Review: Let It Snow by Maureen Johnson, John Green, and Lauren Myracle
Rating: Three interlocking stories by the masters of YA, full of Christmas spirit, squee-inducing romance, high levels of adorableness, and humor. The perfect book to curl up with in front of a roaring fire.
Sparkling white snowdrifts, beautiful presents wrapped in ribbons, and multicolored lights glittering in the night through the falling snow. A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks. Thanks to three of today’s bestselling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.
I just loved this book. It filled my heart with holiday happiness. I'm a huge fan of both Maureen Johnson and John Green, and though I haven't read any of Lauren Myracle's books, I'm pretty sure I'll be checking them out after this. Let It Snow is set in the small town of Gracetown, North Carolina on Christmas and consists of three separate but semi-related stories that all come together into a satisfying whole.
The Jubilee Express by Maureen Johnson was my favorite story of the three. Johnson's brand of humor is so completely what appeals to me that I wonder if maybe I'm a faulty, substandard clone of hers? Like, MJ minus fifty percent of her brilliance and minus the unnerving stare? Maybe? Don't answer that. "Jubilee Line" centers around a Virginia teenager named Jubilee (who is quick to inform you she is not a stripper) who's having problems both with her boyfriend and her holiday plans. She's heading south on a train to stay with her grandparents in Florida when the biggest snowstorm of the last fifty years hits, stranding her in the strange and delightful town of Gracetown. Through all sorts of hilarious shenanigans, involving cheerleaders, a Waffle House, and a man who has no idea he's wearing tin foil, she meets Stuart. Sigh. Stuart. And the cuteness commences.
This was the best story in the book. It was humorous and witty and oddly poignant. Jubilee is the kind of girl I want to be, and if I can't, then I want her to be my best friend. I was snorting, giggling, and cackling so much the people around me were starting to look at me funny.
A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle by John Green was chock full of Green's patented wit. It centers on Tobin and his two best friends, Angie "the Duke" and JP, racing toward the Waffle House on Christmas Eve. They are racing because the place is packed with cheerleaders, stranded due to the stalled train, and apparently a Waffle House full of cheerleaders is Mecca to teenage boys. This story is completely adorable. This romance was, in true John Green fashion, surprisingly deep, considering the short length. It would make a great teen movie like Superbad or Ferris Bueller's Day Off, those quest-like movies that take place in one day or night. I cackled a lot during this story, too. I love John Green, even if one or two of his stylistic things don't work for me, like the onslaught of run-on sentences right at the end, but that's really just nitpicking criticism. His dialogue is fantastic, and Tobin and the Duke's love story was the cutest one I've read in a really, really long time.
The final story, The Patron Saint of Pigs, while probably the weakest of the three, was still funny and enjoyable. It lifted my heart, and plus, there were piglets! Teacup piglets! I don't know if you've ever seen a teacup piglet, but they are quite possibly the cutest things to ever have existed. I say this with no exaggeration whatsoever. Google image search them. They are like therapy.
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| CASE IN POINT. |
Addie recently broke up with her loving boyfriend, Jeb, and she's really suffering. She's a total, hilarious, histrionic drama queen, so when I say she suffers, I mean she chops all her hair off, dyes it pink, and barricades herself in her room. She's pretty self-involved, and this story centers on her learning to think for others more and winning back the guy she hurt. Also, her best friend is getting a Snuggly Pink Love Muffin as a pet, and it ends up falling to Addie to rescue the little piglet. This is the story where the characters in the previous three stories all come together in the most glorious and hilarious way, like that last scene in Shakespeare play or something where EVERYBODY shows up and things are getting revealed left right and center and it all makes sense and it's like seeing all your old friends again and you're just so happy about it. Basically, it's tons of fun.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle, romance, cuteness, witty banter, holiday cheer, hash browns, piglets, ceramic Santa villages, words, oxygen, or joy. So everyone, essentially.
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| LOOK IT LOOK IT A PIG IN BOOTS A PIG IN BOOTS!!!! |
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| Happy Holidays! |
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This post doesn't have nearly enough pictures of pigs.
ReplyDeleteI usually steer clear of every single Christmas-themed anything. My brain decided once that all of them are cheesy and not worth the effort, which is pretty ridiculous considering all the Christmas-themed anythings I really liked (on that note, if you've never seen Millions or Love Actually you need to do so immediately). However, the interconnected-stories-ness of this appeals to me (as does the force-yourself-to-overcome-unfounded-biases-ness), so onto the to-read list this goes.
I wonder how the three authors collaborated to write the meet-up at the end. Was that section written in Myracle's style?
You're right. I should have added more pigs. My mistake.
DeleteSee, I loooove Christmas-themed things, though I can certainly reach my levels of cheesiness. What I liked about this book was that is WASN'T cheesy. And Love Actually is only the movie I watch every single December at least twice, but I haven't seen Millions, but I clearly need to.
I was wondering how the authors did it as well. They overlap from the beginning- Johnson's story sets up a lot of the other characters who feature prominently in the next to- and then in Myracle's they all appear together. It seemed like it was written in Myracle's style, but again, I haven't read any of her other books.
Millions probably isn't Danny Boyle's best, but it's certainly his most adorable work. And the cinematography! Get on that.
DeleteAwww. Adorable pics :D They looks so cute. <3 Ahh. I think I need to read this book too :D I just read The Fault in Our Stars, and it was so damn perfect. I loved it so much. <3 Cannot wait to read more by John Green :D And yeah. This book does seem pretty awesome, even if it is just three short stories ;p Hoping to read it soon :) So glad you loved it, though :D And I'm super excited about the romance in John's short story ;p Hih :)
ReplyDeleteLove, Carina
AGH THE FAULT IN OUR STARS I bet you cried until you were sore. John Green knows how to tug the heartstrings, no doubt about that. Even in this shorter length, I felt his story managed to go the deepest.
DeleteGosh darnit, I got this from the library and so many other books kept bumping it back but now I really want to read this! Also, teacup piglets? BEGGED my mom to get me one a couple years ago. Turns out they're over $1,000. I SO want one and kept squealing over each of your pictures!
ReplyDeleteI SO wanted a teacup piglet too! Begged and begged until my dad was like, "Gillian, you will eat bacon with everything. Do you really have the conscience to own a piglet?" (Also the money/time/responsibility). Sadly, the answer was no. But they are SO PRECIOUS it blows the mind.
DeleteI love a good christmas story. Three short stories combined is a good way of doing it for people like me who sometimes have a short attention span :) Couldn't help laughing at your last comment there Gillian (what your dad said to you, so funny) I could never own a piglet, as I too, am a lover of bacon. They are definitely precious.
ReplyDeleteGlad I found your review, this book is on my TBR list this month so I've been looking for positive feedback on it!
ReplyDeletehttp://pluviophileponderings.blogspot.ca/