#jenny han
“The more people that you let into your life, the more that can just walk right out.”
- Lara Jean
Margot would say she belongs to herself. Kitty would say she belongs to no one. And I guess I would say I belong to my sisters and my dad, but that won’t always be true. To belong to someone—I didn’t know it, but now that I think about, it seems like that’s all I’ve ever wanted. To really be somebody’s, and to have them be mine. To all the boys I’ve loved before / Jenny Han ————————————————————————— I enjoyed reading this book, and it was next to impossible to put down! Yet, I don’t think it lived quite up to the hype in my opinion (I think I was expecting something big and dramatic). Nevertheless, I will definitely be reading the next books in the series. 4/5
Jenny Han “To all the boys I`ve loved before” & “P.S. I still love” (more…)
Thank you Jenny Han for debuting my version of This Love in the trailer for The Summer I Turned Pretty!! I’ve always been so proud of this song and I’m very about this turn of events - This Love (Taylor’s Version) comes out tonight at m i d n i g h t! Pre-order now http://taylor.lnk.to/thislovetv
WARNING!!! THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!
So I’ve gotta say my expectations for this series wasn’t too high. And by that I mean, I thought it’d be a lot like Girl Online and I’d feel super old reading it because of how juvenile everything was and how unrelatable it’d be…
But I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of substance in this series! There is so much character development and while my family definitely doesn’t have a summer beach house and I’ve never obsessed over a guy since I was 8, I still found so many relatable things in this series. Love? Yes. Unreciprocated love? Absolutely. Heartbreak from the unreciprocated love? You already know it. Loss? Unfortunately yes. Growing up? Well, I would hope this would be relatable!!! haha
**Also, sidenote, I wrote these reviews/reactions after each book, so stay tuned for the complete series thoughts at the very end! :)
The Summer I Turned Pretty was a bit of a slow start as the first book always is; getting to know the characters and places and relationships. But once I felt established in the story, I was hooked. I was a little annoyed at how freaking obsessed Belly was/is with Conrad. Like sure, have a crush. But dear god, like she should not basically have a panic attack every time he even looks in her direction!!
So yeah… I thought her reactions to him were a little over the top and was very pleased when she had met Cam. I really enjoyed his character and was upset that she basically ghosted him when he had done absolutely nothing wrong. I felt bad for him in the end.
And of course, one iota of attention from Conrad and Belly is head over heels at the drop of a hat - even though he treats her like absolute shit most of the time.
I was so freaking upset for Jeremiah, too. That poor boy laid his little heart on the line and Belly could not care less… I know she did, but I just cringed when she was telling Conrad how she felt. Like literally cringing.
And again, I just don’t get her fascination with him in the first place. She deserves so much better… *cough cough* Jeremiah *cough* But alas, Conrad decided to give her a glance at the end and I gotta say, I didn’t care for it. Luckily there are 2 more books still!
It’s Not Summer Without You was not what I had been expecting at all. The first book looked like Belly was getting her happy ending, and since it involved Conrad, of course, she didn’t get it. Shocker. But it took a little too long for my liking to get to the reason why they weren’t together anymore. And I was tired of hearing Belly complain and mope and pine for Conrad still. It was exhausting to read about so I don’t know how her friends kept up with it!! hahaha
On a serious note, Susannah’s whole story absolutely breaks my heart. She was truly the glue that held everything together. Everything and everyone. When she died, it wasn’t surprising to see everyone kind of fall apart. It really touched a nerve and hit home with me just being able to relate to a person like her who changes the lives of everyone around. As much as I don’t care for Conrad when it comes to Belly. I honestly do care about him as a person. Sure, he deals with things the wrong way, but he is who he is and everything he does has a reason behind it and I’m glad they showed more of that side of him.
Which brings me to Jeremiah. Oh, how I loved reading his chapters!! And WOW did things get juicy QUICK!!
I was not expecting any of that to happen towards the end but praise Jesus I’m so glad it did! Also loved seeing Belly grow up in that moment and realize that she needed to move on if she ever wanted even a chance at happiness. So Book 2 definitely tops Book 1. Let’s just hope Belly and Jeremiah last a bit longer than Belly and Conrad did and I’m not reading Chapter 1 finding out that they’ve already broken up…
*I wrote this commentary as I was reading the book, so enjoy my inner thoughts hahaha ;)*
We’ll Always Have Summer started out MUCH better than Book 2! I mean way to just start off nice and calm with Belly in college studying for finals and acing them and going to take a nap and then nonchalantly mentioning Jeremiah in her bed. LIKE WAIT WHAT BACK UP. YES THANK YOU I’M SO HAPPY!!
And then immediately taking this happiness away from literally ALL OF US in the very next chapter… Stupid boys…
AND THEN JESUS CHRIST THIS BOOK IS AN EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER AND I’M ONLY ON CHAPTER 11?!?!
And excuse me, why is she freaking dreaming about CONRAD?!?! I will be so mad if they end up together…
Also, props to Tayler for chilling the fuck out. Well, sort of. But like she’s growing up and she is a really great friend to Belly!
Oh no. Ohhhhhhhhhhhh NOOOOO. Uh-uh. NOPE. I refuse.
Jeremiah’s chapters were welcomed because Jere is sweet and charming and funny and NICE TO BELLY. Why the HELL does Conrad have his own damn chapters??! I mean it’s nice to find out what he’s actually thinking for once, but DO NOT make me start feeling sorry for him. NO.
Again, if she ditches sweet Jeremiah for him, I will be livid. LIVID.
Ok, fam. Like calm down. Sure they’re ‘young’. But is it necessary to react like that?! To outright REFUSE to go to your only daughter’s wedding? Especially when everyone knew one of the boys would marry Belly eventually. Like this shouldn’t be a shocker. I don’t get the dramatics of it.
