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Gives Light #1
Gives Light
Alternate Cover Edition of ASIN
B008JYCVW4.
"Skylar is my name, tragically."
Sixteen-year-old Skylar is witty, empathetic, sensitive--and mute. Skylar hasn't uttered a single word since his mother died eleven years ago, a senseless tragedy he's grateful he doesn't have to talk about.
When Skylar's father mysteriously vanishes one summer afternoon, Skylar is placed in the temporary custody of his only remaining relative, an estranged grandmother living on an Indian reservation in the middle of arid Arizona.
Adapting to a brand new culture is the least of Skylar's qualms. Because Skylar's mother did not die a peaceful death. Skylar's mother was murdered eleven years ago on the Nettlebush Reserve. And her murderer left behind a son.
And he is like nothing Skylar has ever known.
B008JYCVW4.
"Skylar is my name, tragically."
Sixteen-year-old Skylar is witty, empathetic, sensitive--and mute. Skylar hasn't uttered a single word since his mother died eleven years ago, a senseless tragedy he's grateful he doesn't have to talk about.
When Skylar's father mysteriously vanishes one summer afternoon, Skylar is placed in the temporary custody of his only remaining relative, an estranged grandmother living on an Indian reservation in the middle of arid Arizona.
Adapting to a brand new culture is the least of Skylar's qualms. Because Skylar's mother did not die a peaceful death. Skylar's mother was murdered eleven years ago on the Nettlebush Reserve. And her murderer left behind a son.
And he is like nothing Skylar has ever known.
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 10, 2012
88 people are currently reading
8122 people want to read
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June 13, 2025
Love has truly been good to me, not even one sad day / Or minute have I had since you've come my way (So Amazing – Luther Vandross).
Forgive me if I'm more candid than usual in this review, it’s just that even though I’ve read this book once already, for some reason this time around it hit me like a ton of bricks with its relatability. You know, “It's personal, myself and I, we got some straightening out to do” and all that. The truth is that even though I really loved this a lot the first time around, I was probably a lot pickier with what I considered my “favorite,” and now that I’ve been around the block, so to speak, in terms of my reading journey, I think it’s safe to say that it really doesn’t get much better than this. And look, I can sit here all day and talk about how Gives Light was magical in how it portrays the tenderness and companionship between Skylar and Rafael or that its lyrical prose and focus on character development over plot twists helped elevate the book above a typical YA romance, but I think that the best way that I can describe what this book meant to me is by telling you that Gives Light is about the closest approximation you can get to reading Aristotle and Dante by Benjamin Alire Sáenz for the first time again. Oh yeah, it’s that good! What’s interesting about this book is that even though it was written quite a while ago at this point, I think it’s always been a little funny how the basic premise is very modern with its Tik Tok tagline, what with it being a romance between the main character and the son of the man who killed his mother. At face value, it almost reminds me of those “mafia romances” that flood the timeline (I assume, I don’t have a Tik Tok) in that it feels very heightened and silly to a degree that it's hard to take too seriously. But the main difference here is that Gives Light never undercuts its basic premise by pivoting to the romance aspects and instead remains gives the result of what traumatic events in the midst of a small community would do to a people that have always been tight-knit and trusting towards each other the attention necessary to make the premise feel real and true rather than farfetched. In other words, the story never compromises itself in order to fit into a checklist of popular tropes. Outside of that though, this was so damn relatable! Like, I could see myself in almost every character, and that really doesn't happen often. I mean, anyone can read this and see themselves in it, but I found it especially powerful just due to the simple fact that I’m queer and Native and reading a book that’s so unapologetically queer and Native had my heart soaring! I always feel the need to section off parts of my identity whenever I’m reading something I can relate to, like if I’m reading a queer book then it’s the queer book, or an Asian book will be the Asian book, the book about Native Americans will be the Native book. So it’s nice to read something that I can embrace fully without having to ignore the rest of me. The thing is, I don’t necessarily need to relate to a story to enjoy them, for example, my favorite Cozy Mystery series is the Penelope Banks Murder Mysteries books, but it’s not like I particularly understand what it was like to be new money from the 1920’s with photographic memory and a penchant for being at the right place to solve murders, but I enjoy the them nonetheless. And I’m fine with reading books that aren’t me, you know? But whenever I do find a book that delights and devastates all at the same time, a book like Gives Light, then I find myself walking around in a daze for days on end after finishing it. If that’s the curse of reading a good book, then I guess I'm okay with living with it!
