Review: The Sun Is Also a Star

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Natasha and Daniel's story is a love story, but it's much more interesting than just that. I am NOT a romance story kind of person, but there are some that I enjoy. I decided to give The Sun Is Also a Star a chance because I've been hearing so much about Nicola Yoon. I loved it.

Although opposites in many ways, Natasha and Daniel fall in love within the span of a day. This is the story of how that happens. Natasha is spending her last day in the United States, trying to make sure it isn't her last day in the US. She's desperately going from one place to the next looking for someone who can help her and her family not be deported. Daniel is on his way to an interview that will determine the rest of his life as a doctor. It will make his family happy and proud and him probably miserable.

Natasha works hard at not letting Daniel's fantastical ideas about love and life interrupt her plan for the day--she will definitely not fall in love with him. Daniel will find a way to make Natasha fall in love him. It's his new goal (in a totally uncreepy way--I promise!).

I thought The Sun is Also a Star was a fantastic read. It's not just a romance, but a glimpse at the world of an undocumented teenage girl who has worked so hard and now her dreams are being smashed to pieces because of someone else. It's the story of the son of immigrants whose parents want the best for him and that means pushing him into a life he's not really interested in leading. It's about finding your own way--despite the circumstances you're given, or maybe because of the circumstances you're given. It's also about how everything around us is connected in someway.

Romance readers will definitely enjoy this book, but readers of YA who aren't necessarily drawn to romance will also enjoy it. Enjoy!

View all my reviews

Book Review: Dash and Lily's Book of Dares

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares

Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2010
Source: Kindle purchase
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

First, I would like to say that overall this was a pretty decent book, despite the 2 star rating.  I also want to point out that I'm probably not their target audience, however I do, on occasion, enjoy a well written teen romance with fully developed characters who aren't incredibly sappy. In this book we meet two characters who seem to be complete opposites:  Dash, a cynical kid who, due to his parents' divorce and his own intelligence, has managed to be alone for the holidays and Lily, a straight-laced, loves-Christmas, and does what she's told girl with very overprotective family members whose parents are off on a honeymoon they didn't get to celebrate 20 some years earlier.  When Dash finds a notebook with odd instructions in it, he follows them (what else would you do?) and then leaves instructions for the mystery girl.  The notebook is passed back and forth between the two with new instructions as well as thoughtful and very open letters as they get to know one another through the notebook.  How will this relationship live when it's brought out into the real world and they actually meet?

My sixteen year old self may have actually tried something like this after reading this book.  Just saying.  I was intrigued by their exchanges and the different "dares" they sent one another on throughout the Christmas season.  Dash's character bothered me a little.  He was so incredibly snarky that it was really difficult to like him or even believe in his character.  Maybe I just didn't like him.  I don't know, but it was off putting for me.  And the symposium he has with his friends on love was strange.  It was like he was lecturing them all and they were members of some weird college course on love.  It completely took me out of the story.  Lily wasn't so bad and I didn't have an issue with her character except that she seemed a little too naive at times.

The character that really and truly blew it for me was Boomer, Dash's friend.  I was confused for a long time whether or not Boomer was actually a younger kid Dash had befriended.  Using him for comedic effect really just became confusing and annoying.  I kept waiting to find out what the story was behind Boomer because he just doesn't seem like he would be in high school unless he was high all the time and that didn't seem to be the case either.  I found myself stopping every time his character arrived in the scene and wondering what was up with him.

Maybe some readers who are more into romance and don't have such a cynical view of romance will enjoy it more.  I had a hard time with it, though.  I will say it is a very appropriate read for high schoolers.  For the most part I would also say it's appropriate for middle school students, depending on their maturity level.

If you liked this review, consider following me on Facebook, Twitter, or Google Plus, and please "like" this review below!

