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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
“And all those things they say in romance novels about how your heart beats faster and your knees get wobbly and the boy’s stubble against your chin is the most delicious sensation ever? All of that is 100 percent true.
I sank into that kiss. It was perfect.”
— From Twinkle, with Love, Sandhya Menon
Rating: ♥️♥️♥️/5
From Twinke, with Love is the story of Twinkle
Mehra, a Colorado teenager with dreams of becoming a big time film director one day. When the twin brother of her crush approaches her to direct a movie for the art festival their school does every year, she jumps at the chance. But things get confusing, and crazy, real quick when she starts seriously falling for Sahil, her long-time unrequited feelings about his brother be damned. Add in best friend drama, a secret admirer, and a wall flower finally getting her chance to shine, and this sounds like a recipe for disaster.
While I enjoyed the premise, and the way in which it was told through Twinkle’s diary entries written to famous female directors, text messages between Sahil and his best friends, and Sahil’s online blog entries, there was one thing that held me back from rating this as highly as I have Menon’s other books: Twinkle.
Twinkle was a supremely unlikable character. She was rude, overdramatic, and generally annoying.
I gave this three stars because the story would’ve been cute if Twinkle wasn’t such a nightmare. I also adored Sahil and Twinkle’s dadi.
I sank into that kiss. It was perfect.”
— From Twinkle, with Love, Sandhya Menon
Rating: ♥️♥️♥️/5
From Twinke, with Love is the story of Twinkle
Mehra, a Colorado teenager with dreams of becoming a big time film director one day. When the twin brother of her crush approaches her to direct a movie for the art festival their school does every year, she jumps at the chance. But things get confusing, and crazy, real quick when she starts seriously falling for Sahil, her long-time unrequited feelings about his brother be damned. Add in best friend drama, a secret admirer, and a wall flower finally getting her chance to shine, and this sounds like a recipe for disaster.
While I enjoyed the premise, and the way in which it was told through Twinkle’s diary entries written to famous female directors, text messages between Sahil and his best friends, and Sahil’s online blog entries, there was one thing that held me back from rating this as highly as I have Menon’s other books: Twinkle.
Twinkle was a supremely unlikable character. She was rude, overdramatic, and generally annoying.
I gave this three stars because the story would’ve been cute if Twinkle wasn’t such a nightmare. I also adored Sahil and Twinkle’s dadi.
DNF at 58%
This was a surprise at first then turned out to be a chore which explains the DNF.
I love the idea of having an Indian American YA heroine to read for once and a budding director as well, this was a first time for me. Twinkle Mehra is a 16-year-old "groundling", as what she calls herself, and seems to make it a life goal to be promoted into the ranks of the "silk-feathered hats" aka Shakespearean highschool hierarchy 2.0.
Initially, I enjoyed her inner monologues/ letters to iconic female directors. She was spot on the insecure teenage dork and I was so excited to see her strip the wallflower status. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to see that because harharhar she could be pretty annoying and begrudgingly self-centered in her own way.
To say that I DNF'd a book because of the MC really is laughable. I really did want to finish this at first but I realized why should I even continue if I don't really care about the characters anymore? [b:From Twinkle, with Love|36373464|From Twinkle, with Love|Sandhya Menon|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519633175s/36373464.jpg|51394148] has important points to convey but I think a younger audience might have liked this more than I did. For a 16-year-old MC her voice and those of others seem very young and not fit with their age. Idk, it's just me huhuhuh.
Here are some points that I find problematic:
1. Twinkle's inclination to film wasn't really my thing here. I don't want to be offensive or anything but, her idea of filming a gender-bender Dracula was just too disappointing. She was passionate for making her art and I thought she'd be doing an original. I get that she was trying to bring a feminist-inspired theme, but a retelling????? Nope. Nada. Aside from the cute premise of the romance here I really thought I get to see a deeper presentation of creating such an intimate art. I was just disappointed because I thought I'd get to learn a lot of things about filming here but it turned out to be like a faded backdrop for the romance and her obsession w/ the "silk-feathered hats"
2. She also manages to be freaking ungrateful w/ Sahil. By jove, HE PAID FOR EVERYTHING.
3. There's also a scene where she tried to speak out to Sahil about her problems w/ the cyclorama w/c is actually fine. But I think the author highlighted this part as Twinkle's "reawakening". That just because she's a girl, doesn't mean everybody can trap her mouth shut. I TOTALLY GET THAT. But honestly? To do this just because of a petty backdrop somehow relays to the readers that girls can freely flip the "girls-had-it-so-much-worse-than-you-guys" card for almost every petty thing. I just hoped Twinkle had spoken out more with important shifts in the story. NOT BECAUSE OF A CYCLORAMA.
