WERBUNG
Book: Bonjour Girl | Author: Isabelle Laflèche | Pages: 288 (kindle edition) | Publisher: Dundurn | Release Date: 25th August, 2018
the cover photo is taken from Goodreads
Synopsis:
Clementine Liu moves to New York to go to Parsons, one of the best fashion schools in the world. For her, it is a dream come true. She leaves behind bad memories and starts over with her new best friend, Jake, her aunt Maddie and the cute fashion photographer Jonathan, who all help her launch her own blog. But she soon learns, that not everything can always go according to plan and that there is immense competition not only in school, but in the world of fashion as well. She has to fight not only for her dreams, but for Jake’s as well.
My opinion:
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.
I’ll start with the story. What I really liked was that it featured diversity in fashion. Clementine’s blog features ill people and those who help them. For example Jake, who makes fashion for disabled people. There are fashion bloggers mentioned, who for example sit in a wheelchair or have illnesses that make their hair fall out. The story features people from all over the world as well. That’s probably what I liked most about the whole book.
What I also liked was that it dealt with bullying and how bullies can be found everywhere. It also shows the effects of it, on the person bullied but also the people around that person. What I did not like was the reaction to it: Revenge. Except for Clementine everyone seemed to think revenge would be the best option, when they did not even talk about it? Can people please start talking more?
The story itself was okay. It seemed a bit rushed at some parts, most of the chapters were only 2-3 pages long before a whole other situation (or day) started. And I would have loved to get more details, especially about the supporting characters. The only person the reader really gets to know is Clementine.
She is not always likeable, but she is full of determination with her heart at the right spot. She knows exactly what she wants, but she also cares for those important to her and tries to protect them from getting hurt.
The other characters are… well. Jake is the stereotypical gay designer. Loud and fun and ‘darlings’ and ‘honeys’ everywhere. Jonathan is just plain boring (sorry, he has not much character at all?), Stella (the bully) is the stereotypical bad girl who talks behind your back, Ellie is only there when the story needs her and suddenly she’s friends with Clementine. The only character that had potential was Maddie, who seemed to be genuinely interesting.
What I also liked, though, was the details on fashion. That’s a book about fashion, so that was to be expected, but the author really focused on writing unique styles for the characters, in what they wear as well as in what they design and like. I loved the descriptions of the different clothes a lot. So there’s that.
It took me really long to read this book because I didn’t like any of the characters much. But the book was okay.
Rating:
★★★/5
