This book captures the essence of a book blogger although I am not in my teens I could relate to it. Keely and Nash are book bloggers who are online friends too. I loved this book. I could learn so much about the Jewish community and culture.

What I Like About You by Marisa Kanter, 409 pages. Simon and Schuster, 2020. $19. LGBTQIA
Language: R (96 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Halle can’t put the right words together IRL, but online she thrives under her pseudonym Kels, the blogger for One True Pastry. But in her most recent move, her real life and online worlds collide. Panicking, Halle tries to keep herself compartmentalized, an obviously foolproof strategy.
When Halle made the decision to keep her online and real lives from overlapping, I knew she was in trouble and I had to put the book down for a couple weeks because I wasn’t ready. I could see the blow up waiting to happen, and my dread continued to build with every opportunity to fix the mess that Halle let pass. And, after all that stress and disappointment, the ending was just eh. I appreciate the lessons in trust and true friendship that Kanter teaches through Halle’s mistakes, but reading the story was more painful than I wanted it to be. The mature content rating is for innuendo and partial nudity.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Oh my goodness, this book was the cutest, and it is perfect if you're looking for an adorable YA book to read. I loved the characters, and wish they were real so that I could be friends with them. I loved the Jewish representation in this book, as my cousin is Jewish, and I loved getting to know more about it! I loved the element of friendship in this book and how important it was to the characters. Overall, this was such a cute book and I would highly recommend it!

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed are my own. 

I might have to admit that I'm finally aging out of reading YA. Or maybe this book was just really harsh about adults. (Did a teenager write it? Is there a reason they're not fans?) 

I really wanted to like this. I was a little unsure about the baking bit, but there was Jewish representation and online friends, etc. This should have been a good time! 

Regrettably, this was another DNF. I got far enough in that I would say I would only recommend it to people on the younger end of YA--and probably more juvenile than YA, honestly.

This debut author’s book definitely dialed-in to the current teen social media culture. On the plus side, I love the YA lit fandom angle being such a big fan of the genre. I also appreciate that it’s a YA novel in which friends are genuine and there’s no focus (other than some negative comments online) on bullying. The secondary characters are well-developed and I appreciate the focus on family and the way people process grief.

Unfortunately, I seriously disliked Halle. Yes, she suffers from crippling anxiety and low self-esteem, but it’s never clear where that comes from other than never staying in one place long enough to make friends and establish an identity. Her loving family supports her and her social media following should be proof that she’s successful at what she does. It shouldn’t take an acceptance to NYU and invitation to a BookCon panel to validate her. However, that doesn’t excuse her selfishness and dishonesty. Trust is essential in relationships and she betrayed everyone’s. It’s astounding that everyone forgave her, honestly. 

I recommend this title because teen book lovers will appreciate the YA lit focus and the DM format. Unfortunately, the ARC wasn’t properly formatted, so it was difficult to follow the conversations. I trust that they fixed the errors before publishing.

What I Like About You is an adorable story that is the perfect YA romance release. It’s fun, light, fluffy, and adorable. There were some instances where I felt the characters fell flat but overall I would consider it a good romance read.

I had heard great things about this book and was really excited to get it. A girl that blogs about books is right up my alley. But I did DNF it at the twenty five percent mark. I didn't care for the writing. It did not flow well and a lot of times I didn't know who was talking or who she was talking about. The premise was really good, but that was it.

Marissa Kanter’s debut  is one of the most authentic books I have read in a long time.  Her use of real blogging terms and situations acknowledges  what teen bloggers juggle to promote their love books.

This book is just one big 'STOP LYING AND TELL THEM, YOU IDIOT' plotline. I'm just too old to enjoy this kind of plot anymore, especially when it comes to teenagers. ESPECIALLY when it comes to influential teenagers who have a large amount of followers on Instagram and twitter. The way this book was formatted was not all that enjoyable and I definitely thought that them saying 'tbh' and 'irl' was weird. Just say 'to be honest' and 'in real life' when you're TALKING to someone. It's never okay to lie to someone about anything but to talk to them for months with an online persona and not tell them when you realize what's happening? It's not cute in any way whatsoever. The only thing that I felt the author really got right was the way she wrote anxiety and anxiety attacks. I would have liked to see these infamous cupcakes Halle was constantly making as well. I did love the journey her grandpa went through in his grieving process but it just wasn't enough to make up for Halle and her 'unintentional' devious nature.

