A light, romantic summer read for fashionistas made more interesting by its Australian protagonist.
A white Australian girl spends part of her gap year in Paris.
Lisette, who prefers to go by Lise, should be perfecting her French and visiting museums as per her mother’s instructions, but she’s more excited about finding a boyfriend and buying vintage clothes. Her mother’s Parisian dreams were disrupted when her artist boyfriend—Lise’s father—left her while she was pregnant. Intelligent, hip Lise never met her now-deceased father who had been living in Wales. Her mother’s internet clairvoyant, Madame Christophe, who rents her a room for the summer, also arranges for Lisette to take a French class with a group of slightly older artists, including blond, German Anders, and two friendly young women from Canada and the Philippines. After a fling with Anders, which becomes complicated, Lise meets Hugo, a likable young English antiques dealer—and faces difficult decisions about her future ambitions, desire to learn more about her father, and romantic relationships. Unfortunately, Lise barely speaks to any young French people and experiences a superficial view of Parisian life. For example, an emotional encounter with a Romani woman who curses her on the Metro reinforces stereotypes without offering useful cultural context. Lise and her shopping adventures are engaging, but her endless self-examination is repetitive.
A light, romantic summer read for fashionistas made more interesting by its Australian protagonist. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-76029-363-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Review Posted Online: March 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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