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young adult book reviews & more

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

13 Little Blue EnvelopesOne day, Virginia Blackstone, or Ginny, receives a letter from her dead aunt with instructions to go to a Chinese restaurant. There, Ginny receives a bundle of twelve letters, for a grand total of thirteen, thus naming the novel. Four simple rules are laid down by Peg, Ginny’s aunt, and there are more instructions enclosed in each letter, to be opened at a specific place and time. All Ginny needs to do to begin her journey is fly to London. And so she does.

Ginny embarks on a crazy, all-over-the-place trip that takes her around Europe, to places that were significant to her aunt Peg. Along the way, she meets a playwright and used-to-be-thief named Keith, who she maybe falls in love with, many old friends of Peg, some new friends in various cities, and even an uncle she never knew she had. And during this journey, Ginny learns a lot about herself and her aunt Peg.

I found 13 Little Blue Envelopes to be a very well-written novel. Maureen Johnson is an amazing author and has proved herself again. I especially liked traveling with Ginny to all those amazing European cities and feeling like I was there beside her. Ginny's relationship with Keith is especially cute too. There were some parts of the book where I was a little confused, but the issue was always cleared up soon after. The idea behind the novel is original, and I found myself wishing I had a crazy aunt to send me on a strange trip to Europe. This was a realistic and very enjoyable read. I highly recommend this, and other Maureen Johnson books.

Rating: 4.0

Review copy from personal collection

33 munch(es) :

Anonymous said...

I loved this book. Great review!

I've also got An Open Vein. Can't wait to read your review of that too!!

Book Chic

Chelsea said...

This is a great book! I've loved all of Maureen Johnson's books I've read.

Tasha said...

I really liked this book. Glad you did too!

the story siren said...

i really need to read this book! great review!

Anonymous said...

I read this book a while back, it was really good. ^^

Anonymous said...

i also loved 13 Blue Envelopes. It was so intersting!

Kate said...

I just wanted to let you know I nominated you...and great review!

http://book-nymph.blogspot.com/2008/12/i-heart-your-blog-awards.html

sweetmelissa818 said...

I bought this over the holiday and am going to read it soon. I just finished Suite Scarlett and I'm, loving Maureen Johnson!

asdfjkl; said...

I've heard of this book and Suite Scarlett but have yet to read either of them. :(

Though I am on the hold list at my library so maybe soon! :)

Amanda said...

I LOVED reading this book! Maureen is a fantastic author.

Great Review!

Anonymous said...

I just read this book like yesterday! I thought it was pretty good, but kinda far-fetched.

-Rima

Shalonda said...

I've not read any of Maureen Johnson's books, but I've been wanting to read this one and Suite Scarlett.

Girl said...

I've been wanting to read this one for a really long time.

Liviania said...

I enjoyed this one but wished it ended a little differently. (I'm not cool not knowing.)

Brooke Reviews said...

I've been wanting to read this book, but haven't picked it up. I just wasn't sure if I would like it or not. Great review! :)

allire said...

I LOVED this book. It's so interesting, and I really felt for her about her aunt and all of the traveling. The ending really bothered me though. :P

katayoun said...

i agree i also love all johnson books and 13 little envelopes was no exception. it was a very good read

Kelly @ IdealistMom.com said...

I just discovered MJ when reading Let It Snow...loved her story best! Found your blog while looking for recommendations for which MJ book to read next...

Asylumgirl said...

I would love to travel to all of those wonderful European locales too! That's one of the biggest joys in reading to me, "seeing" places that you might never actually see.

Deidre

tynlyd said...

This sounds fun. I love reading about traveling since I don't get to go anywhere!

donnas said...

Great review. It sounds like fun journey to follow around on with the characters.

Mandy said...

I have been wanting to read this book for a long time, sounds really good. Great review! As always. :)

Katie said...

I loved this book and your review is great. I love Maureen Johnson.

kbpup903@yahoo.com

Genevieve said...

*Sigh* I loved this book. I only read it a few months ago, but I'm ready to read it again. You're review is totally accurate to how I felt about it.

Anonymous said...

I loived this book, I gave it to my friends and they loved it too, our favorite scene was the part where Ginny visits the statues of the virgins.
lizzieland@optonline.net

Anonymous said...

I read this book a while ago, but I remember it being really fun. I want to go on a trip like that!

Shooting Stars Mag said...

I really want to read more by Maureen. I do think this one sounds great and hope to read it at some point in the near future. I just want to go to Europe in general. haha

-Lauren
lauren51990 AT aol DOT com

Korianne said...

This is the first Maureen Johnson book I read. I got it from John Green at a Nerdfighter event for making his whole family (Him, Hank, Katherine, Sarah, and his parents Sydney and Mike) t-shirts. Of course my copy has Maureen's name scratched out and signed by John, as a joke! I am really glad he gave it to me because I had been wanting to read Maureen before and now I can't put her down.

Anonymous said...

Oh man, I LOVE this kind of book! Did anyone ever read Elizabeth Enright's _Spiderweb for Two_? It had a similar plot setup, and was by far my favorite of her Melendy books.

Anonymous said...

This book sounds good! It kind of reminds me of the movie, "P.S. I love you!"

Michelle Kuo said...

This book sounds so interesting! I'm definitely going to try to check it out in my library. I love that title!

Anonymous said...

I love the book, but hated the ending!

Paradox said...

This is the only book by Maureen Johnson that I've read and I thought it was great!

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