A review by indoorg1rl
The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

4.0

My first immediate thought: the idea is quite similar to the movie 'Before Sunrise' (1995). I can see how the concept would feel completely fresh and new to the young adults who haven't seen the movie.

Nicola Yoon takes a cliche insta-love story and implements it really well. As a proud member of We Need Diverse Books campaign, it is no surprise that Nicola creates a story about a Jamaican girl and a Korean boy (Nicola's husband, David, is also of Korean descendant), which is such a breath of fresh air.

I really love the snippets of different point of views throughout the book, which provide good contrast to the main young adult characters' point of views that could be very centred to their own world. I also love the musings in between chapters, such as the one about language dissection (irie) and the history of things. Love the minor characters as well - I want to know more!

Overall, I feel the story contract (two teenagers having insta-love over the span of a day) and expand (discussions about how universe works, what is fair/unfair, immigration deportation issue, how a day can feel long and years can feel short) at the same time. I love it.