4. The dialogues suck.
5. The neat accidental meetups w/ Sahil. I mean I love Sahil but sometimes the romance was kind of too orchestrated for me.
Things I love in this book
1. SAHIL
2.SAHIIIILLL
3. S A H I L R O Y
He was the most endearing and awkward male lead omooooo. I love his dorkiness and his overflowing support to Twinkle. Which reminds me that TWINKLE DOES NOT DESERVE THIS WONDERFUL GUY.
4. Babi? or Babbi? Dadi???? what Idk the spelling hahahahah (I've listened to the audiobook) but Twinkle's grandmother was also one of the likable characters here.
5. The initial monologues of Twinkle especially in the first few chapters. THAT'S ALL.
Other than the things I've listed above, I see no reason for me to finish this. I'm sssssooorrryyy but I can't.
This was a surprise at first then turned out to be a chore which explains the DNF.
I love the idea of having an Indian American YA heroine to read for once and a budding director as well, this was a first time for me. Twinkle Mehra is a 16-year-old "groundling", as what she calls herself, and seems to make it a life goal to be promoted into the ranks of the "silk-feathered hats" aka Shakespearean highschool hierarchy 2.0.
Initially, I enjoyed her inner monologues/ letters to iconic female directors. She was spot on the insecure teenage dork and I was so excited to see her strip the wallflower status. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to see that because harharhar she could be pretty annoying and begrudgingly self-centered in her own way.
To say that I DNF'd a book because of the MC really is laughable. I really did want to finish this at first but I realized why should I even continue if I don't really care about the characters anymore? [b:From Twinkle, with Love|36373464|From Twinkle, with Love|Sandhya Menon|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519633175s/36373464.jpg|51394148] has important points to convey but I think a younger audience might have liked this more than I did. For a 16-year-old MC her voice and those of others seem very young and not fit with their age. Idk, it's just me huhuhuh.
Here are some points that I find problematic:
Spoiler
1. Twinkle's inclination to film wasn't really my thing here. I don't want to be offensive or anything but, her idea of filming a gender-bender Dracula was just too disappointing. She was passionate for making her art and I thought she'd be doing an original. I get that she was trying to bring a feminist-inspired theme, but a retelling????? Nope. Nada. Aside from the cute premise of the romance here I really thought I get to see a deeper presentation of creating such an intimate art. I was just disappointed because I thought I'd get to learn a lot of things about filming here but it turned out to be like a faded backdrop for the romance and her obsession w/ the "silk-feathered hats"
2. She also manages to be freaking ungrateful w/ Sahil. By jove, HE PAID FOR EVERYTHING.
3. There's also a scene where she tried to speak out to Sahil about her problems w/ the cyclorama w/c is actually fine. But I think the author highlighted this part as Twinkle's "reawakening". That just because she's a girl, doesn't mean everybody can trap her mouth shut. I TOTALLY GET THAT. But honestly? To do this just because of a petty backdrop somehow relays to the readers that girls can freely flip the "girls-had-it-so-much-worse-than-you-guys" card for almost every petty thing. I just hoped Twinkle had spoken out more with important shifts in the story. NOT BECAUSE OF A CYCLORAMA.
4. The dialogues suck.
5. The neat accidental meetups w/ Sahil. I mean I love Sahil but sometimes the romance was kind of too orchestrated for me.
Things I love in this book
Spoiler
1. SAHIL
2.SAHIIIILLL
3. S A H I L R O Y
He was the most endearing and awkward male lead omooooo. I love his dorkiness and his overflowing support to Twinkle. Which reminds me that TWINKLE DOES NOT DESERVE THIS WONDERFUL GUY.
4. Babi? or Babbi? Dadi???? what Idk the spelling hahahahah (I've listened to the audiobook) but Twinkle's grandmother was also one of the likable characters here.
5. The initial monologues of Twinkle especially in the first few chapters. THAT'S ALL.
Other than the things I've listed above, I see no reason for me to finish this. I'm sssssooorrryyy but I can't.
