Frankly in Love by David Yoon

Frankly in Love is a humorous, heartbreaking and honest account of what it means to find one's identity.
Frank Li is a Korean American teen, trapped in a world where he is expected to be just the right amount of Korean with a dash of American too… but finding the balance in between is not as easy as it seems and quite frankly exhausting!

The typical highschool experience is not so typical for Frank, while he's falling in love for the first time and finally dating the girl of his dreams, you'd think that everything would be great, but there's just one problem; his parents. Parents, who when it comes to girlfriends have got one major requirement on their list, and you guessed it: Korean. Although Frank’s girlfriend Brit, is smart and funny and sweet… she’s American and that just won't cut the list. 

Once again Frank must sacrifice what he wants to please his parents and must accept that he can never just be a regular american teen, but maybe just maybe he's found the perfect way out. When family friend Joy Song confides in Frank about her similar situation, they come up with a plan to pursue their love lives without their parents finding out. Finally it feels like Frank has got a hang of juggling this whole half Korean half American thing (or atleast faking it infront of his parents), but when he's suddenly faced with an unexpected twist he is forced to confront who he really is and what love truly means to him. 

Reviewed by Vindhya Kathuria

Happy reading! 

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Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

“Sometimes you have to endure painful things to realize that you're a whole lot stronger than you think.”

Written by the winner of the “RITA” award, Jenn Bennett,  “Alex, Approximately”, a Young Adult novel, which follows the theme of “first love”, will keep your attention as a prisoner from the very first page and will have you running along with the heart-melting and entrancing plot.

Typically, I enjoy reading fantasy and fast-paced Young Adult novels; however, only a  minimal number of “romance” novels fully seized my attention as “Alex, Approximately” did instead. Perhaps it is because this novel portrays itself to be much more than just a quick read, or perhaps it is because of the sweet and gratifying journey which I experienced. One thing is certain: this book is a perfect summer read!

“Alex, Approximately” sets off with the protagonist, film-fanatic Bailey Rydell, known online as “Mink”, and her recent transfer to Coronado Cove, on the Californian Coast. Here, she plans on finding “Alex”, her online friend and the boy she’s been crushing on for the past months. The first problem? Bailey has no idea what the boy of her dreams looks like, let alone know his real name. The second? Bailey is an evader, an avoider, an “artful dodger” therefore she plans on keeping her move to Coronado Cove a secret from her online friend, “Alex”  and independently scoping him out in the sea of Californians.  

After landing in California, Bailey gets a summer job in a local tourist trap, “The Cavern Palace”. Here, she quickly befriends Grace Achebe, a light-hearted worker, and meets the infuriating, yet handsome and witty, Porter Roth, security guard and surfer boy. Their relationship starts off on a negative note and gradually rises, as Bailey discovers that Porter has more to himself behind the shield he shows everyday. 

However, Bailey has not forgotten about her online film-buff friend “Alex”, the true reason behind her transfer to California. As the hunt for “Alex” becomes seemingly impossible, she has yet to realise that maybe she is looking too far...  

I truly recommend “Alex, Approximately” to those who love a quick and relaxing read, which they will never truly finish as the well-written characters will be lingering in their mind. This book calls to all 13+ Young Adult fans.

Reviewed by Marta Castelli

Happy reading! 

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Death Is Hard Work by Khaled Khalifa

Honour, patience and blood is tested, when three estranged siblings become entangled in a quest to fulfill their father's last wish; to be buried in his family plot.

What appears to be a seemingly straightforward drive from Damascus to their father’s ancestral village of Anabiya, takes on an entirely different landscape and climate in the wake of Syria's civil war.

The drudgery and torture of their task, dawning on them far beyond the point of being saved. As they are hurled along through rubble and chaos, they are reminded of their own broken relationships and of the silence and space suspended between them. Together they must bargain, beg and bribe their way through war torn Syria, littered with snipers, secret police and endless checkpoints and interrogations.

Together they must look beyond their differences and swallow their pride to complete one final journey, before disintegrating from each other's lives for good.

Amidst destruction, devastation and decay, Khaled Khalifa negotiates a place in between the dead and the living, and that is the true beauty of this novel.

Reviewed by Vindhya Kathuria

Happy reading! 

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Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls

Do you remember reading ‘One Day’? – well, it is 10 years ago that David Nicholls wrote ‘One Day' and had us all fall in love with Dexter and Emma. Now it is time to fall in love with Charlie and Fran. 

Meet the protagonist Charlie Lewis, 16 and in a bad place in his life. His parents separated just months before he had to sit the GCSEs, and he is not happy living with his depressed dad. Summer is here, and Charlie doesn’t know what to do as his friends are moving on with their lives, and the town is kind of too small to be interesting. 

Charlie falls upon wonderful Fran Fisher. She is 17, gone to the posh school in town, and not afraid of being in her own skin. However – if Charlie wants to be with Fran, who is quickly stealing his heart, he has to do theatre sports with a company that sets up Romeo & Juliet in town. As you can imagine, theatre sports is not really Charlie’s thing. Cool boys don’t do theatre, however luckily Fran has taken the lead in Charlie’s life and new doors open up.

Nicholls has written a book that will have your mind drifting back to being 16, school holidays and first loves. It is a mix of humor and heart, and it is a book that nails the attributes that has given Nicholls’ his fans. 

It is not a replica of One Day, but there is a thematic continuity of One Day and Us in Sweet Sorrow and Nicholls’ readers will be happy to spend time with Charlie and Fran. 

Pick it up if you liked…One Day by Nicholls or anything by Nick Hornby. Happy reading!

Reviewed by Lotte Bastholm

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