Letters About Literature

Arielle Jackson

1301 E. Walnut Street.

Carbondale, IL 62901

Dear Jandy Nelson,

            I read your book the Sky is Everywhere in my English class this year. We have been reading of a reading list called Read for a Lifetime. I liked the plot summary of your book and felt that it was interesting. Little did I know that I was going to have such a strong connection with the book itself. While reading your book I really fell in love with Lennie the most. I could really feel her sadness and every other emotion she was feeling in the book. Not that I would ever wish losing a loved one on someone, but I do think that losing Bailey in the beginning of the book helped Lennie grow and see the world in a completely different way.  I to have a little sister named Alex. We are three years apart and although she is bigger and taller than me, people still think we look a lot like twins. She and I are quite close and do a lot of things together. Reading your book, The Sky is Everywhere, I realized just how much my sister means to me and my life in general.  There was a time when we were younger that I was hospitalized because of a back surgery. I was around 14 at the time and Alex came to see me in the hospital a few days.  The first couple of days were pretty blurry for me and I don’t remember much, besides getting to see my sister and parents. Alex would go to the store and buy me magazines and candy, of course at this point I was grateful to get just about anything. Alex was only around 11 at the time so I myself could only imagine how she felt going to school every day without me. If I compare Alex and I to your book, Alex would be a lot more like Bailey and I a lot like Lennie. Alex was the star athlete of the house and she loved sports, just as Bailey loved theater.  I liked sports but never found a real need for them either. I was the sister who did all her homework and liked playing the clarinet, which was why I feel so connected to the character of Lennie. Anyway, there were times while I was in the hospital that I felt as if Alex didn’t care. I felt as if she thought I was just the weird sister with back problems and she was the healthy one who got to do as she pleased. There were also times when I felt as though Alex could live her life without me. She was always a very independent girl and liked to do things for herself.  So to look back at the book and think, if I left my sister on Earth, could she go on with her life? That was a hard way for me to look at this but it was soon changed by the time I got home. Alex had made a huge timeline poster that had pictures of us together from the times we were babies to the present. It was all colorful and she had put a lot of time into it. That was the exact moment that I realized that Alex would be fine if I never was here again, but she would be better if I was.

            So reading the Sky is Everywhere in English this year was a huge déjà vu moment for me. I was able to get into the book in a completely different way than I think any other reader could. Your book helped me see a new way of looking at life, and at family and friends in general. I’m glad I chose this book to read. I felt it gave me a new insight on life itself. I am hoping to find free time in my school year to read any other books that you have written; I enjoyed this one.

Sincerely,

Arielle Jackson