Date Read: September 25 2012 - January 1 2013
Release Date: March 1st 2010, this edition June 7th 2010
Publisher: Walker Books
Source: Bought
Genre: Contemporary
My rating: 
Synopsis:
"Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life - and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. Toby was Bailey's boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie's own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent. For Lennie, they're the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can't collide without the whole wide world exploding.
This remarkable debut is perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Francesca Lia Block. Just as much a celebration of love as it is a portrait of loss, Lennie's struggle to sort her own melody out of the noise around her is always honest, often hilarious, and ultimately unforgettable."
---
"Oh god," he whispers, reaching his hand behind my neck and bringing my lips to his. "Let's let the whole fucking world explode this time"
This is what I imagine The Fault in Our Stars to have been like if it was high (on pot). The Sky is Everywhere has to have been the most unique book I have ever read. Witty, quirky, raw, emotional and every phrase was so relevant, meaningful and full of life I'm still left wondering how Jandy could put so much power into those words.
I loved absolutely EVERYTHING about this book. There is not a single fault I found with The Sky is Everywhere.
Let me start with the writing. A book's plot don't mean jack if the writing can't draw the reader in. The opening lines of the novel "Gram is worried about me. It's not just because my sister Bailey died four weeks ago, or because my mother hasn't contacted me in sixteen years, or even because suddenly all I think about is sex. She is worried about me because one of houseplants has spots." are freaking brilliant!
And then she describes her Gram as "all six feet and floral frock of her", while her uncle Big has a voice that "trumpets as if from stage or pulpit; his words carry weight, even pass the salt comes out of his mouth in a thou-shalt-Ten-Commandments kind of way".
And this only the FIRST page!
Some of my favourite lines in this book (my #1 is at the beginning of this review):
- "I look into his sorrowless eyes and a door in my heart blows open.
And when we kiss, I see that on the other side of that door is sky"
- "'This is Doug,' Marcus says just as Joe says, 'This is Fred.'
'Parents couldn't make up their mind,' the newest Fontaine offers. This one is positively deranged with glee. Gram's right, we should sell them."
"In fact, I'm going to tell Sarah we need to start a new philosophical movement: messessentialism instead of existentialism: for those revel in the essential mess that is life"
LIKE OMFG HOW AWESOME ARE JANDY'S CHOICE OF WORDS? "Positively deranged with glee" I loved that soooooooo much! And yes I think I'm a messessentialist.
The writing was just so fluid, eloquent, poetic and descriptive in a way I've never read before! The whole thing was like some epic poem that I could understand and appreciate. The symbolism of the sky was really beautiful - I could really relate because of this poem from Kingdom Hearts and this Japanese movie (Koizora ~ Love Sky), both of which talked about the sky being everywhere - the harmony of always being watched over wherever you are.
Now omg the characters were all so beautiful and perfect and flawed in a lovable way! Our main character Lennie (named after John Lennon) is grieving over the loss of her best friend and sister Bailey, leaving her damaged and falling for two different guys: her dead sister's boyfriend Toby who is as damaged and in as much pain as Lennie, and the new boy in town Joe Fontaine whose "Bat. Bat. Bat" eyelashes and beautiful smile make Lennie forget her grief. Both boys are so adorable and sweet. Toby is so heartbroken and the only one who understand is Lennie and despite her kissing him, I couldn't blame either of them. Their love and sadness over losing Bailey caused them to come together to try get over that grief. Then there's the beautiful Joe Fontaine who is like happiness incarnate with that smile of his (it seems all the Fontaines are "deranged with glee") and long as fk eyelashes. Other characters like Gram, Big and Sarah are so distinct and crazy I couldn't help but fall in love with them all!
The story itself doesn't really going anywhere, it's slow and almost languid but in a beautiful I'm-cruising-along-the-beach sort of way. It does progress and I loved the pace - the way Lennie grows and finds out about herself, what Bailey was to her, how she deals with everything and becomes the person by the end.
This is seriously a YA everybody needs to read.
"If anybody asks where we are, just tell them to look up."
"Oh god," he whispers, reaching his hand behind my neck and bringing my lips to his. "Let's let the whole fucking world explode this time"
This is what I imagine The Fault in Our Stars to have been like if it was high (on pot). The Sky is Everywhere has to have been the most unique book I have ever read. Witty, quirky, raw, emotional and every phrase was so relevant, meaningful and full of life I'm still left wondering how Jandy could put so much power into those words.
I loved absolutely EVERYTHING about this book. There is not a single fault I found with The Sky is Everywhere.
Let me start with the writing. A book's plot don't mean jack if the writing can't draw the reader in. The opening lines of the novel "Gram is worried about me. It's not just because my sister Bailey died four weeks ago, or because my mother hasn't contacted me in sixteen years, or even because suddenly all I think about is sex. She is worried about me because one of houseplants has spots." are freaking brilliant!
And then she describes her Gram as "all six feet and floral frock of her", while her uncle Big has a voice that "trumpets as if from stage or pulpit; his words carry weight, even pass the salt comes out of his mouth in a thou-shalt-Ten-Commandments kind of way".
And this only the FIRST page!
Some of my favourite lines in this book (my #1 is at the beginning of this review):
- "I look into his sorrowless eyes and a door in my heart blows open.
And when we kiss, I see that on the other side of that door is sky"
- "'This is Doug,' Marcus says just as Joe says, 'This is Fred.'
'Parents couldn't make up their mind,' the newest Fontaine offers. This one is positively deranged with glee. Gram's right, we should sell them."
"In fact, I'm going to tell Sarah we need to start a new philosophical movement: messessentialism instead of existentialism: for those revel in the essential mess that is life"
LIKE OMFG HOW AWESOME ARE JANDY'S CHOICE OF WORDS? "Positively deranged with glee" I loved that soooooooo much! And yes I think I'm a messessentialist.
The writing was just so fluid, eloquent, poetic and descriptive in a way I've never read before! The whole thing was like some epic poem that I could understand and appreciate. The symbolism of the sky was really beautiful - I could really relate because of this poem from Kingdom Hearts and this Japanese movie (Koizora ~ Love Sky), both of which talked about the sky being everywhere - the harmony of always being watched over wherever you are.
Now omg the characters were all so beautiful and perfect and flawed in a lovable way! Our main character Lennie (named after John Lennon) is grieving over the loss of her best friend and sister Bailey, leaving her damaged and falling for two different guys: her dead sister's boyfriend Toby who is as damaged and in as much pain as Lennie, and the new boy in town Joe Fontaine whose "Bat. Bat. Bat" eyelashes and beautiful smile make Lennie forget her grief. Both boys are so adorable and sweet. Toby is so heartbroken and the only one who understand is Lennie and despite her kissing him, I couldn't blame either of them. Their love and sadness over losing Bailey caused them to come together to try get over that grief. Then there's the beautiful Joe Fontaine who is like happiness incarnate with that smile of his (it seems all the Fontaines are "deranged with glee") and long as fk eyelashes. Other characters like Gram, Big and Sarah are so distinct and crazy I couldn't help but fall in love with them all!
The story itself doesn't really going anywhere, it's slow and almost languid but in a beautiful I'm-cruising-along-the-beach sort of way. It does progress and I loved the pace - the way Lennie grows and finds out about herself, what Bailey was to her, how she deals with everything and becomes the person by the end.
This is seriously a YA everybody needs to read.
"If anybody asks where we are, just tell them to look up."
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