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I'll Give You the Sun
by
"We were all heading for each other on a collision course, no matter what. Maybe some people are just meant to be in the same story."
At first, Jude and her twin brother Noah, are inseparable. Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude wears red-red lipstick, cliff-dives, and does all the talking for both of them. ...more
At first, Jude and her twin brother Noah, are inseparable. Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude wears red-red lipstick, cliff-dives, and does all the talking for both of them. ...more
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Hardcover, 371 pages
Published
September 16th 2014
by Dial Books
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Margaret Mayo
It alternates between Jude and Noah. It's vivid and passionate. Worth reading.
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30

Start your review of I'll Give You the Sun

Has anyone ever finished a book and just sat there for a while like, “what did this author just do to me?”
Finishing this book was the most surreal emotion. It was like being stranded in the middle of a hazy daydream, laughing, sun-soaked and shivering, with flowers blooming in your heart. I had this sudden outburst of motivation to bake something, or go for a walk, or make a fragile human connection with some stranger in the vast and unfeeling infinity of this universe. I was in love, not with a ...more
Finishing this book was the most surreal emotion. It was like being stranded in the middle of a hazy daydream, laughing, sun-soaked and shivering, with flowers blooming in your heart. I had this sudden outburst of motivation to bake something, or go for a walk, or make a fragile human connection with some stranger in the vast and unfeeling infinity of this universe. I was in love, not with a ...more

This book should be called I'll Give You Death by Artistic Metaphor. It seems like I'm in the minority on this one, but I did not like the writing style at all.
I guess it should be noted that I was also not a fan of the author's first novel - The Sky is Everywhere - which everyone but heartless little me seemed to love. Unlike many people I know, I picked this one up because the premise intrigued me and not because of a love for the author's previous work.
You may be thinking: this is a poetic ...more
I guess it should be noted that I was also not a fan of the author's first novel - The Sky is Everywhere - which everyone but heartless little me seemed to love. Unlike many people I know, I picked this one up because the premise intrigued me and not because of a love for the author's previous work.
You may be thinking: this is a poetic ...more

"I love you," I say to him, only it comes out, "Hey."
"So damn much," he says back, only it comes out, "Dude."
i think this one was also a 3.5 for me. there were things i liked SO MUCH about it, and then there were things that bothered me a little. (and not just my fear of twins this time)
first to the good.
i enjoyed the unusual structure - the fact that it alternates between the voices of twins noah and jude where noah's story takes place when they are 13 and jude's takes place when they are ...more
"So damn much," he says back, only it comes out, "Dude."
i think this one was also a 3.5 for me. there were things i liked SO MUCH about it, and then there were things that bothered me a little. (and not just my fear of twins this time)
first to the good.
i enjoyed the unusual structure - the fact that it alternates between the voices of twins noah and jude where noah's story takes place when they are 13 and jude's takes place when they are ...more

'maybe some people are just meant to be in the same story.'
and maybe some people are just meant to love the same story over and over again. the colour and brightness this book continues to add to my life puts the sun to shame. every word is such a thing of radiant beauty, i know my soul is incapable of feeling anything other than joy when reading this. this book is true art at its finest.
________________________________
i try not to have any regrets in life, but i do regret that i read this ...more
and maybe some people are just meant to love the same story over and over again. the colour and brightness this book continues to add to my life puts the sun to shame. every word is such a thing of radiant beauty, i know my soul is incapable of feeling anything other than joy when reading this. this book is true art at its finest.
________________________________
i try not to have any regrets in life, but i do regret that i read this ...more

One of the best books I've read in a long long time, I'll Give You the Sun, gave me the chills, gave me a heart attack, gave me everything I ever wanted from a love story.
(Self-portrait: boy in love with a book)
The narrators have such fun voices, the writing and use of artistic metaphors is beautiful, and the pacing is amazing. Pretty much everything about this book is perfect. It's essentially Gone Girl meets Romeo and Juliet. The characters connect so cohesively with their incredibly ...more
(Self-portrait: boy in love with a book)
The narrators have such fun voices, the writing and use of artistic metaphors is beautiful, and the pacing is amazing. Pretty much everything about this book is perfect. It's essentially Gone Girl meets Romeo and Juliet. The characters connect so cohesively with their incredibly ...more

It’s reread no: 4 and I don’t know how this book still has the ability to make me feel the way I do right now. Like I believe anything is possible and magic is tangible. It’s healing. I can never seem to get enough of it. Slice of heaven of a book if there ever was one.
Original review
My heart. Words will fail me. This book did something to my soul. My heart exploded about a hundred times whilst reading it and I cannot express how much I loved it! How much I'll continue to love it. It was ...more
Original review
My heart. Words will fail me. This book did something to my soul. My heart exploded about a hundred times whilst reading it and I cannot express how much I loved it! How much I'll continue to love it. It was ...more

5 Stars
Overview: Fourth Read:
This is my favorite book.
It’s a blanket statement—of course. Ask any bookworm their favorite book and we’ll either ask for more parameters (“What genre? Classics too? Of all time or this year?”) or rattle off four or five. While I’m certainly guilty of that, every time I answer I see this cover in my mind. This is my favorite book.
Sometimes I wish it was something else. Something akin to Joyce or Tolstoy, so I’d sound a little smarter. Or maybe something not ...more
Overview: Fourth Read:
This is my favorite book.
It’s a blanket statement—of course. Ask any bookworm their favorite book and we’ll either ask for more parameters (“What genre? Classics too? Of all time or this year?”) or rattle off four or five. While I’m certainly guilty of that, every time I answer I see this cover in my mind. This is my favorite book.
Sometimes I wish it was something else. Something akin to Joyce or Tolstoy, so I’d sound a little smarter. Or maybe something not ...more

I’LL GIVE THIS BOOK THE SUN. FIVE SUNS. More than that, if Goodreads had ever answered my impassioned plea to add a sixth star (which I sent by pony express after Ready Player One). (Pony express means mail, right? I’m a fan of that.)
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
How do I love thee, book? Let me count the ways. (That’s both a reference to this book and an illustration of how difficult it will be to put my intense adoration of it into, like, a semi-coherent review.) (Sidenote: I’ve ...more
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
How do I love thee, book? Let me count the ways. (That’s both a reference to this book and an illustration of how difficult it will be to put my intense adoration of it into, like, a semi-coherent review.) (Sidenote: I’ve ...more

Review originally posted at Mostly YA Lit
I don't think I can properly review this book without just throwing flails and gifs and barbaric yawps into the air. It's that lovely, that exquisite that any review I write will just pale in comparison to the writing in the book. That said...I want you to read this book, so I have to try.
P.S. I borrowed all the quote gifs from Penguin Teen, because who doesn't want to see more of that gorgeous cover?!
I'll Give You The Sun is probably the most ...more
I don't think I can properly review this book without just throwing flails and gifs and barbaric yawps into the air. It's that lovely, that exquisite that any review I write will just pale in comparison to the writing in the book. That said...I want you to read this book, so I have to try.
P.S. I borrowed all the quote gifs from Penguin Teen, because who doesn't want to see more of that gorgeous cover?!
I'll Give You The Sun is probably the most ...more

“Maybe a person is just made up of a lot of people. 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.”
This novel started out weird and confusing and colourful. It took me a while to adjust to the style of writing and a few pages in I finally started to ...more
This novel started out weird and confusing and colourful. It took me a while to adjust to the style of writing and a few pages in I finally started to ...more

Twins are fascinating.
They can tell me they have magical abilities and can read each other’s minds and feel each other’s emotions and I’m totally going to believe them. To me, the idea of sharing the same DNA with someone else is extraordinary in itself.
Jude and Noah are extremely close. They may not be alike, but they both dismiss each other’s differences to focus on what they do have in common: art. They both seek pleasure in the imagination and love with the entirety of their hearts. Too ...more
They can tell me they have magical abilities and can read each other’s minds and feel each other’s emotions and I’m totally going to believe them. To me, the idea of sharing the same DNA with someone else is extraordinary in itself.
Jude and Noah are extremely close. They may not be alike, but they both dismiss each other’s differences to focus on what they do have in common: art. They both seek pleasure in the imagination and love with the entirety of their hearts. Too ...more

