The Sun Is Also a Star

I hedged over whether to read this one after being somewhat underwhelmed by the author’s debut, but I’m so happy I gave this a shot.

Natasha’s final day to fight against her family’s deportation to Jamaica brightens significantly when fate or something like it, brings Daniel into her orbit. Daniel is also in the midst of his own life-changing day as he’s scheduled for a college interview to set him on the path to becoming a doctor, which is much more his parents dream than his.

Natasha and Daniel had great chemistry from the start, though I have to admit, due to the entire story taking place over the course of a day, it did take me a little time to catch up to speed with their relationship. Daniel is a romantic (which I show more enjoyed) so character-wise it did make sense how quickly he brought “love” into the conversation, and Natasha did temper that talk a bit with her scientific mindset and general skepticism (I loved that about her), still, conversations about falling in love and a make-out session when you’ve barely met, it just felt like things were developing super quickly. As a reader who tends to prefer slow burn romance, it did take me a while to buy into the idea that they had a genuine relationship, that it wasn’t just a surface infatuation, but I did eventually become invested in whether or not they’d end up together in the end.

My favorite thing about The Sun Is Also A Star, aside from how frankly it addresses race, is probably the use of characters beyond Daniel and Natasha. The scenes in the beauty supply shop were so fantastic and the saga of Natasha’s dad had depth despite only taking up a small portion of the book. I also loved the glimpses into the lives of characters in passing, those unexpected interludes often delivered an emotional impact, they were such a unique and welcome change from the standard contemporary romance structure, and what a payoff they led to with that epilogue. show less

This is an exceptional book - funny, clever, heart-breaking, heart-soaring, and full of musings about profound questions that should inspire its young adult audience to think more deeply about the world around them.

Natasha Kingsley, 17, is an illegal Jamaican immigrant who is about to be deported - that very night, in fact. Through a series of very bizarre coincidences, she not only meets a potentially perfect mate, 17-year-old Korean-American Daniel Bae, but they fall madly, wildly in love.

This is no trite unsubstantiated case of "InstaLove" like one usually finds in young adult novels, however. Rather, it is inspired and utterly convincing, in spite of the fact that Natasha doesn’t even believe in love: she reserves her faith for show more science, while Daniel is a poet and a dreamer. [I love how this book upends the usual gender-associated traits.] Natasha defines a successful marriage as one involving “mutual self-interest and socioeconomic compatibility.” For Daniel, the key ingredients are “friendship, intimacy, moral compatibility, physical attraction, and the X factor.” (Natasha asks, “What’s the X factor?” “Don’t worry,” Daniel replies, “We already have it.”)

And indeed they do. He considers them “meant to be.”

But through another series of improbable events, fate intervenes. And though they feel as if they have “fit a lifetime into a day,” when the day is over, it will be time for Natasha to leave.

Discussion: This book provides a good understanding of the difficulties faced by immigrants, difficulties that are not well-enough appreciated by those lucky enough to have ample opportunities and/or lack of dangers in their countries of origins. One thinks, for example, of all the German Jews in the 1930's who were terrified of what was going on at home, but even more scared at the prospect of abandoning their lives, their language, and the repository of their memories. As one of the characters muses:

“For most immigrants, moving to the new country is an act of faith. Even if you’ve heard stories of safety, opportunity, and prosperity, it’s still a leap to remove yourself from your own language, people, and country. Your own history. What if the stories weren’t true? What if you couldn’t adapt? What if you weren’t wanted in the new country?”

There is a lot of science and physics in this book too, but it is so well done I bet most readers don’t even realize they are being educated. There is also very humorous meta-commentary by Daniel in the form of headings to some of the chapters he narrates, and wonderful explanatory "interludes" by the narrator on all manner of topics germane to the story.

Evaluation: This story is funny, smart, wise, and endearing. There's not a drop of magic in this book, but it is magical nevertheless. It is not the writing itself that is necessary luminous, but the characters. It’s one of the best books I read all year.

Rating: 4.5/5 (I would have given it a five, but I thought the ending - amazing as it was, could have been expanded a bit. Should have been expanded a bit. Okay, I wanted the book to keep going forever.)

