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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, Alcohol
Moderate: Cancer, Cursing, Misogyny, Vomit, Medical content, Death of parent, Sexual harassment
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Gaslighting, Abandonment
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-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
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
I thought this was going to be a cute rom com, and it was for the first half. Then it was just pain
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I was fortunate to join The Telltale Bookclub with Julia Whelan for a few weeks to discuss this book. I have read her newer book and enjoyed it, but I really loved this one.
Something to note, she repeatedly mentioned this book was based on a screenplay. She spent a year at Oxford through her college program and did “some light copyediting for the Los Angeles chapter of the Oxford alum association,” who was asked about a screenwriter to “rewrite on an existing screenplay set in Oxford.” She and a friend wrote some sample scenes and got the job. The part of the book that deals with grief spoke to her, as she was dealing with the loss of her father, and she ended up dealing with all of this through expanding the screenplay into a book. (The recent movie from Netflix was based on the screenplay, not the book).
I loved getting a little glimpse of going to Oxford in the book. I found myself searching for all the buildings and places. I felt like I was there with her. It is written much in her voice, and even though I read the copy (and not the audiobook), I felt like I could hear her speaking.
In this book, Ella (from Ohio) goes to Oxford as a Rhodes scholar. She (of course) doesn’t want a relationship, but immediately runs into a “posh prat” with an Aston Martin, who she also quickly realizes is her professor. She finds a motley group of friends, who take her under their wing, as she experiences Oxford in all the best ways.
If you have triggers, you might consider checking this one before reading.
“She thinks she’s better than everyone else.
Honestly, I don’t. But I do think I’m better than what everyone, besides my dad, told me I was.” Ch 1
“…can be a boy I knew during my Oxford year, the first boy I ever loved,” ch 29 - love when I see the title of the book used in the book
“…being called upon to do something because you’re good at it is not the same thing as having a calling” ch 30
“Now, we don’t always get to choose what happens in life, don’t we all know. However, we can choose what we do with what we’re given.” Ch 25
“Reading poetry is a conversation of feeling between two people. It shouldn’t answer anything, it should only create more questions, like any good conversation.” Ch 8
“If you don’t open yourself up, how can you ever be surprised by life? And if you’re not surprised, what’s the bloody point?” Ch 8
“I came to Oxford looking for a Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience. I chose to experience a lifetime.” Epilogue
“I wanted to write a story fueled by the untying of emotional knots,” Author’s note - in our conversation she also mentioned this being about choice and career.
Something to note, she repeatedly mentioned this book was based on a screenplay. She spent a year at Oxford through her college program and did “some light copyediting for the Los Angeles chapter of the Oxford alum association,” who was asked about a screenwriter to “rewrite on an existing screenplay set in Oxford.” She and a friend wrote some sample scenes and got the job. The part of the book that deals with grief spoke to her, as she was dealing with the loss of her father, and she ended up dealing with all of this through expanding the screenplay into a book. (The recent movie from Netflix was based on the screenplay, not the book).
I loved getting a little glimpse of going to Oxford in the book. I found myself searching for all the buildings and places. I felt like I was there with her. It is written much in her voice, and even though I read the copy (and not the audiobook), I felt like I could hear her speaking.
In this book, Ella (from Ohio) goes to Oxford as a Rhodes scholar. She (of course) doesn’t want a relationship, but immediately runs into a “posh prat” with an Aston Martin, who she also quickly realizes is her professor. She finds a motley group of friends, who take her under their wing, as she experiences Oxford in all the best ways.
If you have triggers, you might consider checking this one before reading.
“She thinks she’s better than everyone else.
Honestly, I don’t. But I do think I’m better than what everyone, besides my dad, told me I was.” Ch 1
“…can be a boy I knew during my Oxford year, the first boy I ever loved,” ch 29 - love when I see the title of the book used in the book
“…being called upon to do something because you’re good at it is not the same thing as having a calling” ch 30
“Now, we don’t always get to choose what happens in life, don’t we all know. However, we can choose what we do with what we’re given.” Ch 25
“Reading poetry is a conversation of feeling between two people. It shouldn’t answer anything, it should only create more questions, like any good conversation.” Ch 8
“If you don’t open yourself up, how can you ever be surprised by life? And if you’re not surprised, what’s the bloody point?” Ch 8
“I came to Oxford looking for a Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience. I chose to experience a lifetime.” Epilogue
“I wanted to write a story fueled by the untying of emotional knots,” Author’s note - in our conversation she also mentioned this being about choice and career.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Minor: Death of parent
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book wasn’t on my radar until the Netflix movie was released last week (interestingly this book was based off the screenplay, not the other way around. It just took forever for the movie to get done apparently, since this book was released in 2018). I was pleasantly surprised to be able to get a copy so quickly from the library. Fair warning - this is not your light and fluffy, everything ends perfectly for everyone romance. But it’s hard for me to not like a book set at Oxford and continues that trend despite the integration of some heavier story lines (check trigger warnings - I don’t want to spoil here). Three pages of this book made me really irritated with the FMC (to the point that I was committed to this being no more than a 4-star as a “consequence”) but she more than bounces back.
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes