Reviews

Welcome to the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan

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wifeslife's review against another edition

lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

3.25

The fat shaming of student by students was not ok. The fat shaming of student by adults? Shameful. I might extend this review later.

madelise's review

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hopeful lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

impybelle's review

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2.0

The author's note for Welcome to the School by the Sea mentions that it's meant to be like old school boarding school book series and honestly, that's probably what got my attention. But I didn't realize that even if these are being re-released that the old school vibe would also include a fuckton of fatphobic cracks. I could've chalked it up to going all in on the throwback vibe had most of the comments been from the school girls, but no. While Simone is ostracized by her peers and jokes are made by them at her expense concerning her weight, nearly every adult whose POV we visit will be unable to stop themselves from thinking something pretty shitty about her weight or her relationship with food. For all the needlessly cruel but wrapped in faux concern cracks, this one was never going to get higher than 3 stars even if the rest was perfection.

This is clearly the first in a series and it shows. I still don't really know how I feel about any of the characters aside from Alice (was not a fan until her prank at the very end of the book) and the dog. I want to like some of the others and I don't mind disliking some but something is missing and so we lose another star.

I'm curious if book 2 is better because there's definitely potential here.

allieowilson's review

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lighthearted fast-paced

4.0

rice83's review

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

amc70's review

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Overall a fun read about a private school in a gorgeous setting. While the disparity between public vs private education did not sit well with me, I totally get that that is the way things are currently. While I also understand that teenaged girls can be mean, the bullying and fat shaming/fat phobic comments were also difficult to read, and some of the adult characters were guilty of the latter as well. All of this being said, middle and high school are difficult ages and places to be and Colgan catches those feelings well in this short novel.