5 stars
I’ll Give You the Sun is different than any other book I’ve read. The writing style (it was lyrical to me), the story line, that themes, the characters, they were all excellent. There were a few things that I didn’t love, but overall it was a memorable and brilliant story that deserves 5 stars. Also, I listened to the audio version of this one and the narration was fantastic.
Twins Jude and Noah are both artists. So is their mother. This story is written in dual POV, from past to ...more

I’ll Give You the Sun is different than any other book I’ve read. The writing style (it was lyrical to me), the story line, that themes, the characters, they were all excellent. There were a few things that I didn’t love, but overall it was a memorable and brilliant story that deserves 5 stars. Also, I listened to the audio version of this one and the narration was fantastic.
Twins Jude and Noah are both artists. So is their mother. This story is written in dual POV, from past to ...more

Feb 08, 2014
Miranda Lynn
rated it
did not like it
Shelves:
lgbt,
contemporary,
paperback-or-hardback-owned,
did-not-finish,
romance-ya,
young-adult,
read-2014,
arc
DNF after 116 pages.
I feel like I'm probably going to get shot for this, considering the (currently) 4.30 rating and plethora of rave reviews on Goodreads...but I honestly really did not likethis book. I made it to page 116 before I had to give up because I just couldn't take it anymore. I kept hoping that it would get better or that I was missing something that would somehow finallyclick — but it never did. This book isjust not for me .
First of all,the chapters are so long. I don't think I've ...more
I feel like I'm probably going to get shot for this, considering the (currently) 4.30 rating and plethora of rave reviews on Goodreads...but I honestly really did not likethis book. I made it to page 116 before I had to give up because I just couldn't take it anymore. I kept hoping that it would get better or that I was missing something that would somehow finallyclick — but it never did. This book isjust not for me .
First of all,the chapters are so long. I don't think I've ...more

what a truly beautiful book!!
I CRIED ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT OVER HOW BEAUTIFUL THIS BOOK IS!
I got so emotionally invested in this book that I became hooked and fell completely in love with it!
When I first started reading it took a while to get into purely because of how unique the writing style is. But when you do get used to it you see just how amazingly well written this book is.
One of my favourite things was the way the story was told from different point of views from years apart! It kept me ...more
I CRIED ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT OVER HOW BEAUTIFUL THIS BOOK IS!
I got so emotionally invested in this book that I became hooked and fell completely in love with it!
When I first started reading it took a while to get into purely because of how unique the writing style is. But when you do get used to it you see just how amazingly well written this book is.
One of my favourite things was the way the story was told from different point of views from years apart! It kept me ...more

Finished my first book for the BookTube-a-Thon!
This was definitely one of my favorites of the year.
I honestly love everything about it. The writing was so beautiful... The way it switched between young Noah and older Jude's perspectives. The love stories, the art. Literally everything. Read this book. It's so beautiful and now I just want to read every single thing by this author.
This was definitely one of my favorites of the year.
I honestly love everything about it. The writing was so beautiful... The way it switched between young Noah and older Jude's perspectives. The love stories, the art. Literally everything. Read this book. It's so beautiful and now I just want to read every single thing by this author.

"Can I have it?' This shocks me. She's never asked for a drawing before.
'For the sun, stars, oceans and all the trees, I'll consider it.'
'Okay. Trees, stars, oceans. Fine.'
'And the sun, Jude.'
'Oh all right. I'll give you the sun."
What a beautiful book. I feel like I'm slowly playing catch up on all these popular contemporaries I've missed because I didn't think they were for me. Oh how wrong I've been!
Jude and Noah broke into my heart and tore it to shreds. They are both so artistic and so ...more
'For the sun, stars, oceans and all the trees, I'll consider it.'
'Okay. Trees, stars, oceans. Fine.'
'And the sun, Jude.'
'Oh all right. I'll give you the sun."
What a beautiful book. I feel like I'm slowly playing catch up on all these popular contemporaries I've missed because I didn't think they were for me. Oh how wrong I've been!
Jude and Noah broke into my heart and tore it to shreds. They are both so artistic and so ...more

