My True Love Gave To Me
Authors: Stephanie Perkins, Holly Black, Ally Carter, Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Kelly Link, Myra McEntire, Matt de la Peña, Rainbow Rowell, Laini Taylor, Kiersten White
Release: October 14th 2014
Genre: Anthologies, Short Stories, Holiday
Plot:
If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins.
Review:
Yes/No simply marks if I've read anything by that author before or not. :)
Midnight by Rainbow Rowell
Yes
Damn. What a good short story, even though it was "only" a contemporary piece of the cuddly, fluffy sort, it felt like a fully fleshed out novel because I cared about what happened. I didn't like Eleanor and Park, but now I have high hopes for Fangirl!
The Lady and the Fox by Kelly Link
No
Not as good as the first one, and kind of creepy and strange, but in the end, I still ended up sort of liking it.
Angels in the Snow by Matt de la Peña
No
It was quite a weird one, but at the same time so very raw and heartfelt that I actually may have come a little close to tears. Also, that open ending was just perfect.
Polaris Is Where You'll Find Me by Jenny Han
No
It was cutesy enough, but to be quite honest nothing outstanding in this anthology.
It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown by Stephanie Perkins
Yes
Oh. My. God. This one was so damn good. I would definitely read a whole book about North and Marigold, they were adorable and the short story was funny and surprising and interesting — I loved it. Definitely my favorite out of all of them.
Your Temporary Santa by David Levithan
No
Meh. Honestly, it was nice I guess, but then again, simply kind of boring and just ... so lame.
Krampuslauf by Holly Black
Yes
This is honestly exactly what I'd expect from Holly Black, Something partially magical and so damn weird, after you're done reading you're like Wait... what the hell did I just read? But it was sweet and I especially loved the open ending and the message it sent out. Not to mention Holly Black's magnificent writing!
What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman
Yes
Honestly, overall, I did like this one, but in some parts it felt way too pretentious to me. While reading her If I Stay and Just One Day I already felt like she was going a bit overboard as well, and it was the same case with this one. Nevertheless, it was still a nice one.
Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus by Myra McEntire
Yes
Well DAMN. I loved this one! I wish Myra McEntire published another book, 'cause I really wanna give her another chance to prove herself. I do still believe she's an amazing author and she can really write when she wants to. Honestly, I would have read and probably enjoyed this short story had it been a full length novel. Even over the span of a few short pages, McEntire is able to really make characters come alive and stand out, and I love that about her.
Welcome to Christmas, CA by Kiersten White
Yes
Honestly, considering the rough history White and I have had, I expected this to be a disaster of a short story, but I ended up liking it much, much more than I initially thought I would. Maybe it's precisely because I had such low expectations, but I just thought the message behind the short story was the well done and came across loud and clear; I really appreciated that. It was an extremely enjoyable short story.
Star of Bethlehem by Ally Carter
No
What a great idea, seriously. Why couldn't she have done a full length novel out of this? I know I always say this when reading anthologies, but I really mean it when I say it. I would have loved to read more about this type of story, and Carter did a great job with this already, so... I'd be down for it. Needless to say, I immensely enjoyed this one, too.
The Girl Who Woke The Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Yes
I have said this before, I'll say it again: This woman is made out of pure, untainted magic. It's just what she is. However, I do have to admit that I didn't actually end loving this short story as much, because it was really, really strange and the holiday theme, while present, was very subtle and almost non-existent, which I kind of missed. Also, it was in no way actually cutesy or sweet. I did like the overall theme and story though, of women empowerment and freedom and so on, and, well, Taylor's writing is just to die for. Even if the content were utter rubbish, I'd still read anything she writes. She could literally write a thousand page book with nothing happening in it whatsoever and I'd read it.
All in all, probably the best anthology book I have read so far (which, admittedly, isn't saying much since it's the 3rd anthology I have ever read, but still). All of these, save for a couple maybe, were really well executed and well written, with interesting characters and intriguing story arcs, each individual and different from the other; it was really a delight to read. It went especially well for me this past week, because I had to so much stuff for school that I barely had time to read, so being able to sit down and read just one story and digest and process that one was so nice, since it took so little time but was still very pleasant and I was simply reading. So if you want something light and swift and cutesy for the holidays, maybe better suited for Christmas break than right now, this is definitely your book.
PS: My inner aesthetic is so so pleased with this book. The light, baby blue cover with the pink pages is so beautiful, this book is true eye candy!
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