I'll Give You the Sun

Spoiler Alert: Some people's stories are destined to be intertwined.

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A beautiful novel, this book tells the story of twins Noah and Jude, who after suffering a terrible loss become more like strangers than they ever believed possible. Noah is a shy, gifted artist while his sister Jude acts with wild abandon and confidence. Both have secrets and both have an interesting story to tell. Switching between the perspectives of Noah at age 13 and Jude at age 16, the story pieces together their own journeys while eventually seamlessly turning it into one. Connected in their grief and strife, Noah and Jude navigate heartbreak, loss, love, sexuality, and art in this well-written and complex young adult novel. The author was incredibly deliberate in presenting two characters that were equally compelling and genuine. In many stories I often find myself drawn to one character and specifically sympathizing with them and their struggles. However this story had me incredibly torn. I saw where both twins were coming from and where their hurt stemmed from. In their story of accumulated pain and heartbreak I found myself rooting for them both equally. Noah, who tells his story at the younger age, reflects on his fragile relationship with his father, his using art as an escape, his never-ending quest for perfection, and his budding romance with the cute boy down the street. Jude, on the other hand, speaks about her strained relationship with her mother, her constant feelings of inadequacy, and using art as a way to find herself. Although the two go about it in very different ways, art, as one may notice, is a common motif throughout the story. Both Noah and Jude are very talented and constantly use art as a way to express themselves and as a way to cope with their grief. Through love, friendship, and art, Noah and Jude are eventually able to bridge the gap between themselves and even rise above their troubles. Despite having their world shatter all around them, Noah and Jude come out stronger and more in touch with themselves than ever before. Despite perhaps a too good to be true ending, all in all I'll Give You the Sun was an incredibly touching and life affirming read -- love truly can conquer all once you give it a chance.

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Favorite Quotes: “Maybe some people are just meant to be in the same story.” ~~ “Meeting your soul mate is like walking into a house you've been in before - you will recognize the furniture, the pictures on the wall, the books on the shelves, the contents of drawers: You could find your way around in the dark if you had to.” ~~ “I gave up practically the whole world for you,” I tell him, walking through the front door of my own love story. “The sun, stars, ocean, trees, everything, I gave it all up for you.” ~~ “I love you,” I say to him, only it comes out, “Hey.”“So damn much,” he says back, only it comes out, “Dude.”He still won’t meet my eyes.” ~~ “Or maybe a person is just made up of a lot of people,” I say. “Maybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time.” Hauling them in as we make choices, good and bad, as we screw up, step up, lose our minds, find our minds, fall apart, fall in love, as we grieve, grow, retreat from the world, dive into the world, as we make things, as we break things.” ~~ “When people fall in love, they burst into flames.”