I JUST WANT TO ART NOW. This book has inspired me so much I simply cannot contain the beautifulness of it. It definitely goes down as one of the most BEAUTIFULLY written books ever.
Although I did have a rocky start with it. I'm a pretty much black-and-white thinker...I'm creative (I write!) but sometimes when things get too metaphorical and lyrical and off-the-universe-imaginative...I LOSE IT. So the beginning of the book had me floundering. I found Noah's chapters really hard to grip onto with ...more
Although I did have a rocky start with it. I'm a pretty much black-and-white thinker...I'm creative (I write!) but sometimes when things get too metaphorical and lyrical and off-the-universe-imaginative...I LOSE IT. So the beginning of the book had me floundering. I found Noah's chapters really hard to grip onto with ...more

emotionally, this book deserves 13049820394234 stars.
when i take into account the rushedrushedrushed ending and the predictability, i feel like it deserves 4 stars.
so, 4.5 stars it is.
the characters are so alive, so well-developed, so flawed, and so beautiful. the story is gorgeous.
this book is a must-read.
when i take into account the rushedrushedrushed ending and the predictability, i feel like it deserves 4 stars.
so, 4.5 stars it is.
the characters are so alive, so well-developed, so flawed, and so beautiful. the story is gorgeous.
this book is a must-read.

May 04, 2017
Kainat 《HUFFLEPUFF & PROUD》
rated it
it was amazing
Recommended to Kainat by:
Kaylin (The Re-Read Queen)
Shelves:
favorites
“This is what I want:
I want to grab my brother’s hand and run back through time, losing years like coats falling from our shoulders.”
^^THIS FUCKING QUOTE IS MAKING
MY DAMN EYES WATERY AGAIN!
WOW! What a wonderfully written spectacular tale. Are there perfect words to delineate the way I feel about this? Absolutely not! It's been such a long time since I actually genuinely enjoyed a book this much. Any book can make you laugh, it's the ones that break your heart, I treasure. For months I ...more
I want to grab my brother’s hand and run back through time, losing years like coats falling from our shoulders.”
^^
MY DAMN EYES WATERY AGAIN!
WOW! What a wonderfully written spectacular tale. Are there perfect words to delineate the way I feel about this? Absolutely not! It's been such a long time since I actually genuinely enjoyed a book this much. Any book can make you laugh, it's the ones that break your heart, I treasure. For months I ...more

Me: *lies down on bed*
Me: *holds book close to heart*
Me: *curls up and whispers “this book” over and over again*
What a perfect book to start 2018 with.
I haven't written a complete review in over 3 months probably, simply because I wasn't feeling motivated enough. However, this book? This book's sheer awesomeness made me want to write a full one, because that's what it deserves! Ignore the fact that it'll be a crappy one; I can't write reviews anymore okay? Plus, I'm so in love with this book I ...more
Me: *holds book close to heart*
Me: *curls up and whispers “this book” over and over again*
What a perfect book to start 2018 with.
I haven't written a complete review in over 3 months probably, simply because I wasn't feeling motivated enough. However, this book? This book's sheer awesomeness made me want to write a full one, because that's what it deserves! Ignore the fact that it'll be a crappy one; I can't write reviews anymore okay? Plus, I'm so in love with this book I ...more

3 stars
Okay, for starters I am so proud for finishing this book in the exam session.
Probably by now you all know what I'll Give You The Sun is about so I'll skip straight to my opinion on this book.
This is my second time trying to finish this book and I did succeed this time. The beginning was both times too boring for me. I did not care about the characters at all. The middle part was actually my favorite, and the last one was a good conclusion, but not that exciting.
What I love about this book ...more
Okay, for starters I am so proud for finishing this book in the exam session.
Probably by now you all know what I'll Give You The Sun is about so I'll skip straight to my opinion on this book.
This is my second time trying to finish this book and I did succeed this time. The beginning was both times too boring for me. I did not care about the characters at all. The middle part was actually my favorite, and the last one was a good conclusion, but not that exciting.
What I love about this book ...more

