Reading Bingo: Anna and the French Kiss

Time to check off another Reading Bingo square! I finally got around to reading Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins earlier this year. If you're a regular reader of my blog you'll know that I'm not a big YA fan, even though one of my favourite authors is Sarah Dessen. But, since I had heard so many good things about this book and knew it was similar to Dessen, I finally gave it a shot. And guys? I loved it.

Here's the synopsis:

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 Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all...including a serious girlfriend.
But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss?

Now, I read the book ages ago. February 18, to be precise. Soooo, this will be a short review. It's also going to be full of pictures. I'll start by saying that I just devoured this book. It was an awesome read in one sitting book and it was a great way to spend a holiday Monday. It's such a sweet and fun read and exactly the kind of YA I love.

I ended up doing a bit of a photo readalong of sorts when reading it so I will now share some photos before getting into more of a review.

As it was February, I required some tea while I was snuggled under a blanket on my couch. Unfortunately I cannot give you the book and tea pairing because I can't recall what I was drinking. Yes, that is a giraffe in my mug. And yes, he does have a name. Stanley. My sister gave him to me around this time of year last year. I remember that because we were watching Stanley Cup playoffs at the time. Clearly I wasn't too original in my naming choice :)

I love when books reference Harry Potter.

And a personally entertaining part of the book when St. Clair gives Anna a Canadian flag. If I ever get to go abroad I will make sure everyone knows I am actually from Canada and not a faux Canadian :)

As I mentioned, this book was the kind of YA I like to read. I'm not into super angst-y, super paranormal-y, or any other super -y. What I love about Dessen is that her characters are so real and relatable and I felt like Perkins wrote in the same way. Sure, the main characters want to get a boyfriend and think high school is the be all, end all, but I still enjoy reading about them. I've had to put down other young adult books because I couldn't handle reading about the life of the sixteen (or whatever) year old in the book. I never felt annoyed or frustrated with Anna. Instead I was able to recall what it was like when I was a teen. It's enjoyable, not irritating.

I really don't know what else I can say about Anna and the French Kiss other than: I loved it and think many others will too. I'm waiting for Lola and the Boy Next Door to show up at my library (they didn't have a copy so my friend who works there put in an order for it. It pays to know people.) and I can't wait to read it. Of course, I'm also excited for Isla and the Happily Ever After (release date is September 17th) but am not quite as anxious as those who have been waiting for two years. I will leave you with the new covers of Stephanie Perkins' novels, which some people are upset about but I personally love. What are your thoughts?

Oh, I lied. I will actually leave you with my Reading Bingo card. Are you playing along? How's your card looking?

Happy reading! :)