So yeah, now for the story™. I mean, I'll try to give a synopsis, seeing as I'm still in one of those "post-good-book" hazes! Let's ignore the book's BookTok premise for a second, because I feel like it really does it a disservice and doesn’t fully capture the subtle nuances of how wonderfully unique and lovely Gives Light is, so even though the only way to truly do this book justice is by reading it yourself, I’ll do my best to represent. It’s really quite simple though, as the book is about a sixteen year-old teen named Skylar who has to move in with his grandmother on an Indian Reservation in Arizona after his father has gone missing for several days. See, Skylar lost his voice as a small child after narrowly escaping the man who killed his mother, so moving back to the Reservation, the place of the crime, holds many complicated feelings for him, to say the least. Thankfully he’s not alone in his isolation, because Skylar soon strikes up a tender friendship with the son of his mom’s killer, Rafael, who has sense been ostracized in the community for the crimes of his father. And even though it sounds rather action-packed, I wasn’t exaggerating when I compared it to a Benjamin Alire Sáenz book, because the “day-by-day” styling to the chapters of and a heavier emphasis on simple yet poetic prose gives the story a quality to it that can't really be expressed properly unless you're literally reading the book. Gives Light is introspective and thoughtful with the way it treats its narrative and never relies on cheap twists pulled out of nowhere in an attempt to keep things interesting. We’re here for Skylar and Rafael, and the focus thankfully remains on them. Though, their romance aside, I loved the underlying theme of community and how a person’s identity is not solely defined by the color of their skin. Now, this message hits different for me because it’s a topic that I’m somewhat sensitive about, as (incoming rant) whenever I say I’m Native American, I'm not talking "my great, great, great, great Grandmother was a Cherokee Princess" or whatever the Pretendians are saying nowadays, I mean it in the sense that I’m literally Native American. My mom’s Native and my Grandma’s Native and my Aunts and Uncles are Native. But then I also have extended family that’s decidedly not Native, yet they still like to pretend they are by proxy by peppering a little Native styling here and there in their daily lives, like wearing Ribbon Shirts to weddings or putting on Native chokers or trying to dance at Pow Wows in full regalia!? Yikes. And I’m really not trying to be a Gate-Keeping Gary here, but I’m just saying that whenever I’m at a family gathering and these folks show up in their little cosplay, that shit starts to feel like a racist Halloween frat party. Of course, it’s nothing personal. Well, this particular side of the family does also holds their own separate family Christmas parties where the side of the family that are people of color aren’t invited. You know… my side of the family. Hm, maybe it is personal. But you know, after reading this book and following Skylar’s own sense of yearning for family and community while also feeling a very uncomfortable disconnect from other Natives, I’ll try to be more sensitive. Emphasis on “try,” I mean, I'm cool with fictional Skylar, whose dad is Native, doing what he's going to do, but I'll always have opinions in real life on non-Natives wearing full regalia and dancing at Pow Wow's. Like, come on dude... what are you doing?
