Welcome to the final Online Book Club discussion of The Sun Is Also A Star.
How did you feel about the ending? Were you satisfied? Did you want more details or a more definitive conclusion? I liked the epilogue. That definitely helped me feel a little bit more closure.
At first, at the beginning of the section, it seems like Natasha's lawyer is going to be able to fix everything. I was so disappointed by the lawyer in the end. He seemed so good, but then, he misses the court appointment because he was having an affair with his secretary. It was such a letdown. If he had done everything he could have and just not been able to stop it, that would have been one thing, but he didn't even try. I hated reading that part. Were you surprised that he was the person Daniel was meeting with? Their meeting definitely didn't go well, but I never expected that Daniel would really put forth the effort to get into Yale.
Throughout the entire book, Charlie was not a great brother. He was demeaning and rude and unpleasant. But, he did end up giving Natasha Daniel's phone number. Did that redeem Charlie for you at all? In the last chapter, Nicola Yoon writes that Charlie gets his life together and graduates from college; however, he doesn't reconnect with his family. I kind of hoped that Charlie and Daniel would learn to respect each other, and they would get closer. But, it doesn't appear like that happened.
In his last chapter, Natasha's dad hints that he might have told the cop about his illegal status on purpose. He was so disappointed about the American audience's reaction to A Raisin in the Sun, and he felt like America was telling him that it was done with him. What do you think? Do you think he wanted to be sent home? Do you think if he was sent back to Jamaica instead of going back by choice it showed that he didn't fail?
Natasha and her dad finally have a chance to hash out their differences before they get on the plane. I think it was important for Natasha to finally tell her dad that he wasn't allowed to regret the life they had together. Wasn't that a powerful scene? I'm glad they got to have some sort of closure before they left New York.
Do you think the questions and forced eye contact made Natasha and Daniel fall in love? Do you think the questions allowed them to be open and vulnerable with each other? Do you believe the epilogue that Daniel and Natasha eventually made their way back to each other? It's nice to imagine that they did.
Did I miss any of your favorite parts in this section? Would you have ended the book differently? Was there anything else you would have changed?
I hope you enjoyed reading along with us this month! If you enjoyed this book, please check out the list I created that has similar titles.
Before you go, make sure you check out the video below about the movie version cast and crew! And, check out this article in which the actor who plays Daniel explains why the role was so important to him.
I hope you'll join us again next month as we read The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri. I hope to hear from you in the comments section!
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