Unimpressive. The way Johnson writes is annoying; more than halfway into the book, I really didn't know ANYTHING about the main character, other than that she was on a (ridiculous) journey. It was all action and no thought. It was not insightful. The main character was not likeable. She wasn't unlikeable either. She was just like...doing things. She didn't have very many thoughts. And never very insightful ones (ie "I like this boy! I am sad. I am happy. I am angry"). COME ON. There was no attem More...

13 Little Blue Envelopes suffers from DPS. Disappearing Parent Syndrome is a tragic epidemic in YA novels. In this case the DPS was particularly severe. Seventeen year old Ginny Blackstone goes on a trip to Europe sponsored by her deceased aunt. Aunt Peg was not reliable when she was around. In fact, during the last several years of Ginny's life Peg was in Europe. She died without contacting the family to let them know she was suffering from a prolonged illness. The family was just expected to p More...

Reviewed by Dena Landon for TeensReadToo.com

When Virginia Blackstone (Ginny) receives the first blue envelope from her Aunt Peg in the mail, it sends her on an exciting, funny, and sometimes poignant adventure that readers will be delighted to join. The envelope contains $1,000 in cash, and the instructions to pick up a package of envelopes that start Ginny on a trip around Europe, tracing the steps of her eccentric Aunt. The instructions are specific; no cell phones, no maps, and Ginny can only More...

I liked the premise. It was sort of interesting and cute. Dead Aunt sends niece on this unpredictable and slightly loony journey. (maybe not so cute). One very similar to the one that her aunt took when she felt a little lost and was dealing with a bit of a reality check.

17 year old Ginny doesn't think twice about it. She jets to her first destination, London. From there on it's one big ride. She goes through many experiences, and although it's a decent read, I just was not in love with the boo More...

I really wanted to read this book while I was in China because it has to do with travel. I was traveling, Ginny was traveling - it seemed the thing to do. I read it in two days, as well, which is saying something. But still, there was something lacking for me in this novel.

First, I'll admit that this is definitely a fast-paced read. I was never bored with the story. The constant change of setting kept the book clipping along at a pretty breakneck speed. Ginny visits a crazy amount of countries i More...

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson is a modern day coming of age story. It centers around Virginia 'Ginny' Blackstone, a 17 year old girl who is given a letter in a blue envelope. The letter tells her to fly to London, but she can't bring any crutches. What ensues is a fantastic adventure.
Read the rest of my review here

I read this book as an assignment from a mother-daughter book club that I am in with some friends from B.F. Day.
It wasn't very good, and while the plot is a nice idea, the author didn't really write it very well.
I mean, who would let thier daughter go overseas with no contact to the US and only carrying what she could fit in her backpack. And only haveing 1000 US dollars to spend. In addition to several other appalling facts, some of which are:
letting your daughter do the following:
1 stay with a More...

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Mini mini review
13 Little Blue Envelopes is a quick, light read that will intrigue young readers from the first page. This 'road trip novel' is filled with adventure and a cute romance. Maureen Johnson manages to pull off an entertaining story in 300 pages that may not fulfil older readers' expectations.

Looking at the Goodreads shelves for 13 Little Blue Envelopes, I'm quite positive that this should actually be under 'Middle Grade'. Now I love the MG genr More...

2.5 stars

I enjoyed this enough as I read it - I was sick, jetlagged and in need of something pleasantly escapist – and this book did the trick. It’s a light, fun read and I quite like Maureen Johnson’s writing (admittedly more so in her other books than this one, though).

But ultimately I just found the story rather forgettable (and a little implausible). I found Ginny to be a fairly delible (thank you, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks for the neglected positive there!) character More...

Before I start my review, I would like to say this:

I love Maureen Johnson. I do. I think she's pretty, and smart, and hilarious, and charming, and witty, plus I'm insanely looking forward to her upcoming book, The Name of the Star, and blah blah blah I have a girl crush on her, we get it. But I do not, not, definitely not, have an author crush on her.

And the reason for that is that I didn't like this book.

Why didn't I like it? Well...

Okay, for starters, Ginny, the MC, has zero personality. Maybe More...

I am not going to review this book except to say the thing that made me crazy. There were several instances in this book where something was mentioned and you think it is important and then it was dropped.

For instance, when the MC goes in the Louvre, it is mentioned that she checks her backpack in at the front--kind of like a coat check. Okay. No problem.

But then, as she is trying to get out of the Louvre she kind of starts going down random hall after hall in search of an exit and finally finds More...

I don't often read "chick lit". I have a friend who reads it and she shares the jist of with me and I do the same for her with sci-fi and supernatural books. But she keeps talking up some of the books so I have broken down and picked a few up and they have all been pretty good, with a grain of salt.

I had moments in this book where I just wished that it would be okay to write about a teenage girl that was maybe not totally self assured cause no one is, but that at least doesn't make you cringe of More...

I felt that this was only an okay book from Maureen Johnson and that it paled in comparison to my favorite from her, Girl at Sea. There was a good plotline that promised adventure and romance in a foreign country that I was dissappointed to find did not exist. While it was an excellent idea, I felt the story did not develop well enough and it didn't go too in-depth. This book could have been better written but otherwise, still a good read.

Oh, book. I had such hopes for you.

Here's the thing - I love travel stories. I love coming of age stories. So what's not to love about a coming of age story that involves lots and lots of traveling?