Okay, now what should I talk about? You think I should just list a bunch of stuff I liked about Gives Light? Sure, why not, this is supposed to be a review for a favorite book, so might as well end on a positive note! I really liked the Pow Wow chapters because they’re portrayed as just a good, fun time. The best kind of time, even. And that infectious joy bled through the pages because all of sudden I wanted to get up off my ass and start dancing! What I liked about these chapters in particular was that it was showed as a cultural event, sure, but thankfully wasn't a "teaching moment" for the reader. You know how a lot of stories that feature different cultures get a little too "Colors of the Wind"with it? Where the only reason Natives are in the story are to serve as heralds of the far-flung past and guiding and teaching the new world into respecting nature or whatever. So yeah, I liked that Gives Light was a book that could and should be read by anyone and everyone, but it was first and foremost about Natives without any kind of The Last Samurai, Kevin Costner Dances with Wolves vibe where a culture is used as a stepping stone for character development for a character that doesn't deserve any. This isn't a spectator's story, it's a homecoming for a Native teen relearning his roots. But yeah, Pow Wow's being a party is so true to real life, too! My brother likes to dance at them every now and then and I’ve always had a blast. There’s the Muckleshoot Pow Wow, the UW one, and then the one at Daybreak Star was pretty great too... even though one time they had Fry Bread so buttery that it had me walking around like that time Spongebob needed water at Sandy’s dry ass house. “Wate~eer, I need watee~eer!,” you remember that episode. Let's see, what else? Oh yeah, I like this line: “We're playing Cowboys and Indians," Grandpa Little Hawk said, grinning broadly. "Go on and club those good for nothing cowboys!" because it reminds me of my Uncle telling me one time about how when he was a kid he was watching one of those "cowboys versus Indians" shows and was obviously rooting for the cowboys because that's how those kinds of things go, but then my Grandma walked past and told him he was cheering for the wrong side. I guess some experiences are pretty universal. Um, most of all, I liked the romance between Skylar and Rafael! Their dynamic was often so damn sweet and bright that I found myself having to look away from the page. Oh, that’s why it’s called Gives Light! Otherwise, it was interesting how Skylar's dad was portrayed as a good dad, but flawed in the sense that he inadvertently instilled a lot of repressed internalized homophobia within Skylar. What this book got down perfectly was the resentment that could fester when someone has a parent that they love and that loves them right back, but they don't always say the right things and in turn make the queer people in their lives afraid to be themselves around them. It's like, they're not evil, and their love might be unconditional, but a person never really forgets the chilling fear that someone they care about will come to hate them. Anyway, Gives Light is singular in its truthful depiction of cultural nuances, queer awakenings, and father-and-son relationships. I didn't give this book the appreciation it deserved the first time I read it, and that's not a mistake I intend to repeat on the second go-around. Lovely, lovely book!
“He knew what I was feeling, if not what I was thinking. He made me feel like I had a voice.”
Forgive me if I'm more candid than usual in this review, it’s just that even though I’ve read this book once already, for some reason this time around it hit me like a ton of bricks with its relatability. You know, “It's personal, myself and I, we got some straightening out to do” and all that. The truth is that even though I really loved this a lot the first time around, I was probably a lot pickier with what I considered my “favorite,” and now that I’ve been around the block, so to speak, in terms of my reading journey, I think it’s safe to say that it really doesn’t get much better than this. And look, I can sit here all day and talk about how Gives Light was magical in how it portrays the tenderness and companionship between Skylar and Rafael or that its lyrical prose and focus on character development over plot twists helped elevate the book above a typical YA romance, but I think that the best way that I can describe what this book meant to me is by telling you that Gives Light is about the closest approximation you can get to reading Aristotle and Dante by Benjamin Alire Sáenz for the first time again. Oh yeah, it’s that good! What’s interesting about this book is that even though it was written quite a while ago at this point, I think it’s always been a little funny how the basic premise is very modern with its Tik Tok tagline, what with it being a romance between the main character and the son of the man who killed his mother. At face value, it almost reminds me of those “mafia romances” that flood the timeline (I assume, I don’t have a Tik Tok) in that it feels very heightened and silly to a degree that it's hard to take too seriously. But the main difference here is that Gives Light never undercuts its basic premise by pivoting to the romance aspects and