Began reading: 23.12.2015
Completed reading: 26.12.2015
Overall rating: 4 stars
The worst blizzard for fifty years.
Three wintry love stories.
One magical night.
It's Christmas Eve and Gracetown has been buried by snow. But the weather is more than just an inconvenience. When one girl unexpectedly steps off a stranded train, she sets off a series of life-changing events.
Soon fourteen pumped-up cheerleaders will descend on the local Waffle House, the Duke's DVD night will be rudely interrupted for a Twister mission, and a lovesick barista will determine the fate of a single teacup pig...
As the three stories collide, strangers cross paths and romance blossoms with heart-warming consequences.
Let It Snow by Maureen Johnson, John Green and Lauren Myracle is a Christmas-themed young adult novel which involves contemporary romance to bring festive cheer to the holidays. I wasn’t going to review this book, as I’m not really into Christmas-themed novels, but I thought that reading stories of snowy Christmas stories would be a great contrast to the usual hot Australian Christmas. Personally, I wasn’t disappointed!
The novel was well-written, and filled with some great quotes. For example:
…when it’s real, when it’s your life… that person can feel even farther off and more unobtainable than an actual celebrity. Proximity doesn’t breed familiarity (p. 5).
…once you think a thought, it is extremely difficult to unthink it (p. 195).
‘We are all flawed, my dear. Every one of us. And believe me, we’ve all made mistakes’ (p. 294).
More quotes from the book can be found here.
I really loved the humour that had been scattered throughout the novel. I chuckled a few times, and got weird stares from strangers around me. Here are a couple of examples:
Just then, my phone started ringing. The ring must have been damaged by the water as well, so now it had a high, keening note — kind of the sound I imagine a mermaid might make if you punched her in the face. Surprised. A little accusatory. Hurt. Gurgley (p. 117).
‘No offense, but Billy Talos is a little bit greasy, isn’t he? I feel like if you wrung out his hair every day or two, you could potentially end America’s dependence on foreign oil’ (p. 153).
I thought that the short stories varied, in terms of interest. I extremely enjoyed Maureen Johnson’s story, The Jubilee Express. John Green’s story, A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle was ok, but I didn’t really enjoy Lauren Myracle’s story, The Patron Saint of Pigs. I will explain Johnson’s story later, but John Green’s story didn’t disappoint. Having read The Fault in Our Stars, I had an idea of what to expect — quirky humour — and I wasn’t let down. However, the ending to this story was a little predictable. I will also explore Lauren Myracle’s novel later.
The three stories were linked to each other, which made it seem as though the book was one story, told in three different perspectives. Anyway, I enjoyed it, as it never left me questioning what happened to characters. In each story, the characters would make an appearance or were mentioned, which was great!
My favourite character by far was Jubilee. She was quirky, friendly, realistic, and therefore relatable. I was glad that she made an appearance in the end of Myracle’s story, because I couldn’t get enough of her character.
Speaking of Jubilee, I really liked Johnson’s story the most. The story was unpredictable, adorable, and unique. So much happened in this story, but I suppose that is why I enjoyed it the most. I loved seeing how Jubilee realised her relationship with her boyfriend was detrimental, and how her character developed. I’m glad she found happiness in the end.
I didn’t enjoy reading Lauren Myracle’s story very much, as it was repetitive and the main character was so annoying! Throughout the story, Addie kept saying how everyone was targeting her, saying how she was putting herself before others. I agreed with everyone — she didn’t see how she affected others. She started saying ‘I love you’ too early for my liking, which just emphasised how clingy and odd she was. Also, she asked too much of her boyfriend, Jeb. For example:
‘I… I want you to follow me onto a plane and serenade me in the first-class cabin, like Robbie did to Julia in The Wedding Singer,’ I said. ‘I want you to build a house for me, like Noah did for Allie in The Notebook. I want you to fly me across the ocean at the prow of an ocean liner! Like the guy in Titanic, remember?’ (p. 232).
Recommendation time! If you like How to Keep a Boy from Kissing You and How to Convince a Boy to Kiss You by Tara Eglington, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, and The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis, you will love this book. Also, I recommend this book to anyone who likes Love Actually, and The Polar Express.
Happy reading!
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