ahhh, Valentine’s Day is finally upon us! Whether you think it’s a meaningless commercial holiday or you see it as a chance to celebrate your love for your partner, one cannot help but notice the change in the air on February 14th. Fun historical fact: the expression “From your Valentine” (you know, the one you write on the bottom of anonymous cards in 5th grade because you’re too shy to admit your true identity to your crush?) apparently originated after Saint Valentine wrote to his jailor’s daughter while he was on death row for helping Christians escape oppression under Roman rule. That’s how he signed his letter to her right before he died. Charming and romantic! As the hopeless romantic, nothing makes me happier than rereading some of my favourite romance scenes from my favourite romance novels of all time. Celebrate love my lovebirds! Meanwhile I’ll be curled up, rereading one of these books with a glass of white wine. P.s.: Romance is for everyone, not just girls. Boys have feelings too. P.s.s.: These are in no specific order. I also chose to include strictly contemporary and romance novels which means that the main relationship is driving the whole series. Many amazing contemporary or even fantasy and sci-fi novels have strong romances that act as a side plot. I’ll do another article on my all-time favourite romances one day, but for now I’ll stick to classic romances. Anna and the French Kiss series by Stephanie Perkins Awards: Georgia Peach Book Award Nominee for Honor Book (2012), Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award Nominee for Young Adults (2013), Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominee (2012), The Inky Awards Nominee for Silver Inky (2011), Lincoln Award Nominee (2013), Cybils Award Nominee for Young Adult Fiction (2011), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Goodreads Author and for Young Adult Fiction (2010) Français: Anna et le French Kiss Summary (Anna and the French Kiss #1 Anna and the French Kiss) Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris -- until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all... including a serious girlfriend. But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss? My review The Anna and the French Kiss series (made-up of 3 companion novels following different characters) was the first romance series I ever finished, and the first series I wrote complete reviews for all stanzas. The whole saga is simply amazing. The characters are amazingly built and lovable. The action is perfectly balanced and doesn’t verge into the over-dramatic angst-y stereotypical behavior. The romance in all books felt so real and deeply relatable. One of my favourite things about this series, and one that distinguishes it from other romance series, is the delightful sense of humor. Perkins is so diabolically funny that I got kicked out of class for laughing too hard during reading period (true story). Honestly, out of all the books mentioned in this series, few have made me feel as gushy and happy as Anna and the French Kiss. For more thoughts on the series: Anna and the French Kiss #1 Anna and the French Kiss: https://goo.gl/hsFEA1 Anna and the French Kiss #2 Lola and the Boy Next Door: https://goo.gl/GMEuQR Anna and the French Kiss #3 Isla and the Happily Ever After: https://goo.gl/41TxkH Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell Awards (get ready): Georgia Peach Book Award (2014), All About Romance Annual Reader Poll for Best Young Adult Romance (2014), Pennsylvania young Readers’ Choice Award for Young Adults (2015), Milwaukee County Teen Book Award (2014), Michigan Library Association Thumbs Up! Award (2014), Deutsche Jugendliteraturpreis Nominee for Jugendbuch (2016), Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award (ALAN/NCTE) (2014), Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Fiction (2013), Dioraphte Jongerenliteratuurprijs for vertaald boaek (2015), Lincoln Award (2015), DABWAHA Romance Tournament Nominee for Best Young Adult Romance (2014), North Carolina Young Adult Book Award for High School (2016), Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fiction (2013), Green Mountain Book Award Nominee (2015), The Magnolia Award for 9-12 (2015), Missouri Gateway Readers Award Nominee (2016), Premio El Templo de las Mil Puertas (2013), Odyssey Honor (2014), Michael L. Printz Honor (2016) *Life goals: write a book with a half a page long list of awards in multiple languages. Français: Eleanor & Park Summary Two misfits. One extraordinary love. Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor. Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park. Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. My review Awards can sometimes be misleading. However, in Eleanor & Park’s case, I promise you it is not. It is one of the most emotional and heartbreaking stories I have ever read. In my original review for this one, I described it as “soul-crushing” which is not an understatement. Eleanor & Park is not only about romance. It is about racism, family (good and bad) and bullying. It tackles hard-hitting issues in Rowell’s fantastic writing. Honestly, it is one of these books that you should go into without knowing too much about it. Let it take you by surprise, it’s worth it. For more thoughts: https://goo.gl/MXiCnE Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell Awards: Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fiction (2013), Premio El Templo de las Mil Puertas Nominee for Mejor novella extranjera independiente (2014), Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominee (2015), The Inky Awards Nominee for Silver Inky (2015), Silver Inky (2015), Lincoln Award Nominee (2016) Français: Fangirl Summary Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan... But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving. Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere. Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to. Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone. For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind? My review Okok so many of you might read this summary and be automatically very turned-off by the idea of fanfiction. I am not a fan of fanfiction (shocker!) but Fangirl is amongst the Top5 BEST BOOKS I’VE EVER READ. THIS IS A BIG DEAL. You will notice that it is written by the same author as Eleanor & Park (see point above), however they have completely different vibes. E&P is a more serious and denser novel (content wise) while Fangirl is more light-hearted, while still tackling deep issues such as family and self-discovery, and more romance-based. To make it simple (and overly personal), Fangirl is me. I am Cath: an introvert who really likes to stay in and read and write, a total nerd who’s deep in fandom and who’s world got turned upside-down when she entered CEGEP. Fangirl’s strength is that it explains so clearly and honestly what it feels like to grow up: boys, university, jobs, family, parties… Few books have captured the essence of trying to grow up but remaining young at the same time so well and presented the “nerd” culture in a non-stereotypical way. Rowell’s writing is funny and not-overly complicated. She talks like I would to a friend (except with nicer grammar and less “ehhhhs”). I will probably reread it this year during my first semester in university next autumn as I feel it will be particularly applicable. It is a shame that I did not write a full review of Fangirl after I finished reading it. In fact, the only thing I wrote about was a rating in which I gave it “a million stars” three years ago. Fangirl’s beauty lies in its simplicity. Cath is not pretentious and doesn’t pretend to have all the answers to life’s biggest mysteries. It’s just the story of a girl figuring it out, and somehow, it’s one of the most beautiful stories I’ve ever read. P.s.: If you are into the fanfiction aspect, there is a full book out that compiles the Cath and Wren’s fanfiction story on Simon Snow called Carry On. I was not a huge fan of it, but it was generally well-loved in the community. Aristotle and Dante discover the Secrets of the Universe #1 Aristotle and Dante discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz Awards: Stonewall Book Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature (2013), Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Children’s/Young Adult (2013), Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award (ALAN/NCTE) Nominee (2013), Pura Belpré Medal for Narrative (2013), Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award Nominee for Young Adults (2015), Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis Nominee for Jugendbuch (2015), Lincoln Award Nominee (2016), Michael L. Printz Honor (2016), Les Incorruptibles (2017) Français: Aristote et Dante découvrent les secrets de l’Univers Summary Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be. My review Aristotle and Dante discover the Secrets of the Universe (ADDSU) is one of those that I regularly look up to on my bookshelves and just go “aww”. ADDSU is a very humble novel. It’s just two boys from New Mexico becoming unlikely friends and having fun during the summer. It paints a true picture of modern America, tackling racism and stereotypes, homosexuality, identity and social class. ADDSU pulls on your heart strings. While Aristotle, the main character, does not seem very lovable at first, you come to love him and his sarcastic pessimism which just hides his insecurities and anger until Dante comes around. Everyone should have a Dante to show them the beauty of the world. Sáenz is the master of imagery. Every single sentence drips with colourful depictions of the world and Aristotle’s thoughts. (Sáenz is also the first author to have ever to have liked AND RESPONDED to a tweet I sent them so he’s pretty cool.) And the best part? 6 years later, we are getting a sequel! There Will be Other Summers has no release date yet, but it will probably come out in 2018-9 and will pick-up the story where ADDSU left-off. I can hardly wait. All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven Awards: Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction (2015), Pensylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award Nominee for Young Adults (2016), Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominee (2016), Dioraphte Jongerenliteratuurprijs for Vertaald boek (2016), Lincoln Award Nominee (2017), Missouri Gateway Readers Award Nominee (2017) Français: Tous nos jours parfaits *Trigger warning for suicidal thoughts and depression Summary Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him. Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister’s recent death. When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink. My review I don’t usually cry in books. I can count on my hand the instances where that has happened, All the Bright Places is one of those times. Mental health is a subject near and dear to my heart and suicide is an epidemic that has already taken too many people. The most beautiful lesson from All the Bright Places is that you’re never really alone, even when you think you really are. There will always be someone ready to listen to you when you think you can’t do it anymore. Sometimes relationships get built out after two people help each other survive, you lean on each other when times are bad. There are few things in the world that are as wholesome as this. All the Bright Places had a similar impact to me as E&P. It completely wrecked my soul. Sometimes Theodore would get on my nerves because he was so negative, but Niven’s writing style brings out some inspiring reflections on a little bit of everything. Violet was your typical manic pixie dream girl, but there is nothing wrong with that if it’s done in a classy and original way. The plot is in no way original. Two teens that don’t have anything in common meet and their relationship blossoms. If you liked anything from John Green, you will love this. However, it captures a unique quality in the reflections proposed that make it different and stand-out from the crowd.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
MeI'm in love with the world. Archives
April 2020
Categories
All
Archives
April 2020
|