Book Review: Eleanor & Park

Eleanor & Park
Rainbow Rowell
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Source: bought
Rating: 5/5 stars

When I first started reading, I wasn't sure I would like Eleanor & Park.  I'm not necessarily a huge romance fan.  I used to be when I was in middle school and high school and refused to read much else.  Often when I read YA romances as an adult I read it and think along the lines of the teenage me. As an adult I want to roll my eyes at the pining and giggling and sunsets and all that stuff, but the teenage me would have been all over it.  I have to say that I never felt the urge to roll my eyes at anything in this book and I found that I wasn't just reading it for the teenage version of me, but for the adult version.  Rainbow Rowell has written a love story that can transcend age barriers, even though it's focused on high schoolers.

Take two teenage misfits, put them on a bus full of high school mean kids, and make them sit next to one another. Eventually they'll become friends.  Eventually they'll become more than friends.  This is the story of Eleanor and Park.  Eleanor has just moved back in with her mom, her brothers and sister, and her step dad who hates her.  She just wants to disappear, and then Park notices her.  Park's family is the opposite of Eleanor's, with two parents completely in love.  Even though he feels like a disappointment to his dad, and he is nothing like his classmates, Park has a safe place.  When he sees Eleanor, he dislikes her at first, but something about her pulls him towards her.

The dual perspective was done extremely well, keeping me equally intrigued by both characters.  Eleanor's voice comes across so strong, yet quiet at the same time as she tries to disappear when she's at home.  For Eleanor, I wanted her to be all right and I needed to know when she would truly be safe.  For Park, I wasn't so much worried for him, as I was interested in his relationship with his mother and father.

I loved the pop culture references that were woven throughout.  The story is set in the 80's and although the story isn't stuck there and inaccessible to teenagers, it definintely lives there with the Walkmans and punk music, Star Wars references, Watchman comics, and clothing choices.  I loved these little bits!

In its way, this romance is sweet and innocent, with Eleanor & Park experiencing their first real loves, but it's also not for the younger reader.  Even though there is no sex in the novel, there are some heavy make out scenes and a lot thinking about sex and touching.  It's painted as something beautiful and wonderful because they care about one another so much and at no time did I consider it gratuitous or distasteful.  I never even rolled my eyes at it for being cheesy.  Also, there is a lot of language in this novel, so be aware of that if you are considering this for a younger reader.

If you have any interest in romances, or even if you don't because they just make you roll your eyes, then I suggest giving this one a try.  Eleanor & Park will pull you in and make you want to follow both characters forever.  You'll feel like Park when he realizes how much he loves Eleanor, ready to follow her across the sky.

Sunday Status: This is What Happy Looks Like

Sunday Status is a look at my current read.  I share one line from the page I'm currently reading an what I'm thinking about the book so far.

Book:  This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2013
Source: borrowed from school library

"But now--now it was the lack of recognition that made his heart thump in his chest, that small thrill of anonymity, which had become such a rare thing these days (67)."

Last fall, I picked up Jennifer E. Smith's The Geography of You and Me.  It was a sweet YA romance.  It reminded me of the giddiness I used to feel when I would read these in middle school.  I enjoyed it.  I decided to give This is What Happy Looks Like a try.  So far, it has a very similar vibe to it.  So much so, that I'm really hoping things change so that I'm not essentially reading the same story, but with different characters and a different setting.  It's early on in the story.  There's hope.

So far Ellie and Graham have accidentally met via a stray email and have continued to email one another from across the country for three months.  They do not know one another's names, just their emails (this really makes me anxious, by the way--shouldn't she be terrified that he's a creepy old man? And just because he says he isn't, doesn't mean that it's true!!). Well Graham, who is actually a famous teen actor has figured out where she lives and gotten his newest movie located to her town.  So now he's in her town and has asked her friend out, thinking it's Ellie, and Ellie is helping her friend get ready for the date because she has no idea Graham is her secret online pen pal.

I have no doubt that This is What Happy Looks Like will be another sweet romance, but can it be more?  Will Jennifer E. Smith pull me and keep me interested?  I sure hope so!