The Sun is Also a Star - Nicola Yoon | | Book Review
Another young adult review or rather ramblings. I swear I do read other genres (sometimes) but I have such an admiration for young adult fiction and its diversity.
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon is about two teenagers, Natasha and Daniel living in America. Natasha was born in Jamaica and Daniel has a Korean background. I love the different cultures colliding. I love this, I love the characters and all their background history.
Daniel and Natasha are very different people, and when they meet it's clear Daniel believes in fate and 'everything happening for a reason' and I'm right there with him on that. Natasha on the other hand, likes knowing the science of everything. She believes there is science, a logical explanation for everything that happens and doesn't believe in fate. Daniel is adamant this is why they met. It was meant to be. And maybe it was meant to be, but they clash, oh my, do these characters clash. As much as I want it to be an adorable love story I can't picture them together.
Their story plays out over the course of one day. Everything you may possibly need to know about the characters is portrayed in their one day. This felt like an issue to me, personally, how can two people meet in one day, fall in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together? I'm not sure. Feels unrealistic. Maybe it's a portrayal of first love, young love but I felt frustrated and silly for believing in their feelings for one another.
An interesting point is the perspectives, not only is it told in Natasha and Daniel's perspectives, whenever they meet another person, it doesn't matter how minor they may be to the overall plot they get their own little chapter to reveal themselves and talk about their history.
So, one event leads to another. Natasha nearly gets hit by a car, Daniel happens to be there at the right moment to save her. And so on, many events lead to the next. However Natasha is actually on a mission to prevent her family from being deported back to Jamaica that very evening. It's heartbreaking, like any person who has made a home somewhere she wants to stay. She wants to study and she doesn't want to leave her best friend. She has made a life in America. And Daniel has his own issues, he is under extreme pressure from his parents to be successful, to go down the exact path his parents want but he doesn't want it. In this whirlwind of a day the pair are both a bit reckless.
Yoon has written a beautifully heartbreaking story about immigration, friendship, family and love. It is wonderful. And how can you resist the cover? It is stunning.
Daniel and Natasha are very different people, and when they meet it's clear Daniel believes in fate and 'everything happening for a reason' and I'm right there with him on that. Natasha on the other hand, likes knowing the science of everything. She believes there is science, a logical explanation for everything that happens and doesn't believe in fate. Daniel is adamant this is why they met. It was meant to be. And maybe it was meant to be, but they clash, oh my, do these characters clash. As much as I want it to be an adorable love story I can't picture them together.
Their story plays out over the course of one day. Everything you may possibly need to know about the characters is portrayed in their one day. This felt like an issue to me, personally, how can two people meet in one day, fall in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together? I'm not sure. Feels unrealistic. Maybe it's a portrayal of first love, young love but I felt frustrated and silly for believing in their feelings for one another. An interesting point is the perspectives, not only is it told in Natasha and Daniel's perspectives, whenever they meet another person, it doesn't matter how minor they may be to the overall plot they get their own little chapter to reveal themselves and talk about their history.
So, one event leads to another. Natasha nearly gets hit by a car, Daniel happens to be there at the right moment to save her. And so on, many events lead to the next. However Natasha is actually on a mission to prevent her family from being deported back to Jamaica that very evening. It's heartbreaking, like any person who has made a home somewhere she wants to stay. She wants to study and she doesn't want to leave her best friend. She has made a life in America. And Daniel has his own issues, he is under extreme pressure from his parents to be successful, to go down the exact path his parents want but he doesn't want it. In this whirlwind of a day the pair are both a bit reckless.
Yoon has written a beautifully heartbreaking story about immigration, friendship, family and love. It is wonderful. And how can you resist the cover? It is stunning.
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