Sixteen-year-old Sol spends her life divided between two countries. She lives in her hometown of Tijuana, Mexico with her family, but makes the trip across the border early every weekday to go to school in the United States. Sol’s dream is to be the first person in her family to go to college, so even though her life is exhausting, she keeps trekking between Mexico and the United States to keep her dream alive.
The family has hit some rough times, throwing Sol’s dreams into question. With her mother’s recent death, Sol and her family are struggling to keep the family restaurant afloat. The restaurant was her mother’s dream, but her father and oldest brother are running into difficulties. Needing a way to add income to the family, Sol picks up a part-time job in San Diego. Doing this means that she has to move in with her friend in the United States, only coming back to Tijuana on the weekends. This new job adds complications to her life. Her schedule becomes more chaotic, her schoolwork suffers, and her relationships deteriorate.
Sol has to decide what she wants out of life. Although she has goals to attend college, she feels a debt to her family that she must repay. Although she is only 17, the pressure she feels to succeed and provide for her family is immense. Her future is in limbo, her present is a mess, and her past continues to haunt her. What is Sol willing to risk to help her family make it through?
Brighter Than the Sun by Daniel Aleman was a heartbreaking and exhausting read. Although this is a young adult book, the story will resonate with people of all ages.
Interested in this book? Brighter Than the Sun is the June 2025 See YA Book Club selection. We will be discussing this book on Wednesday, June 4th at 6:30pm at our Eastern Avenue branch. For more information about future See YA book picks, visit our website.
Join our adult book club with a teen book twist. See why so many teen books are being turned into movies and are taking over the best seller lists.
Registration is not required. Books are available on a first-come, first-serve basis at the Eastern Avenue library. We meet the first Wednesday of the month at Eastern at 6:30pm. Stop by the service desk for more information.
June 4 – ‘Brighter than the Sun’ by Daniel Aleman
July 2 – The Cousins by Karen M. McManus
August 6 – Red Rising by Pierce Brown
September 3 – Man O’War by Cory McCarthy
October 1 – A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
November 5 – Rez Ball by Byron Graves
December 3 – Uglies by Scott Westerfeld