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It is often remarkable how and where we come across love. We may stumble upon love in unexpected places and with unlikely people. "A Thousand Boy Kisses" is a book that perfectly conveys this. Ever since I started reading books when I was young, I never thought that a book would make me cry or be emotional hahaha. I tried my best to hold back my tears, but they kept streaming down my face uncontrollably. My colleague asked why I was crying, so I told them it was a book. They looked at me as though I had grown two horns overnight.
My colleagues all read the book because they were curious about the book and why it affected me deeply. Their reaction towards the book after reading was worse than mine which gave me a good laugh because I couldn't help it. I must say, Tillie Cole did a fantastic job with this book. She used language and words to convey the story beautifully. Now, I understand why my Dad always says "Words are like magic wands that can be used to achieve anything you want, depending on how you use them.".
This is my first time reading Tillie Cole's book and I am currently reading one of her works again. I can attest that Tillie Cole is a fantastic writer and I love her works. She has become one of my favorite authors. She is a British author that is famous for her beautifully and emotionally romantic novels. She is known for addressing difficult and sensitive topics in her novels, such as mental illness, abuse, and grief, with sensitivity and compassion. From all these sensitive topics, I can say that Cole is a realistic writer using what we as humans encounter every day from having relationships with others.
"A Thousand Boy Kisses" written by Tillie Cole was first published in 2016 with 316 pages. This book was set in a small village in Norway. The story revolves around Rune and Poppy who fell in love at a young age while spending their days exploring the countryside and sharing their dreams.
Synopsis
Rune Kristiansen and Poppy Litchfield met and fell in love as children. He met Poppy when he came to Blossom Grove town, Georgia from his native town in Norway. Growing into their teenage years with the same relationship and love, their bond became stronger that they even vow to give 'A Thousand Boy kisses' which symbolizes their love and commitment to each other. Then, fate had other plans for them when Rune was forced to move to another town unfortunately due to his father relocating for work.
Moving away created distance between them but their love wasn't distant until Poppy got diagnosed with a terminal illness which further drifted them apart from each other. Rune didn't hear from Poppy again which made him conclude that Poppy had forgotten about him. So he reverted to his angry self and pushed away people that loved him.
Later on, Rune found out that Poppy was ill and dying hence why she couldn't communicate with him. Devastated, Rune began to hope for the best. Things turn around for Rune and Poppy when he and his father move back to Poppy's town. From there they both worked hard to overcome the illness, pain, and heartbreak. Navigating through it all, they decided to make the most of the time they have left together, cherishing every moment and making fond memories together when they can. Will Poppy die or survive? Will they both have a happy ending? You have to read the book to know what happens.
My Review And Rating.
Firstly, I love how Tillie Cole wrote this book. She found a way to connect with her readers on a deep emotional level which I consider as fantastic. The language she used is evocative and poetic. Her narrative technique was amazing, with simple words, an easy flow when reading, and a lot of repetitive poetic devices. Also, I won't forget her descriptive technique which is used to hook her reader to her story from the beginning till the end. She displayed her descriptive technique when she talked about Norway's countryside which was captured vividly.
I like all the sensitive topics and themes Cole explored in this book. Some of the topics are compassion, illness, commitment, loss, grief, and pain. All these topics are what we all as humans encounter in our lives. Reading the book and singling out all these topics made the story of Rune and Poppy resonate with me on a deep emotional level. Also, some of the themes are, living Life to the fullest, the transience of life, and finding beauty in the Mundane. These themes were powerfully portrayed by the characters of the book with depth and realism which made the story of the book impactful.
What I found genuinely portrayed in this book was the relationship between Rune and Poppy. Their relationship was heartfelt which made their love evolved over the years 0was heartwarming. This book, I must say, took me on a journey of joy, sadness, and hope. The story made me laugh and cry. I don't think I will be forgetting this book/story anytime soon. My colleagues were so impressed with this book that we all ordered a copy of a hard copy to add to our collection.
Rating this book, I will give it 4.5 out of 5 stars. It was a fantastic read for me! I would recommend this book to young adults, adults, and also lovers of countryside romance.
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