeling she was never supposed to be smart. It belongs to her charms that she's a little awkward sometimes and that was ok for me. St. Clair was lovely too. Maybe a little bit overloaded with clichés, but I mentioned above that in this case, I liked it. I also liked the relationship between them, because it makes them stronger if you know what I mean. And the supporting characters get close to my heart too.
All in all, it was a read I enjoyed. I'd recommend it for a read during a car trip - maybe to Paris. Somehow this book makes me want to go to Paris myself.
colourmeread's review against another edition
4.0
Where do I even start?
I picked up Anna and the French Kiss after reading many of the reviews about it on Goodreads. The synopsis sounds like a typical teen romance novel and the title certainly doesn't deny it. But don't judge the book by it's 2010 cover, or title, or synopsis.
In the book, we meet a distraught and overwhelmed Anna Oliphant who moves to France because her father wanted her to be cultured, and so sends her to an American boarding school in Paris. Anna is upset, and you feel for her, because while it is Paris, she was never given the choice of whether she wanted to go or not. She's forced to leave her comfortable life in Atlanta, her friends, and the boy she liked, specially in her senior year.
Anna and the French Kiss shows us Anna's struggles as she adjusts to life in France. From being the only new girl in her senior class of 25 students to learning French and exploring the city. Thankfully, Anna meets her next door neighbour Meredith who welcomes Anna into her group of friends. Together, the others help Anna transition to her new life and she even becomes good friends with Étienne St. Clair, the American born, London raised, handsome, charming, and witty St. Clair. Anna, like many other girls in the school, ends up having a crush on him but Étienne has a girlfriend, and Anna still has feelings for someone back home.
While it's not hard to deduce that Étienne and Anna are going to end up together, what makes Anna and the French Kiss work is how it happens. Étienne and Anna become friends, really good friends, because they actually get to know each other. They ask each other things, they hang out, and look out for each other like friends do. Despite being popular and adored, Étienne also has his flaws. Anna does too. They both learn that about each other so you know they're aware of what they're signing up for. What I appreciated about this book is how well it was paced for us to see these things. Anna and Étienne make mistakes and they're stubborn about certain things, but they also learn to see their faults as they are and own up to them. Stephanie Perkins brings the two together in a very believable way. It doesn't feel forced or cheesy, but just feels right.
Anna and the French Kiss is my first Stephanie Perkins book and it definitely won't be my last. It's no wonder it's one of the highly rated romance books in YA fiction!
I picked up Anna and the French Kiss after reading many of the reviews about it on Goodreads. The synopsis sounds like a typical teen romance novel and the title certainly doesn't deny it. But don't judge the book by it's 2010 cover, or title, or synopsis.
In the book, we meet a distraught and overwhelmed Anna Oliphant who moves to France because her father wanted her to be cultured, and so sends her to an American boarding school in Paris. Anna is upset, and you feel for her, because while it is Paris, she was never given the choice of whether she wanted to go or not. She's forced to leave her comfortable life in Atlanta, her friends, and the boy she liked, specially in her senior year.
Anna and the French Kiss shows us Anna's struggles as she adjusts to life in France. From being the only new girl in her senior class of 25 students to learning French and exploring the city. Thankfully, Anna meets her next door neighbour Meredith who welcomes Anna into her group of friends. Together, the others help Anna transition to her new life and she even becomes good friends with Étienne St. Clair, the American born, London raised, handsome, charming, and witty St. Clair. Anna, like many other girls in the school, ends up having a crush on him but Étienne has a girlfriend, and Anna still has feelings for someone back home.
While it's not hard to deduce that Étienne and Anna are going to end up together, what makes Anna and the French Kiss work is how it happens. Étienne and Anna become friends, really good friends, because they actually get to know each other. They ask each other things, they hang out, and look out for each other like friends do. Despite being popular and adored, Étienne also has his flaws. Anna does too. They both learn that about each other so you know they're aware of what they're signing up for. What I appreciated about this book is how well it was paced for us to see these things. Anna and Étienne make mistakes and they're stubborn about certain things, but they also learn to see their faults as they are and own up to them. Stephanie Perkins brings the two together in a very believable way. It doesn't feel forced or cheesy, but just feels right.
Anna and the French Kiss is my first Stephanie Perkins book and it definitely won't be my last. It's no wonder it's one of the highly rated romance books in YA fiction!
dievalzam's review against another edition
5.0
I can't talk, i can't, this book is perfection i am happy, so happy. I don't know bye.
monicaokta's review against another edition
3.0
I really didn't get why this book get so many buzz. It is typical teenager romance that can be found in other novels. But I really liked Etienne and Anna as character. And maybe that makes this book loved by readers so much.