
I'll Give You the Sun
by Jandy Nelson
Interest age: 14+
Reading age: 14+
Published by Walker Books, 2015
About this book
Jude and her twin Noah were incredibly close - until a tragedy drove them apart, and now they are barely speaking. Then Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy as well as a captivating new mentor, both of whom may just need her as much as she needs them. Meanwhile, Noah is struggling with hiding his sexuality and pretending his friendship with the boy next door is just that, when really he wants it to be so much more. As the twins struggle to put their lives back together, they don't realize that they are stronger together than they ever could be apart.
I'll Give You the Sun is a beautiful book about family, about choices, about art, and about growing up. At the heart is a story about a brother and sister, who once were inseparable but have driven each other away. As the twins get older, and figure out what kind of people they want to be, they start to see each other and their parents not just as extensions of themselves, but as individuals. Individuals who aren't perfect, who fall in love, who make mistakes. Individuals who are capable of wonderful and terrible things.
The reader sees the world the way the twins see it, which is sometimes full of beauty and magic, and sometimes full of fear and sadness, and magical realism is woven perfectly throughout the novel. The characters are complicated, complex, and very real. The combination of Jandy Nelson's unique and poetic writing style with characters that the reader can't help but fall is irresistible.
About the author
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