Anna and the French Kiss

Starred review from January 2, 2012
Kim Mai Guest delivers a pitch-perfect performance in the audio version of this confectionery romance about Anna Oliphant, an Atlanta high school student whose parents suddenly decide to send her to a posh Paris boarding school for her senior year. Although Anna initially resists her year abroad, she soon becomes intoxicated with the city, its food, its movie theaters, and—most of all—fellow student Etienne St. Clair. Guest’s narration is enchanting, hitting all the marks in her portrayal of Anna: sighing impatiently at her author father (who is a spot-on parody of novelist Nicholas Sparks), squealing with convincing excitement at the attentions of male suitors, gurgling with revulsion when one of them vomits on her after a night of binge drinking. Additionally, her rendition of the school’s requisite “mean girl,” the air-headed Amanda, is equally enjoyable. Guest enhances this standard teen romance with her sparkling performance. A Speak paperback.