It's a hard question to answer, and the fastest way to answer it is: Aunt Peg is one seriously bitter person.

She lives without having constants. Fair enough. She does all sorts of menial, petty jobs while waiting for her career as an artist to hit off. Alright with me. Then she packs up and leaves for More...

I love YA lit and I'm not trying to be a hater here. But meh to this book. I only picked it up because John Green is always loving on Maureen Johnson and I figured anyone he endorses must be fantastic. And Johnson probably is. I'll probably try her again, but I just did not love 13 LBE.

My main issue here: I could not suspend my disbelief. Willing suspension of disbelief is pretty integral for a book like this (girl jets around Europe on her dead aunt's dime...her parents never once check up on More...

AWESOME! 5 stars! VERY CREATIVE! Unique! I love every little thing about it. Definitely exceeded my expectation!

I've been seeing this book in our bookstore for a long time but the title was really the one that caught my attention. It seems very interesting and cute! Of course, my curiosity for those 13 little blue envelopes and the messages they carry was killing me. LOL! I expected a lot of adventures and funny scenes, and the book never failed in any point. What I didn't expect is the ability More...

I loved it. It was a Fun book to read. It kept me going and wanting to read it. The charcters were believable. Kind of a mystery that you get to solve. It also taught me some life lessons. Like not to be afraid to fallow your heart and that it's okay to use your brain sometimes! (:

Reading this novel was a little like embarking on an epic journey across the world. It was fun, it was exciting, and it definitely won't be the last book (although it was the first) that I read by Maureen Johnson.

Ginny's character is someone that I think most people will be able to relate to. She's brave, even if she doesn't seem to think so (who hops on a plane at the whim of a dead person? Not me) but also has a more vulnerable, insecure side. There were times while I was reading where I wishe More...

I now miss my days as a student in England, flying off to Amsterdam or leaving from Waterloo for Paris. This book is a love letter to the fun of traveling in Europe where it seems like anything goes (and usually the last thing you want to happen turns out to be the best thing ever). Johnson's style is realistic and fun; she has a way on picking up on things in the cities her heroine travels through that I had forgotten but the moment she mentions I thought, "I remember that!" The plot of this bo More...

Admittedly, I was apprehensive to start this novel, considering the last book I read that had an American being transported to Europe ended in abject disappointment for me. I am pleased to say that this book surpasses my expectations and has restored my hope in road-trip novels.

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life More...

The biggest problem with this book is that the narrator, who thinks of herself as bland and boring, really is boring. While I was prepared to deal with this in the beginning, she didn't seem to change or grow much over the course of the book. Her mad, chaotic adventure--orchestrated by her now-deceased aunt through a series of letters--felt more tedious to me than anything, because the narration felt tedious, and I didn't get truly engaged until the end of the book.
Not a winner, for me. More...

The concept of the story, and especially the way the story unfolded, was so preposterous that it makes Twilight realistic. Seventeen year old Ginny receives 13 envelopes from her aunt, and needs to follow the instructions one at a time. This involves going to Europe and getting into stupid situations that miraculously resolve themselves. The first quarter of the story wasn't bad. The envelope containing Ginny's instructions to help an artist through donating a generous gift, were described with More...

A really enjoyable backpacker's story - written by someone with obvious travel experience behind her - with very few drawbacks.

What i.e. ticked me was the money issue: No way can you take planes and trains to and fro Europe's capital cities and pay stays in youth hostels for less than 1300 Pounds altogether, if you have not booked your seat months earlier. But there was much more to like than to criticize.

I especially liked the subtle humor tickling throughout the book. And I liked Ginny's pers More...

I sat down this morning while having my breakfast, and like normal I picked up my kindle, ready to read a little before I start the day. Now it's just past 1230 and I have finished it already!

What a brilliant book! I got this free on my kindle from Amazon and I wasn't expecting much but I couldn't put it down! It was truly a great read which had really lovable, different and unique characters throughout that had me loving every page!

I have just discovered there is another book after it and I'm r More...

This book - although it has a seomewhat serious topic - is a nice light read. 18 year-old Ginny discovers her recently passed-away Aunt has left her 13 envelopes / letters. Ginny is supposed to follow the directions in each letter before she can open and read the next. She opens the first and is immediately sent on a trip to London. Each letter contains information about her aunt of which Ginny (and her family) was unaware. Ginny discovers things about both herself and her aunt in her travels ar More...

Yeah, it's unrealistic: no parents would send their daughter off for a month with no contact, especially if she's never travelled before. But... who really cares? It's a fairy tale.

A lot of the travel stuff *was* very authentic and struck a very strong chord with me. The only thing I really missed were the Canadians, although she definitely got the Taking Up With Random Australians thing.

I think it would be a great book to read before traveling, or while traveling. Excellent travel feel, with More...

This was such a rewarding read! Johnson adapts the chick lit formula to create a unique and amusing novel featuring a rather shy teen named Ginny whose favorite aunt has just died, leaving her with 13 little blue envelopes. Inside the envelopes are clues directing Ginny to different locations in Europe, which duplicate her aunt's own whirlwind tour years earlier. Ginny must also follow the directions on the envelopes, some of which are quite puzzling. As you might expect, this is also a journey More...

I think dat this book might be better than the 2nd book