instead remains gives the result of what traumatic events in the midst of a small community would do to a people that have always been tight-knit and trusting towards each other the attention necessary to make the premise feel real and true rather than farfetched. In other words, the story never compromises itself in order to fit into a checklist of popular tropes. Outside of that though, this was so damn relatable! Like, I could see myself in almost every character, and that really doesn't happen often. I mean, anyone can read this and see themselves in it, but I found it especially powerful just due to the simple fact that I’m queer and Native and reading a book that’s so unapologetically queer and Native had my heart soaring! I always feel the need to section off parts of my identity whenever I’m reading something I can relate to, like if I’m reading a queer book then it’s the queer book, or an Asian book will be the Asian book, the book about Native Americans will be the Native book. So it’s nice to read something that I can embrace fully without having to ignore the rest of me. The thing is, I don’t necessarily need to relate to a story to enjoy them, for example, my favorite Cozy Mystery series is the Penelope Banks Murder Mysteries books, but it’s not like I particularly understand what it was like to be new money from the 1920’s with photographic memory and a penchant for being at the right place to solve murders, but I enjoy the them nonetheless. And I’m fine with reading books that aren’t me, you know? But whenever I do find a book that delights and devastates all at the same time, a book like Gives Light, then I find myself walking around in a daze for days on end after finishing it. If that’s the curse of reading a good book, then I guess I'm okay with living with it!
So yeah, now for the story™. I mean, I'll try to give a synopsis, seeing as I'm still in one of those "post-good-book" hazes! Let's ignore the book's BookTok premise for a second, because I feel like it really does it a disservice and doesn’t fully capture the subtle nuances of how wonderfully unique and lovely Gives Light is, so even though the only way to truly do this book justice is by reading it yourself, I’ll do my best to represent. It’s really quite simple though, as the book is about a sixteen year-old teen named Skylar who has to move in with his grandmother on an Indian Reservation in Arizona after his father has gone missing for several days. See, Skylar lost his voice as a small child after narrowly escaping the man who killed his mother, so moving back to the Reservation, the place of the crime, holds many complicated feelings for him, to say the least. Thankfully he’s not alone in his isolation, because Skylar soon strikes up a tender friendship with the son of his mom’s killer, Rafael, who has sense been ostracized in the community for the crimes of his father. And even though it sounds rather action-packed, I wasn’t exaggerating when I compared it to a Benjamin Alire Sáenz book, because the “day-by-day” styling to the chapters of and a heavier emphasis on simple yet poetic prose gives the story a quality to it that can't really be expressed properly unless you're literally reading the book. Gives Light is introspective and thoughtful with the way it treats its narrative and never relies on cheap twists pulled out of nowhere in an attempt to keep things interesting. We’re here for Skylar and Rafael, and the focus thankfully remains on them. Though, their romance aside, I loved the underlying theme of community and how a person’s identity is not solely defined by the color of their skin. Now, this message hits different for me because it’s a topic that I’m somewhat sensitive about, as (incoming rant) whenever I say I’m Native American, I'm not talking "my great, great, great, great Grandmother was a Cherokee Princess" or whatever the Pretendians are saying nowadays, I mean it in the sense that I’m literally Native American. My mom’s Native and my Grandma’s Native and my Aunts and Uncles are Native. But then I also have extended family that’s decidedly not Native, yet they still like to pretend they are by proxy by peppering a little Native styling here and there in their daily lives, like wearing Ribbon Shirts to weddings or putting on Native chokers or trying to dance at Pow Wows in full regalia!? Yikes. And I’m really not trying to be a Gate-Keeping Gary here, but I’m just saying that whenever I’m at a family gathering and these folks show up in their little cosplay, that shit starts to feel like a racist Halloween frat party. Of course, it’s nothing personal. Well, this particular side of the family does also holds their own separate family Christmas parties where the side of the family that are people of color aren’t invited. You know… my side of the family. Hm, maybe it is personal. But you know, after reading this book and following Skylar’s own sense of yearning for family and community while also feeling a very uncomfortable disconnect from other Natives, I’ll try to be more sensitive. Emphasis on “try,” I mean, I'm cool with fictional Skylar, whose dad is Native, doing what he's going to do, but I'll always have opinions in real life on non-Natives wearing full regalia and dancing at Pow Wow's. Like, come on dude... what are you doing?
