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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
This novel is very different from Jennifer E. Smith’s other novels. It’s sweet, but also very sad and deep, unlike her other YA novels. I could kind of relate to it, since I was in that stage right before college a little while ago. I really liked this book, so I’d recommend it, especially since it’s so short.
Having read 3 of her previously released books and loved them, needless to say I was fairly excited to read this book. And I have to admit I was pretty disappointed. Clare was so annoyingly pessimistic about long distance relationships and that alone irked me to no end. I mean, I am a pretty pessimistic cynic when it comes to relationships, but holy crap. I would have been on Aidan’s side with trying to figure out how to make it work. And I get it, long distance is hard to make work, but not impossible. I mostly only kept reading to hope what I became convinced halfway through the book was going to happen, didn’t actually happen. Of the now 4 books I have read by her, this one was the most disappointing. In all, I was disappointed how this book turned out, although I know I will probably read her next book whenever it is released, even after not really enjoying this book too much. The ending somewhat made the story better, but not enough for me to only rate this book 2 stars.
This book was incredible! A little slow in the beginning but once you're in, you're hooked! The ending broke me. i definitely recommend this to everyone, but especially other high school seniors who will resonate with Clare and Aidan's feelings.
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pros:
·This is a sweet, fun read. I was rooting for Clare and Aidan the whole time and felt their triumphs and heartbreaks.
·This is also a super quick and light read- I think I read it in less than 3 hours and enjoyed it the whole time
·This perfectly encapsulates the joys and complications of first love and growing up
Cons:
·the conversations about whether to continue their relationship fell a little flat and probably could have been more fleshed out.
Recommendation: I recommend if you’re looking for a fun, quick, YA read, especially for fans of YA romance. This was a bit different in that the book starts at the (potential) end of the relationship instead of walking you through how they get there, and that was fun. Overall, this book was fun, sweet, and quick and I think it was worth the read. Avoid if you hate romance novels!
Bittersweet. Though reading it on Valentine's Day was kinda appropriate.
Ich mochte die etwas andere Erzählstruktur sehr, das macht die Geschichte außergewöhnlich.
Auch die Charaktere waren gut ausgearbeitet und ich hatte nie das Gefühl, dass sie sich seltsam verhielten, selbst die Nebencharaktere besaßen Tiefe und ich freue mich für einige ziemlich, obwohl sie eigentlich kaum Raum in dem Buch hatten.
Trotzdem hatte ich zwischendurch das Gefühl, dass sich die Geschichte verlor. Clare geriet ins Schwanken, ok. Aber dann passierten ein paar Dinge, die nicht nötig gewesen wären und ich war manchmal ob der zeitlichen Einordnung verwirrt.
Die Stimmung des Buches war durch die Prämisse der Geschichte eher melancholisch, was mir immer sehr gut gefällt und dieser leichte, süße Schmerz wurde sehr gut eingebunden, weshalb das Buch doch noch einen Stern mehr bekommt als ursprünglich geplant.
Auch die Charaktere waren gut ausgearbeitet und ich hatte nie das Gefühl, dass sie sich seltsam verhielten, selbst die Nebencharaktere besaßen Tiefe und ich freue mich für einige ziemlich, obwohl sie eigentlich kaum Raum in dem Buch hatten.
Trotzdem hatte ich zwischendurch das Gefühl, dass sich die Geschichte verlor. Clare geriet ins Schwanken, ok. Aber dann passierten ein paar Dinge, die nicht nötig gewesen wären und ich war manchmal ob der zeitlichen Einordnung verwirrt.
Die Stimmung des Buches war durch die Prämisse der Geschichte eher melancholisch, was mir immer sehr gut gefällt und dieser leichte, süße Schmerz wurde sehr gut eingebunden, weshalb das Buch doch noch einen Stern mehr bekommt als ursprünglich geplant.
I've loved her other books but this one was just... not quite as good.
Received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I had never read anything by Jennifer E. Smith before, but I had always seen her books in the library and bookstore and thought the covers were just so adorable. My friends were in love with her, she was all over booklr, and everything I read about her was just so positive. I was ecstatic when I saw that I received an ARC for her upcoming novel, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between; now, however, I think I should have started somewhere else, with one of her more popular novels or something with more reviews to point me in the right direction.
I DNF’d this book at about 65%, not because it was bad, but because I just could not get into it. I was over halfway through the book and still thinking, so if and when is this going to pick up the pace? It felt like nothing was really happening. I think back on the 65% of this novel that I read like okay, what did I read, what happened so far, basic comprehension, what went on -- and I can’t really think of anything significant.
I think my main problem was that I could not understand one of the two main characters: Clare. Now, it’s very likely that I don’t understand her because of where I am at in life: I left home for college about a year ago to go to a school that was far away from my friends. I’m not so young that what Clare is going through hasn’t happened to me yet, and I’m not so old that what Clare is going through has been romanticized or hazed over for me either. I’m not looking forward at a terrifying event in my future, but I also remember how my experience went very clearly. Because of this, I found Clare to be, for lack of a better word, completely over dramatic.
