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A love out of movies
"Better Than The Movies" by Lynn Painter Book Review
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A love out of movies

Reading “Better Than the Movies” felt like a summer late night drive. With a burning desire to love and live, the protagonists get lost in the cinematic world, dreaming about perfect moments and gestures. However, what better movie than life itself?

Making you laugh ‘till your belly hurts and reminding you of the goofy high-school years, “Better Than the Movies” is the right choice for a good reading this summer.

The Narration

“Better Than The Movies” might not be a book that I consider an “undying” story, but there still were several particular aspects which made it stand out in my eyes. It is a funny memorable summer reading, which made me light-hearted with each chapter. With an easy action to advance through, the story is a quick reading which romance – between the characters and even more –, funny moments and lines entertained many of my late summer nights.

The story is narrated objectively at the 3rd person, fact which kept me clueless regarding any possible perspective upon what the protagonists felt or thought. Even though the characters were really expressive and, most of the time, acted accordingly to their experiences, I still missed a subjective narration. I think it would’ve offered a far more personal approach.

𝐁𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩?

“Better Than The Movies” , Lynn Painter

You Need Therapy

No matter how much I wished to like the female protagonist, I completely detested her. My expectations regarding her were really high, since I sympathized with her tastes in love. As Liz, all female readers, I think, want to live the one true love which makes all the romance novels forever forgotten.

I found her annoying and immature. Liz was overdramatic and designed – as several other characters – to contour a considerable part of the stereotypes regarding teenagers – the long wait for a text, the rudeness in relation to the parents, the social scale concept of the high-school years.

I pretty much liked the way Wes actually called her out for the stupid and exaggerated things she did or said. In their story, Wes and Liz were actual persons, not puppets in the girl ‘scenarios.

I understood Liz’s pain related to the loss of her mother. Nevertheless, I consider that she overvictimized herself during the whole story. I’m not talking about her grieving process, but about her attitude regarding all the other characters. She treated them poorly and tried every time to use her pain as an excuse for her rude and immature behavior.

Out of movies

The main reason for my high star rating was my fascination for all the connections the author created between her novel and the cinematic world. Therefore, the story was really contextual: the book title, Liz’s expressions, the structure of the book. The beginning of each chapter was a direct reference to a romantic movie, which made me consider “Better Than The Movies” not only a great summer reading, but also my textbook relating to the over-popular romantic movies I must binge-watch as soon as possible.

This detail might’ve been little, but it was so important in my reading experience. Each tiny detail was thoughtfully related to the starting point of the book: the female protagonist’s passion for romantic movies.

I could hardly consider “Better Than The Movies” a basic love story. The romantic sequences were so ingeniously created that there was no chance for them to become sappy. Each time the moment would’ve turned to be tender, something funny happened. So I would be stuck between getting emotional and a wild laugh. It was, in a particular and original way, one of the best summer romance novels I’ve read.

“𝐁𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐲, 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚.”

“𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐦𝐞”

“Better Than The Movies” , Lynn Painter

A better dynamic

Without any way to change my opinion, the movie elements – which in fact led the whole story – represented the final touch this reading needed. Liz and Wes lived their love to the fullest, and were determined to be the protagonists of their own movie.

Their relationship was a back and forth, but a new – and beautiful – kind of fiasco. Their story had fights, tears, promises and truths that fascinated me completely. Without moments which bored me out, the couple’s dynamic made me starving for diving deeper into the story.

𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐞𝐬-𝐭𝐨-𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬—𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞, 𝐁𝐮𝐱𝐛𝐚𝐮𝐦.

“Better Than The Movies” , Lynn Painter

I surprised myself falling in love with the war over the parking spot– especially its role which turned to be. All the little details proved to be significant in the end, fitting so well together.

𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨. 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠.

“Better Than The Movies” , Lynn Painter

Trigger Warnings

  • Under-age smoking and drinking
  • loss of a parent
  • sneaking out

Conclusions

I’ve always said that the quality of some books is involuntarily determined by the time of reading. The cold season might’ve not worked for me. Even though I found Liz insufferable, I quite liked very much the outcome of this story. It might’ve been the summer air or the funny moments, but I think “Better Than The Movies” is one ideal novel to read this summer. Feeling like a late night car ride or an outdoor cinema night, this book will remind you how good love feels – when you’re young, and when it’s summer

The Good-Movies Textbook

  1. Sweet Home Alabama (trailer)
  2. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (trailer)
  3. The Wedding Date (trailer)
  4. Bridget Jones’s Diary (trailer)
  5. 27 Dresses (trailer)
  6. Love actually (trailer)
  7. The Sandlot (trailer)
  8. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (trailer)
  9. My Best Friend’s Wedding (trailer)
  10. Long Shot (trailer)
  11. He’s Just Not That Into You (trailer)
  12. When Harry Met Sally (trailer)
  13. 10 Things I Hate About You (trailer)
  14. 500 Days of Summer (trailer)
  15. Notting Hill (trailer)
  16. Pretty Woman (trailer)

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Have you read “Better Than The Movies ” by Lynn Painter? Share your experience with us.

My experienceOnline sources
Star Rating4/5 ⭐️4.3/5 ⭐️ – Goodreads
Age Rating+14+13 – YA Books Central
Reading Time5h5h and 23m – How Long To Read
GenreYoung adult fiction; Coming of Age; Romance
Trope Enemies to lovers; fake-relationship; love triangle
Book Length 384 pages
Narrative Pacemedium

More information

  1. A brief presentation of the book
  2. The author’s official website

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