The Sun is Also a Star (Book Review)

*Synopsis*

Daniel is a first-generation Korean-American. His parents are doing all they can in hopes of providing him and his brother Charlie with a better life. Daniel has an interview that could determine the course of his future. Getting into Yale is the first step to becoming a doctor, the profession his parents long for him to pursue.

Natasha is being deported today. Her father’s mistake has caused her undocumented family to be discovered. In the midst of packing, Natasha leaves to try to right her father’s wrong one last time. She is on a mission to preserve the life she lives.

Chance or fate or sheer determinism bring Daniel and Natasha together on this pivotal day.

*Review*

I read this as an audiobook. I loved the voices of Natasha and Daniel, this flowed really well as an audiobook. I used the Overdrive app to borrow this audiobook from my library. It was great for cleaning my room and twisting up my hair since my hands were full.

Life is complex and this book does a great job of displaying the complexity. The story is centered around Natasha and Daniel’s first and possibly only day together. Third person accounts of other individuals mentioned in the story are also given throughout the novel. The ripple affect of one person’s actions is ever present.

I’ve been wanting to read The Sun is Also a Star ever since I read the excerpt in Everything Everything. Nicola Yoon is a master author. I thought the story was incredibly well written. I didn’t agree with everything expressed by the characters but Yoon expresses the opinions of characters without making them offensive towards those who disagree. This book would be great for sparking debate. I would love to see this read in high school classrooms, especially in this social climate.

As a child of an immigrant I could relate to both Daniel and Natasha. The way their parents didn’t completely understand how different being a hyphen America made them. The struggle of interracial dating with parental disapproval is also something I can understand all too well.

*4.5/5 Stars*

I’m so excited to see the movie when it comes out next year. I absolutely love Yara Shahidi. She’s such a wonderful person on and off the screen. I’m so happy she got this major role.

Author: Rachelle Saint Louis

Rachelle Saint Louis is a Haitian-American writer, born and raised in South Florida. She received a 2018 Silver Medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition for her poem “Red Blood Cell.” She is currently a Psychology and English double major at Florida Atlantic University. Her poetry has been published in Rigorous Magazine. Rachelle has been writing poetry since the 7th grade and you can often find her performing Spoken Word at local open mics. View all posts by Rachelle Saint Louis