Clare talked about college as if it was the same thing as dying or entering the witness protection program: she was never going to see her friends again and she had to make the final goodbye significant because once she went to college, they could never speak to each other again. I kept thinking, does this girl know what a phone is? Or Skype? She gets upset with Stella for ruining their “last goodbye,” as if best friends don’t call each other the second they are moved in to talk all about it. She is determined to break up with Aidan without considering the possibility of trying a long distance relationship (because it would ruin her college experience? I’m still not sure how that works). Clare seems to have this mindset that, in order to embrace college life, she has to leave her old life behind; in my experience, it wasn’t that difficult to balance out both -- to go to academic clubs and lectures and parties and make new friends while also calling friends from home or sending them care packages or getting together for Skype dates. I was constantly frustrated with Clare for making it out to be that college was the death of her old life that I just could not enjoy the book.
The concept itself also felt a bit cruel, to be honest: Clare is set on breaking up with Aidan by the end of the night, but before she does that, she is going to drag themselves through the good times of their relationship, going over every loving moment, every first kiss and conversation and highlight, before saying, “okay, this has been fun, take me home, we’re done here.” Like, what? If you are so set on breaking up with this boy, just break up with him -- don’t make him -- and yourself -- go through the joys of your relationship, soak around in a vat of hope, and still intend on breaking up with him on the end of the night. I know the intention was supposed to be romantic, but it honestly just felt so tortuous.
That being said, I do see the appeal of this book: a coming of age story that deals with romance in the midst of college departures? If I had read this book my senior year of high school, I’m sure I would have loved it. I’m sure it would have brought me to tears, would have impacted me greatly. And I don’t doubt that there are people who feel the same way Clare do, who have gone through similar situations and would have found this book to be helpful and supportive. I can understand the love for this sort of novel, but I just couldn’t love it myself.
Maybe I’ll read The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight; maybe I will fall in love with Jennifer E. Smith. Maybe after reading her other novels and falling in love, I will come back to Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between and feel differently. But for right now, it is going to sit on my 2-star shelf.
I had never read anything by Jennifer E. Smith before, but I had always seen her books in the library and bookstore and thought the covers were just so adorable. My friends were in love with her, she was all over booklr, and everything I read about her was just so positive. I was ecstatic when I saw that I received an ARC for her upcoming novel, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between; now, however, I think I should have started somewhere else, with one of her more popular novels or something with more reviews to point me in the right direction.
I DNF’d this book at about 65%, not because it was bad, but because I just could not get into it. I was over halfway through the book and still thinking, so if and when is this going to pick up the pace? It felt like nothing was really happening. I think back on the 65% of this novel that I read like okay, what did I read, what happened so far, basic comprehension, what went on -- and I can’t really think of anything significant.
I think my main problem was that I could not understand one of the two main characters: Clare. Now, it’s very likely that I don’t understand her because of where I am at in life: I left home for college about a year ago to go to a school that was far away from my friends. I’m not so young that what Clare is going through hasn’t happened to me yet, and I’m not so old that what Clare is going through has been romanticized or hazed over for me either. I’m not looking forward at a terrifying event in my future, but I also remember how my experience went very clearly. Because of this, I found Clare to be, for lack of a better word, completely over dramatic.
Clare talked about college as if it was the same thing as dying or entering the witness protection program: she was never going to see her friends again and she had to make the final goodbye significant because once she went to college, they could never speak to each other again. I kept thinking, does this girl know what a phone is? Or Skype? She gets upset with Stella for ruining their “last goodbye,” as if best friends don’t call each other the second they are moved in to talk all about it. She is determined to break up with Aidan without considering the possibility of trying a long distance relationship (because it would ruin her college experience? I’m still not sure how that works). Clare seems to have this mindset that, in order to embrace college life, she has to leave her old life behind; in my experience, it wasn’t that difficult to balance out both -- to go to academic clubs and lectures and parties and make new friends while also calling friends from home or sending them care packages or getting together for Skype dates. I was constantly frustrated with Clare for making it out to be that college was the death of her old life that I just could not enjoy the book.
The concept itself also felt a bit cruel, to be honest: Clare is set on breaking up with Aidan by the end of the night, but before she does that, she is going to drag themselves through the good times of their relationship, going over every loving moment, every first kiss and conversation and highlight, before saying, “okay, this has been fun, take me home, we’re done here.” Like, what? If you are so set on breaking up with this boy, just break up with him -- don’t make him -- and yourself -- go through the joys of your relationship, soak around in a vat of hope, and still intend on breaking up with him on the end of the night. I know the intention was supposed to be romantic, but it honestly just felt so tortuous.
That being said, I do see the appeal of this book: a coming of age story that deals with romance in the midst of college departures? If I had read this book my senior year of high school, I’m sure I would have loved it. I’m sure it would have brought me to tears, would have impacted me greatly. And I don’t doubt that there are people who feel the same way Clare do, who have gone through similar situations and would have found this book to be helpful and supportive. I can understand the love for this sort of novel, but I just couldn’t love it myself.
Maybe I’ll read The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight; maybe I will fall in love with Jennifer E. Smith. Maybe after reading her other novels and falling in love, I will come back to Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between and feel differently. But for right now, it is going to sit on my 2-star shelf.
LOL THIS WAS A BAD BOOK TO READ WHEN I JUST GOT OUT OF A RELATIONSHIP.
Slecht, gaat over niks. Dit boek zou 200 bladzijden minder kunnen zijn, er zit geen diepgang in.