“There’s a Japanese phrase that I like: koi no yokan. It doesn’t mean love at first sight. It’s closer to love at second sight. It’s the feeling when you meet someone that you’re going to fall in love with them. Maybe you don’t love them right away, but it’s inevitable that you will.”
I've read and loved Everything, Everything (read review here) so when I heard that Nicola Yoon was having another book, I was sold right away. I instantly liked Yoon's writing style in Everything, Everything and I love how creative she can get. And having read her second book, she became an auto-buy for me beginning now.
The Sun Is Also A Star is the story of Natasha and Daniel, two people destined to meet but not fated to stay together. Natasha and her family are only hours away from getting deported back to Jamaica. Years ago, her father went to America to chase his dream of being a broadway actor and with the promise of better life, Natasha and her mother followed. The only problem is, they are undocumented. Now Natasha is spending her last day in America trying to get help from USCIS so they can stay. Daniel, on the other hand, is a Korean-American boy whose life is already planned out. His parents immigrated to America to take their chance and now they have a successful business there. Always been a good boy, Daniel is also ready to follow his parents' dream of him becoming a doctor. He's supposed to have an interview to get to Yale but one unexpected meeting has changed everything.
I really enjoyed The Sun Is Also A Star because it's beautifully written and the characters are well-developed. I love how Natasha and Daniel's meeting changes a lot of things; their perspective, feelings and a lot others, and by the end of the book you can't help but feel overwhelmed by how things turned out. I also think that this book is more than just a boy meets girl because despite being somewhat light, it deals with some heavy issues.
There are also back stories to some secondary characters and some random people Natasha and Daniel meet and I think they make the story more compelling. I also admit that I was a bit disappointed with the insta-love (at the beginning) but at the latter part, Natasha and Daniel make me feel like it's okay to fall in love with a person you just met. Maybe it's destiny or the stars or the universe intervening but I do believe in that, too. I believe that when fate decides that you're going to fall in love with this person, then you will.
“Human beings are not reasonable creatures. Instead of being ruled by logic, we are ruled by emotions. The world would be a happier place if the opposite were true, For example, based on a simple phone call, I have begun to hope for a miracle. I don't even believe in God.”
Natasha believes in science, in numbers, in things provable. She doesn't believe in things she cannot see and prove. That's why when Daniel tells her he's falling in love with her, she thinks it's a joke. Daniel is a dreamer. He believes in the stars, in the forces in the universe and he believes in the power of words. He's a poet. That's why the first time (or maybe the second time) he sees Natasha, he knew he's going to fall in love with her. And he did.
This books is more that just a story. It tells us things about families, life, love and life's mishaps. It's beautiful in a way that Natasha and Daniel have learned that sometimes, it will only take you one day to figure out your whole life. One day and your life can change. One day and Natasha and Daniel have found love, new dreams, gotten their heart broken and in that one day they also learned how to live their life.
“We are capable of big lives. A big history. Why settle? Why choose the practical thing, the mundane thing? We are born to dream and make the things we dream about.”
Gahd, this book is just wonderful. If you love stories about destiny, fate and chances and how they can change things in your life, you should definitely read this book!
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