November Book of the Month - The Sun is Also a Star

I'm a sucker for a good romance and having heard great things about author Nicola Yoon and her first book Everything Everything, I was a tad excited when I received a surprise delivery of her latest book The Sun is Also a Star. Going by the blurb alone I knew this wasn't going to be your typical love story and this was something I was very much looking forward to reading.

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 lie before is. Which one will come true?

I loved this novel right from the beginning. The characters were quirky, likeable and the chapters were short and easy to read. You should know that this book is perfect for you if you don't have a lot of time for reading as you can easily read a little and pick up where you left off at a later date.

Now as you read from the blurb Natasha doesn't really believe in fate and the fact that she's due to be deported the next day doesn't bode well for any new relationship but when she happens to meet Daniel in a record shop as she watches her ex grind up against the girl he cheated on her with, it seems as though the fate she doesn't believe in has other ideas.

What I really liked about this tale is that there isn't an insta-love, ok it happens over 12 hours but it wasn't love at first sight it was more like an instant connection but that can happen with a simple friendship too and the story isn't purely focused on their budding relationship it looks at subjects such as loneliness and race amongst other things.

"Red tie," I say. "Daniel," he insists. "Don't fall in love with me, Daniel."

Both Natasha and Daniel are both flawed in their own way and although aren't going through the same things they both have the same sort of emotions aimed at their parents. With Natasha's deportation being the fault of her father and in some ways her mother too and Daniel making decisions based on what his parents want rather than what he feels is right, they are both facing uncertain futures.

This book is so very honest and I was rooting for Daniel and Natasha throughout, at one point I thought I had the ending figured out but I was oh so wrong and in a good way I might add. What this story goes to show is that you can't be prepared for everything and sometimes you don't need to be. Sometimes it is those unsuspecting moments that can suddenly change things for the better even if you can't understand the hows and whys at the time.

“Most poems I’ve seen are about love or sex or the stars. You poets are obsessed with stars. Falling stars. Shooting stars. Dying stars.”

“Stars are important,” I say, laughing.

“Sure, but why not more poems about the sun? The sun is also a star, and it’s our most important one. That alone should be worth a poem or two.”

The Sun is Also a Star shows is truthful and raw at times, reminding us that there is still prejudice in the world that families do tend to be dysfunctional even when they don't mean to and gets us thinking is it better to go with our hearts or our heads in certain situations. What you are left with is a truly heart-warming story that will certainly stick with you long after you've finished reading.