The Sun Is Also a Star
Nicola Yoon
Contributed by Carey Speaks
Chapter 11-20
Summary

Daniel feels trapped in a “vortex of expectations and disappointments” with no hope of rescue. He now understands the benefits of Charlie being an overachiever since he is now in the spotlight with his parents, where they constantly attempt to ask about his school performance, and who has an interview with Yale, the school’s “second best” alum. Natasha thinks that people say “things happen for a reason” specifically when things are just bad, but not extremely bad. However, she does not believe in this since, to her, things just happen. Despite that, she recounts the series of events that led her to meeting Barnes, and she has those occurrences to thank for the telephone number she has in her hand, the “fixer’s” phone number.

During her lunch break in the chapter titled “Irene: A Tentative History,” Irene downloads the Nirvana album and listens to it three times over. She finds meaning to the album in a similar way as Natasha does, but the experience leads her to a dark place where she decides to commit suicide.

On the other hand, Natasha decides to call Jeremy Fitzgerald, the lawyer, immediately after leaving the USCIS building. A female voice answers and she immediately requests for an urgent appointment. She explains her ordeal, and the receptionist arranges for an 11 a.m. session. She subsequently chooses to walk to the lawyer’s office, a three-mile distance, while listening to grunge rock music from the ’90s. In “Samuel Kingsley: A History of Regret, Part 1,” the audience journeys back to when Natasha was six years old and living in Jamaica. Her father, Samuel, moved to the US first, with the rest of the family following two years later.  

Daniel boards the train, which to him marks the end of childhood, and the conductor starts to preach about God instead of making the usual announcements. In the next chapter, Natasha claims that people are unreasonable for they allow emotions to rule them instead of logic. She maintains that the phone call with the lawyer’s receptionist gives her hope despite being a non-believer in God. In “the conductor: An Evangelical History,” the narrator gives an account of the conductor's journey, from being divorced to becoming an Evangelical Christian. Having alighted at Times Square, Daniel affirms that the universe will dictate his day. He decides to look for a sign, and he spots a locked church. He sits on the steps, and from there he spots a beautiful girl, lost in music. He follows her from a distance, and becomes sure that she is the sign after she enters a store named “Second Coming Records”.

At this point, the narration switches back to Natasha, where she enters the Second Coming Records store and notices her ex-boyfriend, Rob, making out with Kelly. Daniel comes into the store, and there he meets Natasha for the first time, the music girl he was following in a non-creepy way.

Analysis

Daniel is fond of writing, but his family wants him to become a doctor. His dad does not approve of his poetry, for he does not want the boy to stray from the career path the family expects of him. Natasha is a realist, as she sees life as it is. She seems to be an individual who likes people to be responsible for their actions. Also, she is appreciative of the little things that happen in her life, especially when they bring hope during stressful situations. It is clear that Irene never knew the real story about Kurt Cobain; the act of looking him up online makes her lose hope entirely. She is just a weak individual living in loneliness from the midst of people.

For the first time in her life, Natasha can trust a stranger with the truth, and this yields a shred of hope following the appointment. This shows that honesty and vulnerability can bring positive outcomes. Her father’s, or Samuel’s, decision to come to the U.S. aligned with his dreams of becoming a great actor. It seems that he believed in the American Dream, yet all these years have not brought him any success.

Daniel seems thrilled about this day, for it marks a significant event in his life: the day he becomes an adult; and an individual fit for college. The author introduces ‘spirituality’ through the conductor as a means of creating the most effective way for Daniel to meet Natasha. It is like fate brings them together, with Daniel thinking about signs, and Natasha minding her own business and going into the record store for it is one of her favorite places in the city. The sight of Rob and Kelly acts a means of creating rapport between the two youngsters, indicating the beginning of — possibly — a long fate-guided journey.

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