I found the format of this book to be interesting but unfortunately, the plot just wasn't as attention-grabbing as I had been hoping. While I thought the character of Twinkle was refreshing to read, with her love of directing and her goals for what her films would accomplish, there were still moments where I just had issues feeling immersed in the story.
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Cute YA romance. Recommended for any tween/teen.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Fastest DNF ever.... ony 20 pages in. I knew going into this book, I wasn't that interested. I didn't really enjoy the first book and was kind of annoyed to start this one. I should have just gone with my gut and discontinue the series. I am not interested, it's not intriguing, and I don't want to waste my time reading a book about a teenager making a movie for her school. It's a little too juvenile for me. I love the cover, but not enough for me to be the slightest bit interested.
I loved this! I have a broadcasting background so I definitely related to Twinkle and her love of films and cameras.
First off, I didn't expect to cry while reading this book. After all, it was meant to be another fluffy coming of age story about an American high school student of Indian descent. FTWL was all these things and so much more. Even though her relationship with her desi parents is different compared to my relationship with my parents now, I was able to connect with Twinkle and it brought on feelings that I haven't felt in years. The writing was compelling and watching Twinkle grow as a character and overcoming her insecurities, which were so similar to my own to a different degree, and the darkness that can accompany them was fulfilling. Her dynamics with her friends reminded me of a time where I was the "Maddie" and being able to see what happens from Twinkle's perspective was a humbling experience. I really commend the author for keeping the authentic feel of a desi child growing up and I no doubt believe many other children will connect to the story in a way they were never able to before(WE NEED MORE POC BOOKS!). Sahil, the main hero, was amazing to read about and I loved how a major theme of this book is the acknowledgment that we are all 'works in progress' striving for a better version of ourselves. I can't say what specifically brought tears to my eyes when reading this book but I think I can sum it to the author's gift of writing and sharing stories that feel so different but bring on the same warm feeling after closing a book. I highly recommend this book to everyone!
This review appears on my blog: https://confessionsofabookwormweb.wordpress.com/2018/08/13/book-review-from-twinkle-with-love/
Even though I liked When Dimple Met Rishi, I enjoyed this one a lot better, especially the ending. I loved getting to know Twinkle and how the format of this book is setup like her diary (I am a sucker for books like this). I also liked how her entries are written to different female movie directors that she looks up to. I also loved how this read as a good classic romantic comedy and it is the perfect summer read.
Sahil is the typical (but still awesome) hero of this rom-com. I loved how he was always trying to push Twinkle to be the best she could be, while also letting her figure out stuff on her own.
It was also interesting to see that in order to truly grow as a character, Twinkle had to become her worst self and realize that she had to change. It was also interesting to see all the different family dynamics that take place in the novel: Sahil and his inferiority to his twin brother Neil; Twinkle and her grandma, Twinkle and her parents who seem disinterested in her life. I also liked how it dealt with friendships and relationships in general: Maddie and Twinkle; Maddie and Hannah; Twinkle, Victoria and Francesca. I also liked how it dealt with some of the issues that people that immigrants face when they leave their home countries behind.
I am looking forward to seeing what Sandhya Menon writes text. 4.5/5 Stars.
Even though I liked When Dimple Met Rishi, I enjoyed this one a lot better, especially the ending. I loved getting to know Twinkle and how the format of this book is setup like her diary (I am a sucker for books like this). I also liked how her entries are written to different female movie directors that she looks up to. I also loved how this read as a good classic romantic comedy and it is the perfect summer read.
Sahil is the typical (but still awesome) hero of this rom-com. I loved how he was always trying to push Twinkle to be the best she could be, while also letting her figure out stuff on her own.
It was also interesting to see that in order to truly grow as a character, Twinkle had to become her worst self and realize that she had to change. It was also interesting to see all the different family dynamics that take place in the novel: Sahil and his inferiority to his twin brother Neil; Twinkle and her grandma, Twinkle and her parents who seem disinterested in her life. I also liked how it dealt with friendships and relationships in general: Maddie and Twinkle; Maddie and Hannah; Twinkle, Victoria and Francesca. I also liked how it dealt with some of the issues that people that immigrants face when they leave their home countries behind.
I am looking forward to seeing what Sandhya Menon writes text. 4.5/5 Stars.