My 13 year old daughter was reading this series so I picked the first book up for a quick "look-see." Han's beautiful writing style pulled me right in and I simply couldn't put it down! I ordered a set for myself and devoured all 3 books in just a few days.
As the first of Han's trilogy begins, we are introduced to 16 year old, Lara Jean Song Covey: loving daughter and middle of 3 sisters, good friend and neighbor, solid student, avid reader and writer and passionate baker. Just like the romance novels she enjoys, Lara Jean has experienced deep emotions for 5 boys she has fallen in love with throughout her 16 years. The method she uses to overcome her "crushes" is to write each boy a love letter. In her letters, Lara Jean is vibrantly honest about her deeply passionate feelings. And, while she does actually address them, they are, for her, more or less "journal entries," written "by" her and "for" her; never intended to be mailed. What she doesn't expect, is that "somehow" her letters are stamped and actually mailed! The book takes off as this unexpected scenario unfolds, with lots of adventurous twists and turns along the way.
Han's characters, in my opinion, offer true depth as they all, in their own ways, try to navigate life, love, loss and relationship dynamics. To me, each character genuinely seemed to pursue love and healing on so many levels. Other qualities I found in Han's writing and characters were a deep appreciation for both family and its often unique dynamics. There was also a refreshing emphasis of wanting the good of the "other" in spite of relationship hurt feelings among several characters. I found Han's portrayal of her characters and people overall absolutely beautiful as well as inspiring.
I just loved how Han illustrated the vital component of friendship as the basis to any relationship (platonic, family or romantic.) I feel like she successfully highlighted components of what can often be the foundation of friendship: empathy, being supportive even when one may not feel like it, fostering good listening skills, honesty, sharing, being vulnerable, forgiving and taking risks even when it feels scary.
Another aspect of Han's story telling I was aware of is her ability to create what I'm going to call "supportive story" depth. Aside from the main character, Lara Jean and the story line of her pursuit of and hoping to receive love, the details of her family, friends, personal interests, high school and neighborhood were all interesting and thriving side stories. I don't recall a chapter that felt like a "filler," while the main story wasn't the focus. Han really achieved an amazing balance of believable community that led me to feeling pulled in to the story on all levels.
While sexual content is lightly addressed in both conversations and behaviors of some characters, I felt as though Han approached these topics respectfully and with what today is, in my opinion, impressive modesty; especially with Lara Jean. In a few cases, there were even gentle "qualifiers" so as to indicate to the reader that the topics mentioned or instances occurring weren't necessarily a positive choice by some of the characters. With the main character, Lara Jean, there was a confidence in her personal beliefs, and I felt she stood by them. As a parent, I was really grateful for this part.
Throughout all of this, the main question remained: "will Lara Jean find true love from one of her love letters?" You'll have to read "To All the Boys I've Loved Before" to find out! ☺️. If you are seeking a well written experience with an uplifting story (probably ages 13-ish and up) this trilogy could be for you.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2021
Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2023
The only book that I experienced this issue with was the last in the series and it’s only a few pages, the quality of the books is great it’s just unfortunate that I received a misprint.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2023
Top reviews from other countries
Renata Rodrigues
ABSOLUTELY AMAZING
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 10, 2023
Snehal Sawant
Awesome book quality and packaging
Reviewed in India on April 8, 2023
