by Jenny Han
Series: To All The Boys #1
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Published April 15th 2014 by Simon and Schuster
Format Acquired: Paperback
Source: bought from National Book Store
Purchase Links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Fully Booked / Kobo / National Book Store / The Book Depository
Lara Jean's love life goes from imaginary to out of control in this heartfelt novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer I Turned Pretty series.
What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them... all at once?
Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren't love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she's written. One for every boy she's ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly, Lara Jean's love life goes from imaginary to out of control.
MY REVIEW
"I think I see the difference now, between loving someone from afar and loving someone up close. When you see them up close, you see the real them, but they also get to see the real you."
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| The after state of my TATBILB. I just love tabbing my books! |
I was so excited to buy my own copy of this book when it first came out here in the Philippines. The title plus the cover itself caught my attention right away. As much as I appreciate receiving love letters more than text messages, I have always loved writing letters (I wrote my exes some) because I believe writing is the true form of expressing yourself. You can feel the emotions of the writer through his/her words, and the way his/her handwriting looks like.
“When I write, I hold nothing back. I write like he'll never read it. Because he never will. Every secret thought, every careful observation, everything I've saved up inside me, I put it all in the letter. When I'm done, I seal it, I address it, and then I put it in my teal hatbox.”
Lara Jean wrote letters for the boys she loved before not to give it to each one of them, but for heart to move on. The letters were for her eyes only and she kept them in a hatbox her mother gave her. She kept it safely hidden until one day she discovered that her love letters were accidentally sent and she have no idea as to how and who sent them.
If I were in Lara Jean's shoes, I wouldn't exactly know what to do. I'd rather lock myself in my room, or just disappear like a bubble. Especially if these guys didn't know that I fell inlove with them and then one day, after those years of not having a clue about how I felt for them, they'd know everything in just a piece of paper. I didn't like what Kitty did (Oops! Spoiler!) Because no matter how much I hate my sister for something she did, I would spill out her deepest secrets. That would be too much.
“I delete the picture of him from my phone; I delete his number. I think that if I just delete him enough, it will be like none of it ever happened and my heart won't hurt so badly”
Well, I guess I don't have anything much to say about this book because it didn't really live up with my expectations. I expected longer and more meaningful letters. It lacks a few things and for me, the title doesn't fit the whole story. I just wished that the five boys were emphasized more. And what happened after they received the letters? I also wish it didn't focus on just one boy. But I like boys like Peter Kavinsky. Anyway, the ending... I still need the second book ASAP!
MY RATING
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jenny Han
Jenny Han is the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer I Turned Pretty series;Shug; the Burn for Burn trilogy, cowritten with Siobhan Vivian; and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and P.S. I Still Love You. She is also the author of the chapter book Clara Lee and The Apple Pie Dream. A former children’s bookseller, she earned her MFA in creative writing at the New School. Visit her at DearJennyHan.com.
Author Links:
"This is the moment I realize I don't love him, that I haven't for a while. That maybe I never did. Because he's right there for the taking: I could kiss him again; I could make him mine. But I don't want him. I want someone else. It feels strange to have spent so much time wishing for something, for someone, and then one day, suddenly, to just stop."
You're actually the first person I know who seems to be kind of unfazed by the hype around the book! Too bad it couldn't live up to your expectations but your review really makes me want to read the book, like right now. :D
ReplyDeleteGreat review!
Give it a try! It's still a good read for me, I guess I just expected too much. :)
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