I'll Give You The Sun - Some Discussion Points

As you guys were aware, I chaired/moderate a YA Book Club on the Saturday just gone, as part of the South Bank Centre's Festival of Love. The book was I'll Give The Sun by Jandy Nelson. Now, to get myself ready for hosting this event, I read the book and made notes on everything that caught my eye and thought would create a good discussion.

I thought that made you should see a few of them. Not all - I might be using them again for next month's YA Book Club read for the South Bank (How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff). But I am curious on what you guys think on these (if you've read the book). Basically, this post is that annoying section at the back of that book, aimed for book clubs.

So... here we go!

Before we go into book, let’s talk cover & blurb (read blurb if needs be). Do these reflect the book actually?

How do you guys feel about this book covers the South Bank’s description of “cover themes such as Modern Love, Digital Love, Love as Social Action and Art & Love.”?

Touching on from this, the pages within this are covered with paint splatters, brush strokes (mainly within Noah’s timeline - more on that later). Did this make you feel connected with Noah & Jude’s art? 

I mentioned timelines. This book has dual narrators - Noah at 13/14 and Jude at 16. Did this work for the story? Did you enjoy reading these voices? And does the age between the narrators help us with the story and understand the characters. 

Noah is gay and tackles a same sex relationship, which means some people would call this a LGBT novel? Is this solely an LGBT book or is there more to it? 

Do we feel that this book is about first love and family? Or is it grief?

Speaking of grief, Jude’s knowledge of diseases and her stating facts she knows about diseases, is this a sign of her’s (or the author’s) belief that guilt is a disease? 

Earlier, I mentioned art (a theme we’re going to jump back and forth on), but Jude is more spiritual. She reads Grandma Sweetwine’s bible and she talks to her and her mother’s ghosts. Why are they important to Jude’s story?

Why do we think all the characters within this book are damaged? 

This book tackles underage sex. How do we feel about this? How do you feel this subject was handled?

How do we feel about the ending? Do we like that it was all wrapped up in a “Happily Ever After” or was it too neat?