"Anna and the Franch Kiss" by Stephanie Perkins

It seemed that every other book blogger on the face of the planet was absolutely raving about Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins so of course I had to read it.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the heck out of this book but at the same time I didn’t feel that it was as amazing as I expected it to be.  I suppose I was expecting the Harry Potter of teen romance?  Despite the book not quite meeting my expectation, it was still a really fun read!

Anna is about to start her senior year of high school in the most romantic city in the world- and she isn’t too thrilled about it.  She has no desire to leave her best friend or Toph (her co-worker and crush/almost boyfriend) and she doesn’t know a word of French.  But her father has sent her to Paris anyway.  It takes some time, but Anna starts to make friends in this new city.  And more importantly she meets Étienne St. Clair, the most wonderful British/American guy in France who conveniently has a girlfriend.  Anyone that has ever read a book or seen a movie with a romantic plot immediately knows that Anna is eventually going to fall for St. Clair, it’s just a matter of time.  Just like in a Taylor Swift song, Anna and St. Clair become extremely close but because Anna knows he has a girlfriend, there is nothing she can do about it.  The reader spends the majority of the book waiting for St. Clair to break-up with Ellie (sadly a name I love was given to a rather unpleasant character) and to get together with Anna.  But will that ever happen (don’t worry, I won’t spoil it for you).  Another element of this book that is fairly important is Anna’s love of cinema.  Back in her hometown of Atlanta, she worked in a movie theatre and dreamed of being a professional movie reviewer.  In Paris she discovers that the city shares her love and spends a good portion of her evening soaking up the flickering lights of the big screen.  I felt that Anna was a well developed character and enjoyed that her likes and interests where an important part of the story.

This book felt very familiar.  There was nothing horribly surprising about it and it deals with themes extremely common in YA literature.  However, I fell that it is well written and well researched.  As I was reading it, I felt that the characters and their actions where believable.  Overall I really enjoyed this book and felt that it would be perfect read for a lazy afternoon.

You can expect my review of Perkins’ companion book, Lola and the BoyNext Door within a few days (I am loving it!).

Happy Reading!

-Melly

"Anne Frank and Me" by Cherie Bennett & Jeff Gottesfeld

While preparing to write this review, I was surprised by the negativity of  the editorial reviews and the overwhelmingly high number of positive reviews from readers.  This is a work of fiction and should be read as such.  It is not meant to be a biography of Anne Frank nor should it be read for that reason.  It is purely the story of a fictional person living through events that took place in real life (just like many, many other books).

Anne Frank and Me by Cherie Bennett & Jeff Gottesfeld focuses on a teenage girl named Nicole.  The book begins with Nicole shirking off school assignments (both in school and out) in favor of daydreaming about the boy of her dreams, Jack, and developing her website, Notes from Girl X.  It is clear that Nicole is intelligent, but often wants to take the easy way out.  Instead of reading The Diary of Anne Frank for class, she visits various websites, stumbling across one arguing that the diary was not written by the teen during the Holocaust, but is instead a work of fiction.  Nicole and her sister begin to question why she would be required to read a "fake."

The next day, Nicole's class visits the traveling exhibit, Anne Frank in the World and her life turns upside down.  When shots ring out and her classmates being to panic, Nicole is caught in the mob of people and blacks out.  When she wakes up, she is no longer in modern day America, but is now a Jewish girl living in occupied Paris, France.  Convinced she is an American from the future, but with no way to get back, Nicole suddenly must figure out how to survive the Nazi occupation.  More than once she finds her life in grave danger and begins a journey that will change her forever.

I have read this book many times.  Every time, I cannot put it down until I have read it cover to cover.  I find it engaging, gut wrenching, and inspiring.  It is a very powerful book and once you've read it, you won't soon forget it.

Happy Reading!
-Melly