A Book Review from My Point of View: Anna and the French Kiss- By Stephanie Perkins

For the first couple of chapters, I wasn't sure how I felt about the book and if I was going to stick with it. But after chapter four, when the story started to progress and reveal the romance and its complications, it ended up sucking me in and I could have finished reading it in one sitting (damn you sleep!).

I liked:

-The Paris setting. For some reason, books set there always win me over...Damn City of Light!

-The character St. Clair. But I felt he was a bit too dense sometimes (refer below to pushed plot points). I didn't care for the switch Anna made between his names either (maybe too sappy for me), but I get the point behind it.

-A lot of the details related to the cultures represented- specifically vocabulary and different slang words and phrases. Those helped it feel more accurate.

-Some of the specific characteristics about Anna, such as her being a film buff and having her own website where she writes reviews. It felt accurate for a millennial teenager and a bit original. I feel like you don't get to see accurate-for their-time specific details like this about characters too often and it made me appreciate the story being in present day rather than a dystopian future, etc (I need a break from those).

-The point near the end of the book where things go horribly wrong for Anna and then how the whole school responds. This showed a good example of how all it takes in high school is one person to start a rumor that will spread like wildfire and allow teenagers to act abhorrently (side note: I absolutely would have told the headmaster what Amanda said).

Other thoughts: 

I found some of the plot points pushed for the sake of making the story happen. The multiple misunderstandings went a bit far. Also, some plot points were a bit cliché and obvious, but often it can be hard to tell a story without them. I found myself accurately predicting what characters were going to say and what their actions were going to be a little too much.

Overall I enjoyed the book. I liked the protagonist and the story moved quickly and kept me engrossed. I am looking forward to reading her other two books set in this world.

P.S. WOTD: