Well. If you're looking for a romance novel, this is the best one I've read. Anna's been sent to the School of America in Paris by her father, and she's not best pleased. A million miles away from her home, leaving behind her boyfriend, best friend, and family. She's thrust into independent life, in a country she knows nothing about, and never mind the fact she can't speak a word of French.
Enter the handsome Etienne St. Clare. English accent. American school. French name. With perfect hair, teeth, and eyes, he's intelligent and a hopeless romantic. Everything you'd want a boy to be.
Except he has a girlfriend. So he's out of the question. Anna's fallen for him, but will St. Clare help her up, and find her feet in a foreign country?
This book has everything I love in it. Boarding school, romance, minimal drama but enough to keep it interesting, and relatable characters. I instantly connected with Anna. She's an introvert and is very happy in her own company, and reacts to situations exactly how I would. She's not your typical teen, and is rather naive. She's not desperate to go out drinking every night, preferring a night alone at the cinema.
"Some people are finicky about going to the theater alone, but I'm not. Because when the lights go down, the only relationship left is between the movie and me."
Annas flaws are similar to my flaws, and it's refreshing to read about a main character who isn't perfect. Perkins actually remembers what it's like to be a teenager, instead hearing what adults 'think' goes on in a teenagers brain.
A recurring theme in this book is 'Home". Anna says "Is it possible for home to be a person, not a place?" I definitely think the answer to that is yes. Home, to me, is where my parents, younger sister and cat are. Whether thats Paris, Berlin, or England, it doesn't matter. Because if youre comfortable with the people, the surroundings don't matter. (Obviously it does help slightly if you're in a romantic part of Paris with a totally beautiful boy and have the world at your fingertips!)
I found St Clare ever so slightly unbelievable, but perhaps only because I've never met such an amorous guy in real life. I'm still waiting for my own Etienne. Very easy to read, wonderful realistic characters, and much recommended. I am definitely buying Stephanie Perkins second book, 'Lola and the Boy Next Door'.
