Everything is true at once. Life is a contradiction. We take in every lesson. We find what works.
‘Okay, now pick up the charcoal and draw. Understand?’
I do.
There are only a few books that resonate within you; A few books that make no sense at all, but mean everything to you at the same time. I’ll Give You The Sun is one of those books.
It’s beautiful, in a way that can’t be explained; it’s eccentric in ways that you’ve never even heard of before, and it will make you feel alive, in a way you’ve never even thought possible.
Noah and Jude used to claim that they shared everything, including a soul. Noah and Jude used to be telepathic, able to understand and communicate with one another merely through looks. There was a time when Noah and Jude used to be Noah and Jude, both falling in love with boys. But that was all two years ago…
The Right Handed Twin tells the Truth. The Left Handed Twin lies. Noah and I are both left handed.
Today, Jude goes to the California Academy of the Arts, Noah’s dream school that he didn’t get into. Today, Noah has let go of all the eccentrities that made him what he used to call himself: a revolutionary.
Today, Jude has all her sculptures broken, and her only friend is her dead grandmom’s ghost. Today, Noah lets everyone think he has a girlfriend and has stopped drawing altogether.
Because two years ago, Noah and Jude’s lives were pulled apart in a way that neither of them ever saw coming; that nobody could see coming. Because at fourteen, all the pain, jealousy and love you feel is magnified and even the best of people can make the worst mistakes.
This is the story we’ve all been looking for. The story of twins that were once best friends but now can’t recognise each other anymore. The story of twins with so many secrets revolving around one untimely passing, that the only thing they could do to cope was to stop being themselves and then, somehow two years down the line, find each other and themselves again.
I couldn’t recommend it more! With all of its quirks, I’ll Give You The Sun is beautifully written, with characters that will make you feel through their art and a storyline that will grip your heart. A golden five stars!
- Buy this book at the Guardian Bookshop
