Young adult fiction has a tendency to be overly sexual and inappropriate in its language. The idiosyncrasies of family Christmases (where teens often feel embarrassed by their parents and activities) are highlighted, as is the rigmarole of schoolyard politics where popularity is the key to success. The characters are bizarre and hilarious, and each author has the ability to communicate a complex backstory with laughter and gravity. The anthology weaves a delightful and off-beat narrative about the importance about staying true to your self, not sacrificing your self-worth for a significant other, the spirit of giving and compassion, and above all, love – or the two second, teeny-bopper version anyway. Green’s A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle is about best friends becoming more than friends, and Lauren Myracle’s The Patron Saint of Pigs shows a narcissistic protagonist becoming more self-aware and generous. Once she steps off and accepts the help of a stranger, we come across lead characters and plot points in the next two stories.

She’s taking a train to visit her grandparents over Christmas, and it gets stuck in a small town called Gracetown. Maureen Johnson’s The Jubilee Express leads the charge, where we meet a quirky teen called Jubilee. This makes it a sharp, bite-sized offering that young adults will devour in an age where 140 character Tweets are king. He pens one of three novellas, all of which are linked by their characters, the plots and location. So how does the book stack up? It’s important to note that Let It Snow isn’t entirely a John Green book. It has aged, but the fact the anthology of holiday-themed short stories is being made into a movie means it will be front and centre for millennials again very soon. Young adults love his mix of wit, romance, diverse characterisation and complex themes and when Let It Snow was released in 2008 it became a New York Times Best Seller. His breakout novel, The Fault In Our Stars, went gangbusters in cinemas, and his latest novel, Turtles All The Way Down, was one of the most sought-after releases of 2017.

A Christmas story by popular author John Green seems to be the answer to this problem. Christian readers are left with Amish novellas and stories about animals during the holiday season (no, I’m not kidding). Review by Jessica Morris Everyone loves a good Christmas romance, but finding one suitable for young adults is hit and miss. Popular author John Green has teamed up with fellow novellists Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle in this bite-sized Christmas read.

Let it snow john green book