I'll Give You the Sun in Amazon Editors' YA Book Club

Jul 02, 2015 Katie Ziegler (Life Between Words) rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, contemporary

I buddy read this book with my new booktube friend Hope and it was the most wonderful time! My experience of the book is all tied up with the goodness of getting to know Hope better.

Anyway, the book. Towards the end of the book, Jude, one of the main characters says something like, "all was grace." That's not exactly right, so I may come back and fix the quote later. But anyway, that moment for me was the culmination of what the book was really about. Grace. Jude and Noah are caught up in all t I buddy read this book with my new booktube friend Hope and it was the most wonderful time! My experience of the book is all tied up with the goodness of getting to know Hope better.

Anyway, the book. Towards the end of the book, Jude, one of the main characters says something like, "all was grace." That's not exactly right, so I may come back and fix the quote later. But anyway, that moment for me was the culmination of what the book was really about. Grace. Jude and Noah are caught up in all the things teenagers are caught up in - jealousy, popularity, first-loves, heartbreak, secrets - and in those things they lash out cruelly. Mostly towards each other. It was terrible to witness. Mostly because it was so unavoidable if they'd just talked to each other. But perhaps the fact that they *didn't* was more true to a teenager's heart. And the message is grace. Grace when they learn the truth and forgive anyway - without question. Grace has no caveat. It has no qualifications. It just is. That was the beautiful thing about this book.

I might be in the minority, although I think Hope may have agreed with me? But, I liked Jude's voice better than Noah's (that doesn't mean I liked Jude better, just the way she was written). I loved how quirky she was. I loved that she spoke with her dead grandmother and you were never quite sure if she was really seeing her or not. I loved her little asides where she'd quote the little truisms that her grandmother wrote down in a book. I just felt myself being sucked into her funny little world.

It was when I read Noah's chapters that I sometimes felt bogged down. The writing of the whole book is very stylized. Very aware of how clever it is. And honestly, I didn't really like that; it felt forced and a little pretentious. It was occasionally just too much and pulled me away. I felt it most during Noah's chapters.

But ultimately, that didn't at all take away my enjoyment of the book. It *was* well written - despite my grumbles - and the story felt true. True to teenagerdom. True to grief and growing up. And true to grace. ...more

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Dec 15, 2016 Audrey Deel rated it really liked it

Shelves: my-favorites

I’ll Give You the Sun is the story of aspiring artists and fraternal twins, Noah and Jude. Their complex story is told in alternating viewpoints. Noah’s chapters are about their lives when they are thirteen and Jude’s chapters are about their lives at age sixteen.

Previously very close, the twins are torn apart by jealousy and tragedy. They are both artistically talented but Jude is accepted at the prestigious California School of the Arts. This causes Noah to feel jealousy while also dealing wi ...more

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Apr 07, 2015 Kayla Dunn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

READ IT!
I loved this book so much! The way it is written is amazing, the descriptions, the way each charter has such a defined and strong personality… absolutely beautiful. It is about twins who grow apart. it is told from both of their perspectives at different times and the way it is tied together is… mm on point.

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Jun 25, 2015 Mel rated it liked it

The language was hard to read. Sometimes it seems like there are thoughts and feelings intentionally not written and it is up to the reader to figure out. Put the pieces together. I'm sure if the book is narrated out loud those pieces would mean differently until the end. Just like Noah and Jude. They share the same pain and isolation but the truth gets distorted from the guilt and anger.

It is a lovely story but the end was too tidy and there are too many coincidences. ...more

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May 10, 2015 Ashleigh Rivers added it

This book has just now become my favorite book ever. Of. All. Time. The writing is absolutely perfect for this book. Its got so many feels going on. There was happiness, sadness, funniness, and seriousness. Its got so much going on but not in a bad way that has you confused but in a good way that makes you want to go on the roller coaster ride that is this book over and over again. I love the way this book handled the many sensitive topics it covered so well. The characters in the book are devel ...more

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Oct 23, 2015 Mansi Kabra rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Do you even know how amazing you are? I am not of the emotional kind and no book has touched me like this book just did. Wow. Jandy Nelson, you are frickin'amazing! ...more

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