I'll Give You the Sun in What's the Name of That Book???

Nov 06, 2014 karen rated it really liked it

Shelves: why-yes-i-ya, my-biggest-fear

"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 1 ...more

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Jun 01, 2014 Emma rated it it was amazing

Shelves: owned, bea

At thirteen, twins Noah and Jude are close. Their family is whole. Everything seems perfect. From a distance. Close up it's easy to see that Jude is making bad choices that are pushing her toward a serious fall while Noah is struggling just to keep himself together under the pressure of fitting in with the painfully normal world. Art has always been enough to get Noah through. When he falls hard for the beautiful boy next door, he isn't sure anything--not even painting--will be enough to make th At thirteen, twins Noah and Jude are close. Their family is whole. Everything seems perfect. From a distance. Close up it's easy to see that Jude is making bad choices that are pushing her toward a serious fall while Noah is struggling just to keep himself together under the pressure of fitting in with the painfully normal world. Art has always been enough to get Noah through. When he falls hard for the beautiful boy next door, he isn't sure anything--not even painting--will be enough to make things right again.

At sixteen the twins are barely speaking and nothing is perfect anymore. Noah hides his hurt behind a facade of normalcy that seems to fool everyone but Jude. Jude, meanwhile, is not-so-quietly falling apart trapped on a path she never expected and is not sure she wants.

Both Noah and Jude are haunted by old ghosts and past mistakes. With the help of a curmudgeonly artist and a spectacularly messed-up boy, Jude thinks she can put the pieces of her family back together. Except she only has half of the pieces. It will take both Jude and Noah, together, to make things right in I'll Give You the Sun (2014) by Jandy Nelson.

I'll Give You the Sun is Nelson's second novel. It is the winner of the 2015 Printz Award and the 2015 Stonewall Award.

Nelson delivers one hell of a story in her sophomore novel. I'll Give You the Sun presents two stories simultaneously in alternating sections (no chapter breaks). Noah begins the novel with his story "The Invisible Museum" when the twins are 13 and on the cusp of some major changes for themselves and their family. Jude handles the latter of of the novel's plot in "The History of Luck" when the twins are 16 and deeply troubled.

I'll Give You the Sun has mystery, romance and elements of magic realism. The prose is imbued with an ode to the power of art and creation as well as some deeply powerful ideas about feminism.

The novel moves along with clever intersections between Jude and Noah's stories. Both Noah and Jude have voices that are breezy and approachable in a way that draws readers immediately into their stories and their lives. Although the two characters often sound very similar in their narrations, there is a fair argument that the similarities are intentional since they are twins. It's more difficult to explain Noah's often literary and lyrical voice when he is only thirteen for much of the narrative--something that is balanced out with behavior (from both twins at that age) that is often painfully thoughtless or selfish.

This book isn't always easy to read. The end of Noah's story leaves both twins damaged and reeling from a variety of catastrophes. In Jude's section, they are both hurting and struggling to survive without much hope for anything more until Jude decides to take a chance. I'll Give You the Sun is at its strongest when these two characters realize they have to take action if they want to thrive.

Nelson's writing is spectacular making I'll Give You the Sun a vibrant story about family, recovery, art and love. Not to be missed.

Possible Pairings: The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black, Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo, A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley, The Midnight Dress by Karen Foxlee, Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu, Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley, Alice, I Think by Susan Juby, Undercover by Beth Kephart, The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord, Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta, All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven, Cures for Heartbreak by Margo Rabb, Damaged by Amy Reed, A Map of the Known World by Lisa Ann Sandell, Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein

*A copy this book was acquired from the publisher for review consideration at BEA 2014*

You can find this review and more on my blog Miss Print ...more

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Jul 10, 2014 Liz rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary-and-realistic, young-adult, 4-star

Check out my full review of this book here:
http://www.consumedbybooks.com/2016/0... ...more

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Aug 08, 2014 Dana rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: lgbt, once-is-not-enough, ya

Breathtaking. The characters are so real, they just leap off the page and the writing is vibrant and lovely. I couldn't put it down.
...more

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May 02, 2014 Debbie Barr rated it it was amazing

I loved this, and I loved it so much more than I thought I would. Flawed but rich characters, threads of secrets and betrayal, love of all kinds, and beautiful prose made this an incredible read. I'm having a hard time putting everything into words, but this book was wonderful. As soon as I finished it I wanted to hop right back to the first page and start it all over again. The dual narratives made it a particularly interesting read, as it's not only told from two points of view, but from two d ...more

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Jun 24, 2016 Kate rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: age-ya, lgbtq, audiobooks, 2016

Twins Noah and Jude were once two halves of a whole, but since the death of their mother they've become strangers. Noah narrates his side of the story before her death: a story of falling in love with a boy and how Jude betrays him, and the secret his mother hides from him. Jude tells the story of after, how the ghosts of her mother and grandmother destroy her art and how she attempts to recover by finding a mentor in a local sculptor.

So, I wasn't as enamored of this book as much as others seem ...more

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May 02, 2014 Bethany rated it really liked it

This wrapped up a little too neatly for me, but WHOA what a ride. Usually books with dual narrators annoy me, but I just adored both Noah and Jude's story SO MUCH, I didn't want their chapters to end. ...more

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