Note: National Book Award finalist (Young People's Literature, 2016) show less

This book is gorgeous. It takes place over the course of one day and follows how little things can change the course of an entire life. I fell in love with the book, with Daniel and Natasha. I wanted at the same time to read faster to make sure everything turns out okay, and to read slower to savor it all.

Yoon has a way for crafting breathtaking sentences full of beauty and wisdom. I was noting quotes I wanted to cherish throughout the book.

This is so much more than just a YA romance. It is also a book about dreams, and science, and passion, and interconnectedness. How we all touch each other's lives without even realizing it. How the smallest things can make a huge difference.

It is also a book about the immigrant experience. About show more trying to find and hold on to cultural identity in a foreign country. About the hopes and fears the immigrant has.

This book made me cry. It made me laugh. It made me want to buy and read everything Nicola Yoon has written or will write in the future. Just stunning. show less

Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.
Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.
The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures show more lie before us. Which one will come true? show less

Charming story about two seventeen-year-olds who meet on a day of import for each of them. Natasha and her family are about to be deported back to Jamaica, and she is trying her best to get a last-minute reprieve. Daniel is a son of Korean immigrants who want him to become a doctor, and who have scheduled an interview to pursue admission to Yale, but his passion is poetry. The family-related scenes contained vivid depictions of the influences of parents and siblings on these young lives.

Themes include some heavy topics such as immigration, race, cultural history, family dynamics, love, coincidences, fate, the meaning of life, and the impact of choices. The writing is engaging, graceful and philosophical, even poetic at times. The show more author is adept at inserting humor to offset some of the heavier content. I felt the spirited dialogue interspersed with humor skillfully captured today’s intellectual teen struggling at the cusp of adulthood.

Although their budding romance is a crucial plot point, I thought it was more about the way we see the world. Each character is written with a distinct voice. Natasha represents the scientific mind and Daniel the spiritual mind. Natasha has been damaged by previous relationships, and has sworn off love, focusing on explaining life through science and coincidence. Daniel is a romantic. He believes in love and that life is imbued with meaning and purpose. Their point-counterpoint discussions are entertaining and thought-provoking. The book is filled with examples of how even small incidents can alter the course of a life, and how the choices of strangers can positively or negatively impact the lives of others (often unbeknownst to the person being impacted). These observations were driven home by the chapters on some of the peripheral characters.

I recommend this delightful book to those who enjoy young adult fiction with an added dose of philosophy and science.

Meaningful quotes:

Natasha:
• “I am a realist. It’s better to see life as it is, not as you wish it to be.”
• “People spend their whole lives looking for love. Poems and songs and entire novels are written about it. But how can you trust something that can end as suddenly as it begins?”
• “People just want to believe. Otherwise they would have to admit that life is just a random series of good and bad things that happen until one day you die.”

Daniel:
• “[Love] exists whether you believe in it or not.”
• “We are born to dream and make the things we dream about.”
• “I think we’re all connected, everyone on earth.” show less

Natasha is about to be deported from New York to Jamaica with her family tonight. Daniel has an interview for Yale, so that he can go to medical school and become a doctor as his Korean-American parents expect. Their paths cross in the morning and they spend most of the rest of the day together, as Natasha goes from one lawyer's office to another and Daniel reschedules his interview. Natasha is a realist who loves science; Daniel is a romantic who loves poetry. He finds a study about couples falling in love, and they choose questions from the questionnaire to ask each other throughout the day.

THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR is a YA romance, but it is also more than that: there is the element of suspense (will Natasha's family be deported, or show more will they get to stay?), and the social issue of immigration (timely right now).

Very short chapters alternate between Natasha and Daniel, with others - about history, physics, other characters - sprinkled in. Such short segments made this a quick and compelling read - one chapter flowed into the next and it was hard to put down.

