The Sun Is Also a Star

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Samuel Kingsley’s journey to the US to become a star actor features as a crucial part of Natasha’s character development.

• How does Samuel’s struggle influence Natasha’s perspective on life and love? (topic sentence)
• Using at least one example for each, describe how Samuel’s struggle influenced Natasha’s perspective on life and love. Support your responses with evidence from the text.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain how the resolution of Samuel’s story reveals Natasha’s growth.

2. Like many immigrants, Natasha’s family has had to face many challenges with US immigration.

• What legal and cultural obstacles lead to their impending deportation? (topic sentence)
• Describe one legal obstacle and one cultural obstacle that led to their present predicament. Support your responses with evidence from the text.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain how Natasha attempts to reverse her family’s deportation.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. Nicola Yoon uses multiple perspectives, even those of minor characters, to narrate Daniel and Natasha’s story. What impact does reading the events through the eyes of multiple characters have on the reader? Why is it important that the novel tells part of the story through minor characters? How does this structure relate to one or more themes of the novel?  As you compose your essay, incorporate at least three quoted phrases from the novel that strengthen your points of discussion. Cite your quotations with page numbers.

2. Nicola Yoon initially creates a dichotomy between science and poetry, but the two disparate fields complement each other by the end of the novel. In what ways does Yoon suggest that science and poetry cannot be intertwined? In what ways does Yoon suggest that they are, in essence, “two sides of the same coin”? How might this paradox connect to one or more themes in the novel? As you compose your essay, incorporate at least three quoted phrases from the novel that strengthen your points of discussion. Cite your quotations with page numbers.