This was an adorable story. While I was very frustrated at times with the MC, Halle (I just wanted to shake some sense into her!!!), she was still an endearing character. Nash was adorbs and so likeable. I will say I felt a little isolated at times, as an adult reader of YA, because there were some sentiments that seemed anti-YA adults, but I got it in the context of the story so I let it slide. I can see some readers taking greater issue with that, though. 

All in all, fun, adorable, and just the sort of YA contemporary I like to pick up when summer is upon us!

Is it fun to see elements of the YA book blogging/Twitter world in an actual YA book? Yes, it’s meta! But on the flipside, Halle makes a LOT of negative comments and digs about adults who read/review YA. *awkward laugh* *pulls at collar* I mean, so much so that there were multiple times while reading this book that I wondered if Kanter even…wanted me reading it? I understand wanting to write for actual young adults, but the criticisms frequently felt more like I was unwelcome.

The longer Halle went without telling Nash who she really was, the less I liked her. In general, I’m not a fan of books where the entire premise hangs on one person refusing to have a simple conversation with another person. If the stakes were higher for Halle, it might be easier to understand why she continued to lie to everyone around her. But the stakes really weren’t that high at all, and so she just looked like a cowardly liar. She also got “overwhelmed” by *gestures vaguely at everything* and dropped off the face of the planet to the point that her internet friends all got their feelings hurt too, which is hugely flaky and flakiness is my #1 pet peeve.

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone is doing okay out there. I know for me personally, the past few days have been hectic (even without leaving my house). But in all that chaos I have been reading one of the best books of the year! I am super excited to be writing this post today because I am on the book tour for What I Like About You and I absolutely adored this book. Also, on top of adoring this book, it helped me through a massive reading slump because this book was so darn cute and I just could not put it down, I wanted to know what was going to happen next and when.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Halle is not like every other teenager. For starters, her parents have moved her and her brother around a lot because they are famous filmmakers (they have almost won big awards multiple times). Also, Halle runs a really popular book blog called One True Pastry where she reviews books and uses pastries to help show off book covers or just pairs the two. Halle also has an online best friend who runs their own blog, her best friend Nash draws a super popular webcomic but Halle and Nash have never met in person. They plan to meet in person for the first time at book con hopefully and definitely next year when they go to college. Halle’s world is about to change because for the next year instead of moving with her parents to work on their next big film she is going to live with her brother and grandfather in a small town. Halle is going to use this time to help get into her dream school and focus on her blog. However, on her first day in town she has to head to the library to work on blog work and check her email (she has her fingers crossed that she might be getting a big cover reveal) where she happens to meet none other than her online best friend Nash. But she does not tell him that it’s her because well she is kind of freaked out at first but even after she gets over that there is one big problem. Nash thinks Halle’s name is Kels and that her family moves so much because they are in the military, Nash also thinks that she is somewhere in the south with her family. So now Halle has to figure out when to tell Nash the truth, how to tell him the truth, and all of this before Bookcon and college next year. As the school year goes on Nash and Halle get closer and closer and the longer Halle holds in her secret she knows the reveal is going to be that much worse but what should she do?

This book has cupcakes, lots and lots of baking, romantic drama, friend drama, starting over, strong family bonds (like I loved Halle’s family, her brother, grandfather, etc…), book blogging, and more! I literally could not ask for anything else, I loved this book so so much. I love baking and the idea of cupcake cover reveals was so genius and stunning that I was like where are these in real life? Like why am I not spending my quarantine time learning how to do this? I have already read this book three times and honestly, it’s like coming home to a best friend and I could not recommend this book more. I am giving this book five stars on Goodreads and maybe if I am brave I will make some cupcakes for some bookstagram pictures of this amazing book someday!

 

 

***Thank you so much to the publisher!

Thanks NetGalley for the preview! 

I loved this book! Halle and Nash were the cute will they won't they I needed right now! I loved the insight into blogging life and how online relationships can really dictate in person relationships.  I would say before this is published they should add a disclaimer about why it's not ok to lie about your identity and internet safety.  Regardless the characters were cute and funny and Gramps is one of my favorites! The writing kept me hooked and I didn't put the book down!

