Anna and the French kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Penguin, 2010.
(Age 14+) Recommended. Romance. When Anna is shipped off to a boarding
school in Paris for her final year she is not happy. She has left
behind her best friend, Bridge, a job at a cinema that she loves and a
beginning romance with a gorgeous boy. When she meets charismatic
Etienne at her new school things begin to look up. But Etienne is
already in a serious relationship. Will they ever manage to get
together for their French kiss?
The beautiful setting of Paris makes this book stand out from the usual
boarding school romances. Perkins takes the reader on a wonderful tour
of this romantic city. At the same time she doesn't gloss over the
difficulties that Anna has in learning a new language and a new way of
life. She describes the problems of ordering food in the canteen,
buying tickets for the movies and travelling on the Metro, but these
are overshadowed by the descriptions of the Notre Dame and the Latin
Quarter. Readers will long for the chance to visit Paris and envy Anna
for her experience.
Both the main characters and Anna's friends are strong and believable.
Anna is an interesting girl, who is serious about wanting to be a film
critic. She watches lots of movies and runs her own website with film
reviews. Fans of films will love the references to movies that dot the
pages. Etienne has lots of charisma and the girls at the school find
him swoon worthy. However he does have a vulnerable side which he shows
Anna, as he copes with his mother's cancer and his father's bullying.
Fathers don't come off too well in this book, as Anna too doesn't seem
to respect her father, who is an author. She thinks that his books and
films are shallow and predictable. I found myself avidly following the
various subplots involving Anna's friends both in Paris and Atlanta.
The incident when Anna came home for Thanksgiving and found herself
almost a stranger, having to re-establish her place in her family, was
both familiar and touching.
Readers who also love a romance will not be disappointed. The novel
hums with tension as Anna and Etienne explore their feelings for each
other. Anna initially settles for friendship as Etienne has a
girlfriend, Ellie, who is studying elsewhere, but there is definitely a
serious attraction going on. Friendship is a strong theme in this book
and Perkins explores the possibility of friendship between boy and girl
as well as how a real friend behaves to her girlfriends.
Fans of Sarah Dessen and Maureen Johnson are certain to enjoy this book.
Pat Pledger