Anna and the French Kiss - Stephanie Perkins

4.5 Stars!!!

ABOUT THE BOOK -

Anna can't wait for her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a good job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's not too thrilled when her father unexpectedly ships her off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair, the perfect boy. The only problem? He's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her crush back home. Will a year of romantic near-misses end in the French kiss Anna awaits?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR -

Well, hello! I'm Stephanie Perkins, and I write novels for teens (and for adults who aren't afraid to admit that teen books are awesome). I was born in South Carolina, raised in Arizona, attended universities in San Francisco and Atlanta, and now I live in the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. My best friend is my husband Jarrod. Our house is almost a hundred years old, and every room is painted a different color of the rainbow. We share it with a cat named Mr. Tumnus.
I've always worked with books—first as a bookseller, then as a librarian, and now as a novelist. On weekdays, you'll find me at my desk, typing away, downing cups of coffee and tea. On the weekend, you'll find me at the movies, waiting for the actors to kiss. I believe all novels and films should have more kissing.
Visit her - HERE 
Isn't she adorable? I think this is my favorite author picture!


MY REVIEW -
Loved this book! This story started right off being cute. I have been wanting to read this book for a very long time. I knew I was going to like it. This had everything a good book should have - romance, sadness, suspense, quirkiness and great characters, all set in France!

I don't know why but I love reading books about boarding schools. I have read quite a few and liked them all. Maybe its the whole - "kids being away from their parents so they can get into more trouble" - thing.

The character development was great - perfect in fact. I loved Anna right from the start. She actually reminded me a little of my daughter when she went away to college. She missed her home and her family. Being homesick was keeping her away form enjoying where she was and trying new adventures.
I loved Etienne St. Clair, who wouldn't? Adorable, English accent, smart, nice, funny. "This English French American Boy Masterpiece." LOL
I thought the development of all Anna's new friends were equally as great. I really felt like I knew all these  kids. Like I could just hang out with them. I think my daughter would have been friends with them in school. And - I would have been proud to have her friends with them, what a great bunch of kids. Stephanie Perkins did an excellent job with this group of young people.

Now for a few great quotes -

“Here is everything I know about France: Madeline and Amelie and Moulin Rouge. The Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe, although I have no idea what the function of either actually is. Napoleon, Marie Antoinette, and a lot of kings named Louis. I'm not sure what they did either, but I think it has something to do with the French Revolution, which has something to do with Bastille Day. The art museum is called the Louvre and it's shaped like a pyramid and the Mona Lisa lives there along with that statue of the women missing her arms. And there are cafes and bistros or whatever they call them on every street corner. And mimes. The food is supposed to be good, and the people drink a lot of wine and smoke a lot of cigarettes.
I've heard they don't like Americans, and they don't like white sneakers.” 

 "I don't understand why he couldn't send me to Australia or Ireland or anywhere else where English is the native language. The only French word I know is oui, which means "yes", and only recently did I  learn it's spelled o-u-i and not w-e-e."

 And this one got me hooked -

"I double-check for my meal card and pop open my Hello Kitty umbrella, its drizzling. The weather doesn't give a crap that its my first day of school."  - any lover of Hello Kitty is alright by me!

There were a lot of details about France! Before reading this I didn't really know that much about the country, now I do! It was so interesting to read. I kind of felt like I was taking a tour with Anna and her friends.

THE ALL-IN-ALL -
This was  great book and would be great for teens to read. There are a couple of swear words but not much (a lot less than your kids probably hear in high school). 
Nice little funny, cute sweet teen love story with some facts about France thrown in! Shhh, they might actually learn something while reading it.

Now I can't wait wait to read - "Lola and the Boy Next Door".