A great review from Booklist for the anthology FIRST KISS (THEN TELL), with a contribution by Alyson Noel. Thanks to Justine Larbalestier for sharing this on her blog.
This entertaining collection of true “first kiss” stories by popular YA authors arrives just in time for Valentine’s Day. The risk of veering into groan-worthy, “when-I-was-your-age” territory always exists when adults reminisce about their teen years, but these authors treat their own stories with the same freshness and respect with which they approach their YA novels. The stories include Deb Caletti’s thrilling and empowering kiss, “as right as warm sidewalks and plums bought at roadside stands”; Cecil Castellucci’s secret and slightly shameful smooches with a bad boy; and Justine Larbalestier’s disgusting yet hilarious drunken kiss on a floating dock. Some stories are poems, one is a play, and a few are in comic form; despite the reality-based entries and mix of forms, the collection is classified as fiction. Kissing quotes and facts are interspersed, making this a good collection for browsing. The reader will finish this volume and know that whether a first kiss is anticipated or unexpected, dreamy or forgettable, this rite of passage provokes a complex mix of fear, excitement, and relief.
One thought on “Booklist review for FIRST KISS (THEN TELL)”
Yaknow, when you can cram an entire multi-tiered hook into a one sentence, four word title, you are a marketing force to be reckoned with.
That's frickin' genius. Whoever pitched that concept and title is brilliant. Kudos.
I couldn't be farther from your target audience and I would pick that up off the Border's table to read the back cover copy. Clever, clever, clever.
Now, that said, enough with depictions of feet on the cover of chicklit. What is it with you ladies and pictures of feet?