Book Review: The Sound of Stars

The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

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This medium paced story follows two perspectives, Janelle (Ellie) and M0Rr1S (Morris), as they go on a journey to save the world. Two years ago, an alien invasion left a huge misunderstanding between humans and the Ilori with a war breaking out. With their more developed technology, the Ilori was able to gain control of earth, establishing human colonies. To keep them from resisting, the Ilori banned all music and books as they thought it was a form of expression and emotion, something most Ilori didn’t know. Here comes Ellie, the secret librarian. To rebel, she keeps a small collection of books and lends them to people in her New York colony. One day a book goes missing. Enter Morris, an Ilori who loves music and finds Ellie’s secret stash of books. They meet and embark on a quest to save humanity from a vaccine the Ilori are developing to erase the minds of humans. 

Something I loved about this book was the inclusion of the LGBTQ community and its discussion about race and politics. Ellie, the main character is a bi demi black girl with anxiety. Morris, though not confirmed directly in the book, could also be seen as demi. One of my favorite quotes is Ellie talking about her experience with racism, “I’ll never understand why. We didn’t do anything. We just lived. They took our security and our peace of mind. But it wasn’t enough. I-”. They have many discussions about race and sexuality which I appreciated. 

Peppered throughout the book are references to books and music because of Ellie’s love of reading and Morris’s love for music (relatable). It was fun to see her reading/describing the books to Morris, especially the ones I’ve read and loved, and watching them as they sang together. I also really liked the twist at the end with Morris and his brother, Brixton. I did NOT expect him to be a good guy. It went from “I hate this guy” to “oh, WHAT” in a matter of seconds. 

The book itself was quite predictable with some basic tropes. For example, there is a bit of insta love between Morris and Ellie, which is something I personally don’t like. Ellie even says “Every story I’ve read where someone says they love you after a week is ridiculous. It’s a cheesy trope”. However, they did have a great connection so once I was able to look past the insta love, their chemistry was quite enjoyable. I was able to figure out who the Starry Eyed really were early on and see how their songs related to Ellie and Morris. 

Overall, I would give this book a 3.5-4/5 stars. There isn’t necessarily a lot of action at the beginning but the ball does get rolling. The world building is amazing especially when describing the Ilori and how they function (I wasn’t confused at all and I get confused very easily). I would recommend this book to people who want a book with great representation and wholesome characters who go and try to save the world together while falling in love.

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 11/03/20