Great. Of COURSE, Conrad is staying in Cousins, too. This won’t turn into anything. Nope. Never.
Ok. Wedding plans. More wedding plans.
Conrad GO AWAY.
Sweet baby Jesus. I can’t handle this.
JERE COME BACK.
OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD
Ok. Phew. Everything is fine. Wait. What? NO. What’s happening?!? BELLY JUST SAY NO. DIDN’T YOU LEARN ANYTHING FROM D.A.R.E.?!?! JUST SAY NO!!
God dammit.
I am so pissed.
So. Just finished Book 3. Not happy. I just will NEVER understand going back to some guy who hurts you over and over and over. I will never approve of that and I will judge you for doing that. It’s not okay and I don’t care how ‘in love’ you think you are. People who love you don’t continuously hurt you. Period. God, I’m so disappointed in the way this story turned out.
Positives? Jenny Han is a fantastic storyteller. Homegirl can WRITE!
Absolutely loved the Netflix adaptation of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. I need to read the third in the series now!
Post link
To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018) Lara Jean Covey & Peter Kavinsky
who else also watched To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before and feels like writing 5 letters for your younger sib to send out to increase your chances
to all the boys i’ve loved before; for@loudwithlaughter
❝ I want to say yes, but I don’t want to be with a boy whose heart belongs to someone else. Just once, I want to be somebody else’s firstchoice . ❞
Post link
Van egy koreai szó, amit a nagyi tanított. Jung. Két ember közti kapcsolatot jelent, aminek nem lehet véget vetni, még akkor sem, ha a szeretet gyűlöletbe fordul. Akkor is élnek benned a régi érzelmek, sosem tudod a másikat teljesen lerázni magadról, a szívedben megmarad a másik iránt érzett gyengédség.
Jenny Han: Utóirat: Még mindig szeretlek!
– Tudtad, hogy amikor két ember küzd egymással, az azt jelenti, hogy igazából még mindig fontosak egymásnak?
Jenny Han: A fiúknak, akiket valaha szerettem
“People come in and out of your life. For a time they are your world; they are everything. And then one day they’re not. There’s no telling how long you will have them near.”
Lara Jean, P.S. I Still Love You
“Never say no when you really want to say yes.”
Stormy, Always and Forever
“It’s called jung. It’s the connection between two people that can’t be severed, even when love turns to hate. You still have old feelings for them; you can’t ever completely shake them loose of you; you will always have tenderness in your heart for them.”
Lara Jean, P.S. I Still Love You
“When you lose someone and it still hurts, that’s when you know the love was real.”
Ms. Rothschild, P.S. I Still Love You
With summer officially here, and more time to read, we thought we’d start up our Friday Reads posts again. Check out what the gang at Simon & Schuster Canada are reading this week!
Brendan, Editor: I can never read just one book at a time, but I’ve started trying to balance the number of books on my nightstand by picking just one book of poetry and one full-length book. Right now, I’m pairing Adrienne Rich’s The Dream of a Common Language withLincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. Each writer knows how to craft superb poetry and prose, so even if I don’t read for a long time, every word is exquisite.
Shannon, Publicity Assistant: I’m in the midst of the last in Jenny Han’s latest series, Always and Forever, Lara Jean,and it is just as page turning as To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before andP.S. I Still Love You. I’m so going to miss these characters, but I’m excited to see where their stories end. How will Lara Jean deal with moving away to college? Will Kitty be okay as the only one of the Song Sisters left at home? Will Lara Jean and Peter make it through all the changes?! I guess I better keep reading to find out!
Alexandra, Marketing Assistant: This week I’ve been reading Roz Nay’s Our Little Secret. This book packs a punch, taking psychological thrillers to the next level. Angela is being held in a police interrogation room and questioned on the disappearance of her ex’s wife, Saskia. Our Little Secret has everything I love in a book: a sweet romance, intriguing characters, and unexpected plot twists. Trust me, you won’t see this ending coming!
Samantha, Sales Operations Associate: I tore through James Maskalyk’s Life on the Ground Floor in two days – it’s Maskyalyk’s engaging memoir of life as a doctor in a Toronto emergency room and his trips to Ethiopia to train doctors in emergency medicine. In Toronto, he works long shifts at St. Mike’s dealing with everything from heart attacks to homeless people looking for a place to sleep. In Ethiopia, the hospital doesn’t even always have electricity, and there have never been emergency rooms before. Maskalyk is patient and compassionate in his writing, not ignoring the toll the profession takes on him, but not neglecting the patients’ dignity, either. It’s clear that outcomes are affected by the resources the hospital has available, but in the end he is hopeful that continuing training and funding will raise standards outside of Canada. Highly, highly recommended.
Post link
Neuzugänge September 2016
“Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts” Joseph von Eichendorf
“To all the boys I´ve loved before”Jenny Han
“Ich und die Walter Boys” Ali Novak
“So geht Liebe” Katie Cotugno
“Emma”Jane Austen
Post link
Oh my gosh. I don’t know how to describe this book, show how fantastic it was, and still show my love for it. Jenny Han is a new favorite of mine. Lara Jean is so funny and I loved every moment this book.
I’m trying to decide which of the books in this duology that I loved more, but I can’t decide. Nothing will ever will every be as epic as Lara Jean launching herself at Peter K. and kissing him in front of the whole school just to avoid her true crush finding out that she liked him. But, nothing will ever be as epic as Peter K. running up on stage during the school assembly and dropping a couple of f-bombs. I love these books. Way to go Jenny Han.
P.S. it’s actually a trilogy! I’ll make a fresh post of the 3rd book once I’ve read it!!
Post link
