Review by Booklist Review
Ocean Sun is living two lies. Her hard-working immigrant mother believes Ocean, at 17, is living in a dorm and attending college in New York City. In truth, Ocean is trying to cope with life in general--her depression nearly drove her to end her life in high school--by deferring a year and living on the little money she has saved. When the power in all of New York City goes out, Ocean meets a young man named Constantine Brave, who engages her in activities she'd never imagined: tagging the subway, meeting in cemeteries at night, and having deep philosophical discussions about life, dreams, and reality. Still, Ocean struggles to manage her anxiety and keep her head above water as she accepts a tutoring job and grows more strongly attached to Constantine. The girls with whom she shares an apartment, Georgie and Tashya, evolve from strangers to important friends without whom Ocean can't find her way. The love and support supplied by Georgie and Tashya provide the soft place for Ocean to land as they all map their futures. This arresting, heartbreaking, and meditative novel examines the desperation of anxiety and shows how, though difficult, gaining control of one's life can lead both to living one's best life and living life the best one can.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
When she's accepted on scholarship to a prestigious N.Y.C. university, Ocean Sun, 17, feels that her future is perfectly charted out. Privately, though, Ocean has been wrestling with depression and suicidal ideation while balancing her Chinese immigrant mother's high expectations with finding her own place in the world. Unbeknownst to her mother, Ocean defers college admission for a year, hoping the extra time will help her sort out her feelings. Under the guise of leaving for school, Ocean moves in with roommates in New York. While stranded in a subway station, she meets white graffiti artist Constant, and the two develop a profound connection formed via Google Docs correspondence discussing physics, mortality, and love. As Ocean uncovers more about herself and the world around her, however, she struggles to keep her double life secret from her mother. Employing leisurely pacing, Zhang (This Is Where the World Ends) meaningfully develops the characters' dynamic relationships and intersecting paths toward adulthood, and Ocean and Constant's poetic conversations and introspective ruminations provide plenty of fodder for philosophical discussion long after readers put down this reflective, romantic novel. Ages 14--up. Agent: Emily S. Keyes, Foreword Literary. (Jan.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A 17-year-old girl struggles through emotional and philosophical quandaries in New York City. Abandoned by her roommates, Georgie and Tashya, and stuck on a subway platform during a blackout, Ocean Sun can't quite shake the feeling that she has died and this is the afterlife. Living in Brooklyn after having deferred her college entrance to avoid mental health strain--and without informing her mother--adds to Ocean's sense of limbo. Then a bizarre White boy named Constantine Brave enters the scene, rambling about mythology and spouting philosophy (to a degree that readers may find frustrating at times) as he takes her on a disjointed journey filled with his spray-painted graffiti train maps, conversations about cloud documents, and dreamlike late-night wanderings. As Ocean is drawn closer to Constant, her own thoughts on life, reality, dying, the self, and language clash with his, creating an intriguing dynamic and a twist on the typical romance arc. Ocean's original narration and worldview are immersive and sympathetic, providing insights into her experiences of depression and disassociation. Similarly, Ocean's relationship to her Chinese ethnicity through her immigrant mother and how it affects her self-view is smoothly integrated into the wider philosophical discussion of life, society, and dreams. White American Georgie and Slovenian Tashya are three-dimensional and grounded, adding extra layers of realism and friendship to Ocean's often unmoored narrative. A satisfying story arc exploring relationships with the self and others. (content warning) (Fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