Quotes

For most immigrants, moving to the new country is an act of faith. Even if you've heard stories of safety, opportunity, and prosperity, it's still a leap to remove yourself from your own language, people, and country. Your own history. What if the stories weren't true? What if you couldn't adapt? What if you weren't wanted in the new country? (15)

Where did all those feelings go? People spend their whole lives looking for love. Poems and songs and entire novels are written about it. But how can you trust something that can end as suddenly as it begins? (Natasha, 58)

I wonder if she realizes how passionate she is about not being passionate. (Daniel, 100)

"We are born to dream and make the things we dream about." (Daniel, 101)

It's hard trying to hold on to a place that doesn't want you. (Natasha, 109)

Usually I fall on the side of knowing the truth, even if the truth is bad. It's not the easiest way of being. Sometimes the truth can hurt more than you expect. (Natasha, 114)

"I'm glad you think this is funny," he says.
"Come on," I say. "Tragedy is funny."
"Are we in a tragedy?" he asks, smiling broadly now.
"Of course. Isn't that what life is? We all die at the end." (144)

It's hard to come from someplace or someone you're not proud of. (144)

Maybe part of falling in love with someone else is also falling in love with yourself. I like who I am with her. (Daniel, 150)

"What a difference a day makes." (Daniel, 330)

"This day can't be all there is," Daniel says once, and then twice.
Natasha doesn't say what she suspects. That meant to be doesn't have to mean forever. (334)

They have a sense that the length of a day is mutable, and you can never see the end from the beginning. They have a sense that love changes all things all the time.
That's what love is for. (334) show less

In a Nutshell: The key requirement to enjoying this book is a tolerance for CHEESY CUTENESS. If I had read it a decade (or two!) ago, it might have been a strong 5 star rating. But at this age, there’s a limit to how much of ‘sappy’ I can handle. (MINOR reason for dip in rating.) It’s a lovely book nevertheless.

Story:

Most of the book’s story is set within a day’s duration.

Daniel, an American teen of Korean origin, is forced to live his life as per the path his parents have planned out for him. On this day, Daniel is on his way to his college interview.

Natasha, an undocumented immigrant (because her parents shifted from Jamaica to the US without the correct paperwork when she was eight), is battling to stay in the country

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after her family has been told to deport within a day. On this day, she is meeting with a lawyer who might be able to help her.

By some quirk of destiny, Daniel and Natasha bump into each other. For romantic Daniel, it is love at first sight. For pragmatic Natasha, it is nothing but a strange connection. What is the link between them? Do they have any future when Natasha has not even 24 hours left in the US?

There are many things I enjoyed about the story. Daniel and Natasha are the perfect opposites. To see their contrary points of view on similar topics, to hear their banter and their emotional struggles, to visualise that strange connection that they seemed to have… all made my reading fun. While I’m not a fan of insta-love in any fiction (MAJOR reason for the dip in rating – I was just rolling my eyes at the thought!), Daniel’s personality seemed to justify why he connected with Natasha so strongly and so immediately. But Natasha is the one who stole my heart. Her determination, her passion for science, her practical sense. Everything spoke of a teenager who had her head firmly screwed on to her shoulders, a rarity in contemporary YA fiction. The rest of the characters appear only in minor roles, but they too are sketched very nicely.

The issues related the immigration and parental expectations are very well penned. The insight into Jamaican and Korean cultures are also impeccable. (The fact that Nicola Yoon is a Jamaican married to a Korean-American helps a lot in the authenticity, I guess.)

Adding to the charm is the author’s manner of presenting the story to us. We have the first person perspectives of Daniel and Natasha, each alternating almost regularly in quick short chapters. But we also get brief third person perspectives of people around them, who have a role to play in the Daniel-Natasha story. For instance, while Natasha is at the US Immigration office, the security check causes her to be delayed for her interview. The next chapter gives us a brief perspective from the point of view of the security guard. I loved this approach. It was a good way of seeing how things even beyond our control can impact our day.

The words “deus ex machina” had a prominent role to play at the start of the story as their presence on Natasha’s jacket is what makes Daniel first notice her. Happily, the author doesn’t use a deus ex machina for the ending, and that’s what I loved the most about the book. I don’t want to give spoilers, but I just want to say that the author brought the story to a logical culmination rather than a hasty and forcefully tied-together finale.

All in all, this was a nice, light and soothing story, and would be great in between intense books. Of course, be prepared for a whole load of instant romance. Keep your pessimism aside and go with the flow if you wanna enjoy this read. show less