Monday, April 25, 2011

Book Review: The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Title: The Sky is Everywhere
Author: Jandy Nelson
Pages: 272
Publication: March 9, 2011
Publisher: Dial
Summary taken from goodreads:
Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life—and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. Toby was Bailey's boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie's own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent. For Lennie, they're the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can't collide without the whole wide world exploding.

This remarkable debut is perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Francesca Lia Block. Just as much a celebration of love as it is a portrait of loss, Lennie's struggle to sort her own melody out of the noise around her is always honest, often hilarious, and ultimately unforgettable.
4.5 STARS - I REALLY REALLY LIKED IT

My Review:

Wow. Wow. Wow.

I devoured this book in one day. I couldn't stop reading it, couldn't stop thinking about it when I wasn't reading it.

I loved the writing. It was gorgous, enthralling, tantalizing. The words flowed together to make up an amazing story full of grief, love, and those bits of unexpected humor that had you chuckling in the midst of heartbreak.

And the characters were all complex and real and so unique. Lennie's family is certainly eccentric, her grandma always wearing floral dresses and pruning people's bushes on walks to town, her uncle the town Romeo, and her sister, Baily, the actress who was full of life and love. Then, there's Toby, Baily's boyfriend who's drowning in grief over her death, and Joe, the new boy in town with the hundred watt smile and his own baggage. And Lennie. She could be any girl that you know in grief, suffering from guilt and confusion and heartache, and that's what makes this book so compelling and real.

However, there was one thing that I couldn't understand in The Sky is Everywhere. After Baily's death, how come Lennie is suddenly interested in guys? I just don't understand how a switch could suddenly turned on like that...

On another note: Jandy Nelson, can I have Joe Fontaine? Or any of his brothers? Please? Pretty please? I want a guy crazy in love with me with the brightest smile on the earth and whose batting eyelashes can make anyone swoon. :D

I picked this book up because I kept seeing rave reviews praising The Sky is Everywhere. I'm glad that I gave into peer pressure. :L

1 comment:

  1. I would only recommend this book to young ADULTS. I guess the book was well written but 1)had WAY too much sexual content 2)dissed God way too often(and too much) 3)cussed A TON. The book and it's emotions were well written and described, but it probably could have been better without-some of the things I listed.

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