Beautiful Americans

I loved this book, especially the character Olivia. This book makes me wish I was in Paris! I highly recommend this book.

BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS LUCY SILAG Contemporary Young Adult Razorbill ISBN# 978-1-59514-222-1 304 Pages $16.99 Hardcover--Available January 8th, 2009 Rating: 5 Enchantments Featuring four very different characters, BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS tells the story of four teens living in Paris for a year abroad, capturing their first few months in the program. PJ, aka Penelope Jane is escaping what happened this summer with her family in upstate New York, she struggles to fit in, especially with Alex after things go awry during their first meet at the airport. Olivia, an amazing dancer is taking the chance to study at the famed `The Opera' as well as go to the exclusive Lycee. Alex, the classic rich girl who's there to enjoy herself and last but not least, there's Zack, the Memphis boy who's using the chance at being away from home to truly be himself. What can I say about BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS? All the characters are great, but I was especially partial to PJ and Zack, the two who aren't the typical exchange student found in the pages of the book. The four main characters are given pretty well equal face time and the storyline and relationships between the foursome evolves naturally, keeping the story moving at a good pace. Secrets are revealed to the reader, especially about PJ's past but not so much to the other characters and the ending leaves it wide open for the next book. I can't wait to read the next installment in the series, slated for Fall 2009. Lucy Silag grew up in Iowa and California and graduated from UC Santa Crus in 2005. She has written for Allure, New York magazine, Real Simple Travel, The Independent on Sunday magazine and Salon. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS is her debut novel. Visit her online at www.myspace.com/lucysilag and check out the webpage devoted to the book at www.beautifulamericans.com Lisa Enchanting Reviews January 2009

BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS by Lucy Silag is the story of four very different American teenagers studying abroad for a year in Paris. For PJ, Olivia, Alex and Zack, Paris is a place to run away, reinvent oneself, find love, and discover what it really means to live. Like the Lost Generation of the 1920s, these Americans escape to the City of Lights with the hope that the joie de vivre of the city will rub off on them. PJ is fleeing from an embarrassing family scandal and hoping that she can leave her past behind in Vermont. This year is her chance to bury her secrets and emerge as a whole new person. Olivia comes to Paris to train at a prestigious ballet academy. Her meticulously planned out future hinges on a perfect year, but sometimes life doesn't go according to plan. Alex is a well-coiffed fashionista - thanks to her Manhattan upbringing - looking to find the perfect guy in the most romantic city in the world. However, sometimes even Alex cannot have everything she wants. Zack is from Memphis, where being gay was never socially acceptable. Now that he is free from his conservative background, he has the same goals as Alex - to find a boyfriend and maybe even fall in love. The story is told from alternating perspectives among the four main characters, and Silag achieves a delicate balance between their four individual stories while maintaining a cohesive plot. Four extraordinary stories told in a surprisingly believable manner. Getting to know each character from the perceptions of the others adds a compelling layer of reality to the story, revealing the faults of each character that can only be seen through the eyes of others. This first book in the series leaves readers dangling at Christmastime, halfway through the exchange year, with one member of the quartet running away. For the mysteries and secrets that are not yet revealed, pick up the second BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS book in Fall 2009. Reviewed by: Amber Gibson

I think Beautiful Americans is a great book--for teenagers and for adults. It is extremely entertaining, but at the same time, has an emotional power that I didn't fully recognize until the end. I read this book in two days!

Lucy Silag has created a terrific world, sort of "Gossip Girls go to Paris," and you will want to get on the plane immediately. Her characters are so real and interesting that you and your teen will be fighting over who gets to read it. Actually a wonderful book to read together. Loved it.