Review: Anna and the French Kiss

by Stephanie Perkins
publisher: Dutton Children's
date published: December 2, 2010
format: hardcover
pages: 372
source: from the library
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N

From Goodreads:

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 Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

What I Thought

Readers of my blog have probably realized by now that I rarely read contemporary fiction unless it has supernatural/paranormal elements. However, I had heard so many good things about Stephanie Perkins's Anna and the French Kiss that I just had to give it a try. My chance came when my local library at long last procured a copy of the book, which I was able to place a hold on. When I finally opened the cover, I quickly realized what all the fuss was about. This book is a refreshing, fun, and well-written story that I was loathe to put down.

Anna and the French Kiss is probably one of the most fun books I have read this year. Sometimes you need something light and flirty to read. This book definitely fits the bill. It is filled with well-developed characters and funny dialogue that left me laughing out loud on several occasions. Anna, for all of her obliviousness, is a wonderfully witty character who I absolutely adored. I could definitely appreciate her passion for reviewing films, since it is not so very different from what I do here on my blog. Following her journey to Paris and subsequent struggle to adapt to the city was a lot of fun, as well. It was another aspect that I could relate to very well (though Paris was not the city I experienced). As for Etienne, I could definitely see what the excitement was all about. Holy smokes! There are a couple of aspects that are somewhat unappealing, but he is, overall, a male lead that is very capable of making a girl's heart go pitter-pat. Some of the scenes between him and Anna are very emotionally wrought and romantic. From the accent to the physical description, he is quite the love interest. C'est magnifique!

I could not get enough of descriptions of this book's setting. Paris is somewhere that I would love to visit, so reading a book that takes place there is a great treat. Stephanie Perkins takes a lot of care to infuse vivid imagery into every chapter, which makes for a brilliant picture for the mind's eye. Her descriptions and imagery almost made me feel as if I were really there. The school, too, was a lot of fun to read about. Though it is a school setting, it is intriguing thanks to both its setting and the students that make up the student body. There are mean girls, arrogant boys, artistic kids, athletic kids, shy kids, and nerdy kids, just like you would find in any other school. This made for an engaging background for the story to take place against, as well as keeping the plot moving and varied.

For all that this book was read on a whim, I have discovered a fun read that I simply can not get away with leaving out of my collection. I will not be completely happy until I own my own copy. If you are looking for a fun, humorous read, you can't go wrong with Stephanie Perkins. If you haven't read it yet, you definitely should. You owe it to yourself to pick up a copy. I give Anna and the French Kiss 5 hoots.