I think I’ve just read one of the most beautiful books ever written.
I had no idea how much I needed this book in my life, right now. But I’m so glad it found its way to me. I felt understood, like this book knew who I was and had this story in stock just for me.
I’m a miserable mess right now, I don’t even know if I’ll ever be able to write a proper review one day, it seems so impossible to put all my thoughts in order.
I felt an immediate connection with Noah. We’re both the younger sibling who ...more
I had no idea how much I needed this book in my life, right now. But I’m so glad it found its way to me. I felt understood, like this book knew who I was and had this story in stock just for me.
I’m a miserable mess right now, I don’t even know if I’ll ever be able to write a proper review one day, it seems so impossible to put all my thoughts in order.
I felt an immediate connection with Noah. We’re both the younger sibling who ...more

“If you're going through hell, keep going." - Winston Churchill”
nah man, that's easy for you to say.

I'm sitting here debating whether I should give up on writing this entire review and instead type: shfjdsfhdkjshskjghjsfhdsjf i rather live as an apple bye.
but no, i'm forcing myself to put some effort. I can't be a procrastinator forever.
Alright
if i was the president of a country, i would totally make everyone read this book. This book is absolute perfection and feels like a personal ...more
nah man, that's easy for you to say.

I'm sitting here debating whether I should give up on writing this entire review and instead type: shfjdsfhdkjshskjghjsfhdsjf i rather live as an apple bye.
but no, i'm forcing myself to put some effort. I can't be a procrastinator forever.
Alright
if i was the president of a country, i would totally make everyone read this book. This book is absolute perfection and feels like a personal ...more

this book is so complex, so poetic, so emotional, and so powerful. it's the kind of book i want to reread a million times, overanalyze, and cover the margins with notes. i felt every sentence's second meaning and it hit me really really hard. it made me feel SO MANY FEELINGS and i can't even pinpoint exactly why.
i'll admit the first few pages were a bit rough. the writing is very different from what i'm used to; everything is a metaphor and i wasn't sure if this was literally happening or if it ...more
i'll admit the first few pages were a bit rough. the writing is very different from what i'm used to; everything is a metaphor and i wasn't sure if this was literally happening or if it ...more

I read "I'll Give You the Sun" when it was released back in 2014, and I still can't write a proper review for it. So I'll just keep it short and to the point. This little beauty right here is the BEST YA novel I've ever read (and I've read a lot of them). Jandy Nelson has the soul of a poet. Her prose/writing style is electric, emotional, and truly a gift from God. I cried so many times. I still think about all the wonderful/tragic things that happened to the twins, Noah and Jude. The characters
...more

This book was beautiful. The ways in which everything intertwined, and the amount of growth the characters went through, and seeing this story through both Noah and Jude's eyes from different moments in time - it was just perfection. I don't even care that it all fit together TOO well, it was perfect and amazing and I loved it.

I actually really enjoyed this book! I know everyone said it was great but I halfway didn't believe them and I was happy to be proven wrong!
I really loved being in Noah and Jude's heads and I LOVED their stories and how strongly they loved and cared about people.
The plot was so great and I cared SO MUCH about everyone and how things happened and what was going to happen and it was so wonderful to be so invested.
What I didn't love was the suspended disbelief I had to carry through this whole ...more
I really loved being in Noah and Jude's heads and I LOVED their stories and how strongly they loved and cared about people.
The plot was so great and I cared SO MUCH about everyone and how things happened and what was going to happen and it was so wonderful to be so invested.
What I didn't love was the suspended disbelief I had to carry through this whole ...more
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Jandy Nelson, like her characters in I’ll Give You the Sun and The Sky is Everywhere, comes from a superstitious lot. She was tutored from a young age in the art of the four-leaf clover hunt; she knocks wood, throws salt, and carries charms in her pockets. Her critically-acclaimed, New York Times bestselling second novel, I’ll Give You the Sun, received the prestigious Printz Award, Bank Street's
...more
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“Maybe some people are just meant to be in the same story.”
—
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“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.”
—
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