4.5 stars

Think <i>A Cinderella Story</i> meets [book:Alex, Approximately|30312700], add in [book:Eliza and Her Monsters|31931941] as the cream cheese frosting and you have a wonderful book cupcake! 

...Was that overdoing it? Yeah, probably.

CW: grief, panic attacks

This is such a fun time! It looks like a classic YA contemporary and that is exactly what it is. A love triangle with only two people in it, online friendships FTW, a sweet little brother that gives it to you straight, hilarious awkward situations you would not want to be in yourself, and a sugary perfect ending. I love the inside look at book blogging, the Jewish representation, and seeing how each of them handle their grief of losing Grams differently. It's a fun, albeit formulaic, time. The writing isn't anything amazing, but the ~DRAMA~ is done with theatrical perfection.

This is also a great rec for any younger teens wanting a new romantic read! This is a sweet, clean read that will make your face crack from smiling.

<i>Thank you to the publisher for sending me an early copy to review. All opinions are my own.</i>

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of What I Like About You by Marisa Kanter. All opinons are my own. 

This was a sugary-sweet, heartwarming take on the YA contemporary genre. Kanter created extremely deep characters while also managing to keep the plot lighthearted and sweet. That being said, this book still takes you through a range of emotions, exposing you to the raw feelings of grief, love, heartbreak and not fitting in. I also loved that this takes place in a Jewish community, as that's a religion I haven't read much about, especially in YA. If you're looking for a feel-good read, this is a good place to start

Readers who can lean in to the premise of a long-term deception and who don't mind a super-meta book about books will enjoy What I Like About You. Readers who often yell "JUST TALK TO HIM" at their books will not enjoy this story.

Halle is Kels on the internet, where she's a super-popular teen book blogger (hahaha) and she's been friends with Nash for years. Now she's moved in with her grandfather and uh oh, it happens to be the same town Nash lives in. When they first meet, she pretends she doesn't know who he is and then she continues the deception for most of the book. Her brother points out to her "you've read this book, you know it never works out well," and she still doesn't wise up. It's incredibly frustrating and I didn't buy her reasoning. Still, I knew what I was getting into and was able to ignore it for the most part. All the book talk got boring after a while and I was far more interested in Halle's relationship with Judaism, her family and her new friends. I wonder if people who aren't as into the book blogging community might have found it more interesting?

One note - this is a book about teens written for teens. This is made very clear over and over. Adults reading this book will probably feel offended. Teens may feel validated.

Content Warnings: grief, recent past: death of grandparent, lying


Suzanne received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.

DNF. 

There seemed to be a lot I would like about this (Secret identity romance! Bloggers! Cupcakes!) but I got derailed by a) those “uncertain times” and b) the fact that the main character has an open disdain for adult YA bloggers. In other words, me.  the part I read, she says that interacting with adult bloggers on Twitter is sooo "exhausting."  I read other reviews and apparently this bashing of adult bloggers continues. Help -- I felt like that character in the teen movie hiding in the bathroom stall while mean girls apply lipstick at the mirror and gossip about me. SO awkward!

In the end, I decided this book might be best for teen readers who can appreciate the online drama in the plot and the “adult bloggers are SO annoying” attitude from the main character.  As an adult blogger of YA, I understand the not every YA book is for me and that is okay!

Because of issues with my reading device I was unable to read this, and because of the current state of things in unable to replace it. I'm sorry I was unable to get to it but i do plan on purchasing this title in three future.

I received a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest view.  Overall I did like this book.  Halley's been running her book review blog and creating book covers out of cupcakes in the hope of impressing NYU so she and become a book publicist. Something she has wanted to do her whole life since her grandmother was a legendary YA novel editor.  Now she has moved in with her grandfather for her senior year since her parents have always moved the family around because they are Oscar nominated documentary directors.  The thing is she has moved to the city of her online only best friend Nash's hometown.  Halle wants to protect their online friendship.  
Overall I did like the book but Halle did irritate me.  A big part was just how long she lied to everyone about who she really was.  Nash also seemed one dimensional.  The backgrounds also felt like filler and one note personalities.  Worth checking out.

I absolutely loved this book, I loved all of the characters and the message of the story, I loved all of the friendships and it also touch my heart the grieving for a loved one. I laughed, I cried and I smiled a lot. Marisa Kanter is an amazing writer and I would definitely continue reading more of her work.