Just One Year by Gayle Forman

* * * * 1/2

Before you find out how their story ends, remember how it began....

When he opens his eyes, Willem doesn’t know where in the world he is—Prague or Dubrovnik or back in Amsterdam. All he knows is that he is once again alone, and that he needs to find a girl named Lulu. They shared one magical day in Paris, and something about that day—that girl—makes Willem wonder if they aren’t fated to be together. He travels all over the world, from Mexico to India, hoping to reconnect with her. But as months go by and Lulu remains elusive, Willem starts to question if the hand of fate is as strong as he’d thought. . . .

The romantic, emotional companion to Just One Day, this is a story of the choices we make and the accidents that happen—and the happiness we can find when the two intersect.





Review:

In Just One Day, we watched Allyson experience her own journey of emotional growth and self-discovery.  A journey that ended with a search for Willem.  The guy she knew for just one day.  The guy that changed her life and her heart.

In Just One Year, it is Willem’s turn.   Willem wakes up in a Paris hospital with a concussion and almost no memories of the events that lead to him being there.  All he knows is that he left someone behind and he needs to find her.  When he is finally able to leave the hospital and begins to remember all the details of his day and night with Lulu, she is already gone and can’t be found.  He has no other option other than to return to his home in Amsterdam.  But he is lost and the only way he thinks he can be found is to find Lulu.  With the very little information he has about her he begins his search.  His search for Lulu begins and ends in Mexico.  The trip to Mexico quickly becomes a journey of self-discovery that leads him to India where he will find the love of a mother he has been missing most of his life.  And then back to Amsterdam where he will find comfort in more family and friends as well as learn to pursue the things that bring him true happiness.

Much like the first book, this is not a traditional romance.  This story is about Willem’s journey and the hope that if he can be happy with himself and his life then, maybe, just maybe, he will find the one girl that turned his life upside down and forced him into that journey in the first place.

Thankfully, Willem’s story did not make me curl up into the fetal position and sob.  That does not mean it was lacking in its poignancy.  This is a beautiful and moving story and it is a wonderful compliment to Just One Day.


~Nat

Waiting on Wednesday (44)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that highlights future releases that we are excitedly anticipating.

By Gayle Forman
Publication Date: January  8, 2013

A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay
When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

Just One Day is the first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

* * * * *

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.



When Cricket -- a gifted inventor -- steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.







Cricket Bell broke Lola’s heart two years ago. He moved away and Lola moved on. Now Cricket is back and he is still head over heals in love with Lola. But Lola is dating Max (the older experienced guy that her dads don’t approve of) and she isn’t interested in allowing Cricket to break her heart again. Or is she?

If you remember, I loved Anna and the French Kiss. So much so, that I was on pins and needles waiting for Lola to be released. To give you an idea how impatient I was….I pre-ordered my copy of Lola but then decided I couldn’t wait for it to arrive at my house. So I downloaded it to my e-reader at midnight of the day it was released. Stephanie is a genius at writing romance and I simply cannot control myself when it comes to her books. And I don't regret my need for immediate gratification.  Because Lola managed to be both different and every bit as good as (if not better than) Anna.

In the words of Lola’s dad, Andy: “I am trying really hard not use the word ‘fabulous’ right now.” So instead I will say that Lola and the Boy Next Door IS SUPERB, SUBLIME, SPLENDID!

The best things about Stephanie’s books are the characters. Every character in this book was quirky and amazing. Lola was wonderfully insecure yet confident. She was brave in a way that I only dreamed of being when I was a teen. The way she pushes the boundaries to express herself is over the top and fun. And Cricket. Oh my. Yet another addition to my long list of fictional boyfriends. What I loved most about Cricket? Besides his sincerity and insecurity and height (all 76 inches of him)? He was totally the boy I would have had a crush on in school. *sigh*

The supporting cast was also great. Lola’s dads were refreshingly active and overprotective parents. Lindsey was an excellent, steady yet still quirky BFF for Lola. Max was a frighteningly realistic controlling boyfriend that you like in the beginning and then gradually grow to dislike but still pity. And Cricket’s twin, Calliope, was a surprisingly developed and multi-layered character. Then there were Anna and Etienne. They don’t have just a cameo in this book. They are actual supporting characters which was a lot of fun. And it was hilarious to see that they still participate in indecent public displays of affection that embarrass everyone around them.

Seriously, I could get out of control with telling you about all the reasons I enjoyed this book which means I have no idea how to end this review. I will just stop while I am ahead and tell you this one last thing: READ THIS BOOK! It’s a lovely romance and reading it was one of the bright spots of my month.


~ Nat

Anna and The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

****

Synopsis taken from book cover:

Anna was 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.  So she’s less than thrilled about being shipped of to boarding school in Paris – until she meets Étienne St. Clair.  Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all…including a serious girlfriend.

But in the City of Lights, wishes have a way of coming true.  Will a year of romantic near misses end with their long awaited French kiss?  Stephanie Perkins keeps the romantic tension crackling and the attraction high in a debut guaranteed to make toes tingle and hearts melt.

I admit it.  I am a sucker for romance.  Sure a lot of girls like a little romance in their books.  But I am talking about a book just about romance.  No plots about Shadowhunters fighting evil and mind control (no offense Jace).  No plots about fallen angels trying to sacrifice girls in order to become human (don’t worry Patch, Bel still wants you).  I am talking pure unadulterated romance.  The kind of story where the main plot is about the Boy pursuing the Girl or the Girl crushing on the Boy.   All of it leading up to a smile-inducing ending where the Boy kisses the Girl and they live happily every after (or so we assume).

Anna and French Kiss is THAT book.  It is THAT romance.  It made me think of all my favorite romantic comedies.  Princess Diaries.  Serendipity.  Definitely, Maybe. When Harry Met Sally (yes I am dating myself). The movies I don’t mind watching over and over again because they make me happy.  Positively giddy.

Stephanie Perkins does an amazing job of building the tension between Anna and St. Clair.  Her simple descriptions such as legs accidentally brushing each other in a darkened movie theater will set your book on fire.  Quick, make sure you put that fire out though because the story is just getting started.  We suffer with Anna and St. Clair for an entire school year of mistakes and misunderstandings that keeps them apart.  All the time wondering, is this it?  Is it finally going to happen? 

And as much as I enjoyed the romance in this book there were a myriad of other things to love.  Such as:

• Anna’s growth as she maneuvers through her senior year at a new school, in a new country, with no immediate familial support.

• Anna’s new friends.  These aren’t token friends added to the story just because.  They are wonderfully developed characters that you learn to love as they take Anna under their wings.

• The laugh out loud moments.  Anna’s internal dialogue often had me laughing hysterically.  She is wonderfully dry.  I don’t know that anyone else could make me laugh at the following sentence  “Trousers.  Honestly.”  And yes, the exchanges between Anna and her friends were also hilarious at times.  Let’s not even mention some of the funny exchanges between her and St. Clair.

• Never have I been happier to hear a girl call a guy an asshole.  Won’t tell you who, what, when, where or why.  But it was fitting and it was deserved.

• I learned a new word that I will now use regularly…Callipygian.  Seriously, look this up.  It’s fabulous.

• And most importantly, how can I not love a book where a group of friends bond over crepes and Girl Scout cookies?  This is Bibliojunkie heaven.

Really, I could go on and on.  I enjoyed it that much.  I haven’t had many happy reads lately and to me this was a happy read.  So go!  Go now.  To your local bookstore or library, either one.  Just go and pick up this book.  In the end you will be smiling and will be happy that you listened to me.

~Nat