jenny han

My True Love Gave to Me… Holiday stories from some of our favorites!

my true love

 

Rainbow Rowell? Stephanie Perkins? Ally Carter? Matt De La Pena? Gayle Forman? Jenny Han? ALL IN ONE BOOK? Yep!

Merry Christmas to us all.

I mostly loved this collection of short stories. Several of them were enough to put me in the Christmas spirit even back when I read it in early August, and the one from Rainbow Rowell is just purely magical. There’s so much to love here!

The ONLY thing keeping me from recommending it with all the power I have is that there were a few stories that seemed anti-holiday, and it made me hesitate to really go all in for this. I mean, if you’re asked to write a short story to be included with the YA giants that make up this collection, why put content in the stories that will fly in the face of some of those very holidays?

Of course, that’s just my opinion and others will most certainly disagree. Even with those few stories that made me uneasy, though, I believe that the good far outweighs the bad here and that the stories here that are good are REALLY good, perfect for the upcoming holiday season! If you’re a fan of any of these authors, you’ll want to own this. Check out My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories on Amazon or at your favorite local retailer.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

to all the boys

 

In this, the latest title from the  incredible Jenny Han, protagonist Lara Jean has dealt with the end of each crush she’s had on a boy by writing a letter to him detailing the reasons she loved him and the reasons she’s done loving him… like a break up letter, but without every having an actual relationship. The problem, of course, is that when you write things down they can be discovered by others, and her letters actually get mailed to these boys she had crushes on in the past. Some of them she currently goes to school with and knows, some of them have moved on and live elsewhere, but regardless it’s awkward for all of them. Where I can picture myself completely freaking out and panicking, Lara Jean holds it together remarkably well and by the time you get to the end you’re so deeply invested in her and so completely rooting for her that you don’t want it to be over.

Jenny Han has a kind of quiet, understated way of developing really amazing characters that stick with you well after the book is over. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is reminiscent of her style with the Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy, which is great news for me – I absolutely adore those books. There are going to be more books to follow, but this one resolved well enough to satisfy while leaving just enough curiosity to make me look forward to the next one!

Find To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before on Amazon or at your favorite local bookseller!