What to Read If You Loved "The Sun Is Also a Star"
The movie adaptation of Nicola Yoon’s bestselling YA novel The Sun Is Also a Star hit theaters earlier this month and we're still thinking about the charming love story. It stars Yara Shahidi of Black-ish and Grown-ish fame as Natasha Kingsley, who falls for Daniel Bae played by Riverdale's Charles Melton. But this isn't just any romance — the two meet on the last day Natasha has in the U.S., who was supposed to be using her final hours in New York City to fight back against her family's deportation.
If you've already seen the movie, how about turning your eyes from the screen to the page? Whether what you love about The Sun Is Also a Star is its all-in-one-day timeframe, the star-crossed love story, its balance of serious, life-altering plot points with lighter and steamier fare (like karaoke smooch sessions), or all of the above, these books will have something for your reading pleasure.
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
Everything, Everything is where it all began, at least in terms of Nicola Yoon’s YA writing career. This page-turner is hard to put down, and offers a similar chapter format to The Sun Is Also a Star, and a yearning romance for the ages, too. Plus, there’s a movie adaptation to watch once you finish.
They Both Die At the End by Adam Silvera
Thanks to the title, you may think you know what happens at the end of this book, but who cares about spoilers when the journey the story will take you on is so worth it? In this speculative/realistic novel, two boys find each other on the last day of both of their lives (it’s a whole thing), and what follows is an epic day of crossing things off their bucket lists, confronting fears, finding closure, and of course, romance.
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Swoon alert! Dare you to dive into Anna and the French Kiss—or one of the other two books in this series by Stephanie Perkins—and not fall for the two main characters and their love story, along with the city of Paris. The romance in this one is right up there with Daniel and Natasha’s, though it builds over a school year, not one epic NYC day. There’s plenty of family and friend drama making everyone’s lives just a bit more complex here, too.
Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
Emergency Contact is a smart and sensitive story about relationships, text-flirting, vulnerability, and so much more. Choi’s writing has a sharp tongue and a soft underbelly, and readers will surely fall for Sam and Penny right as they’re exchanging silly, honest, and witty text messages — all the while falling for one another on their phones and IRL.
Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour
This romance, set in Los Angeles, plays with the idea of fate, the idea that all your choices lead you somewhere — or to someone. When Emi and her best friend Charlotte discover an old letter at a deceased Hollywood legend’s estate sale, they make it their business to follow the letter’s mysterious threads to where they lead. These clues lead to enigmatic Ava, to whom Emi is drawn. What follows is a summery romance told in LaCour’s beautifully atmospheric prose.
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
OK, you’ve probably seen Love, Simon already. But have you read the adorably romantic and poignant book behind the movie? The book that’s about romance and secret admirers/crushes and Oreos but also friendship and acceptance and coming-of-age (and coming out)? Do. It. You’ll fall for Blue (not spoiling who he really is) as hard as Simon does.
Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Nick & Norah's serves up the “set all in one day”—or in this case, night—greatness of The Sun Is Also a Star, and also delivers on the alternating perspectives and movie adaptation front. Nick and Norah meet by chance and their shared love for and taste in music lead them to seek out a secret show over one wild night in New York City. One wild night that might just end with the two of them falling in love.
A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
This is a romance, a family story, and a novel that tackles some heavy topics, to boot—including Islamophobia in post-9/11 America. It’s a book you’ll want to race to finish as soon as you get a taste of main character Shirin’s captivating, strong, and funny voice. Plus: Shirin and Ocean’s love story involves some awkward and sweet AIM messages (hey, it’s set in 2002) that are bound to make the stomach flutter and the heart squeeze.
What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
This collaboration between YA romance heavy-hitters Albertalli and Silvera is the stuff rom-com dreams are made of. It features literal missed connections, multiple first date redo attempts, and a couple falling for each other all over New York City, unsure if the universe is sending them signs to get together or stay far away. Ben + Arthur forever!
Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Words cannot accurately describe the beauty of this tender story about friendship, love, and life’s hard truths. Just read it. Or listen to it, because, hot tip, Lin-Manuel Miranda is the audiobook narrator.