Okay, now what should I talk about? You think I should just list a bunch of stuff I liked about Gives Light? Sure, why not, this is supposed to be a review for a favorite book, so might as well end on a positive note! I really liked the Pow Wow chapters because they’re portrayed as just a good, fun time. The best kind of time, even. And that infectious joy bled through the pages because all of sudden I wanted to get up off my ass and start dancing! What I liked about these chapters in particular was that it was showed as a cultural event, sure, but thankfully wasn't a "teaching moment" for the reader. You know how a lot of stories that feature different cultures get a little too "Colors of the Wind"with it? Where the only reason Natives are in the story are to serve as heralds of the far-flung past and guiding and teaching the new world into respecting nature or whatever. So yeah, I liked that Gives Light was a book that could and should be read by anyone and everyone, but it was first and foremost about Natives without any kind of The Last Samurai, Kevin Costner Dances with Wolves vibe where a culture is used as a stepping stone for character development for a character that doesn't deserve any. This isn't a spectator's story, it's a homecoming for a Native teen relearning his roots. But yeah, Pow Wow's being a party is so true to real life, too! My brother likes to dance at them every now and then and I’ve always had a blast. There’s the Muckleshoot Pow Wow, the UW one, and then the one at Daybreak Star was pretty great too... even though one time they had Fry Bread so buttery that it had me walking around like that time Spongebob needed water at Sandy’s dry ass house. “Wate~eer, I need watee~eer!,” you remember that episode. Let's see, what else? Oh yeah, I like this line: “We're playing Cowboys and Indians," Grandpa Little Hawk said, grinning broadly. "Go on and club those good for nothing cowboys!" because it reminds me of my Uncle telling me one time about how when he was a kid he was watching one of those "cowboys versus Indians" shows and was obviously rooting for the cowboys because that's how those kinds of things go, but then my Grandma walked past and told him he was cheering for the wrong side. I guess some experiences are pretty universal. Um, most of all, I liked the romance between Skylar and Rafael! Their dynamic was often so damn sweet and bright that I found myself having to look away from the page. Oh, that’s why it’s called Gives Light! Otherwise, it was interesting how Skylar's dad was portrayed as a good dad, but flawed in the sense that he inadvertently instilled a lot of repressed internalized homophobia within Skylar. What this book got down perfectly was the resentment that could fester when someone has a parent that they love and that loves them right back, but they don't always say the right things and in turn make the queer people in their lives afraid to be themselves around them. It's like, they're not evil, and their love might be unconditional, but a person never really forgets the chilling fear that someone they care about will come to hate them. Anyway, Gives Light is singular in its truthful depiction of cultural nuances, queer awakenings, and father-and-son relationships. I didn't give this book the appreciation it deserved the first time I read it, and that's not a mistake I intend to repeat on the second go-around. Lovely, lovely book!
“He knew what I was feeling, if not what I was thinking. He made me feel like I had a voice.”
Read
October 7, 2018
young boys: a Him and Her review special.
HIM:
so, this book is making me crazy
sporadically possessed of loveliness but
fucking YA, dude
what is seriously wrong with fucking YA
HER:
I dunno
HIM:
i just don’t understand
HER:
The only YA I read is non romance
HIM:
people write them as if boys have no idea what their penis is for until they fall in love
like they all go ‘i have funny feelings in my tummy’ and then go play monopoly
HER:
They are INNOCENT
HIM:
hahahaha
HER:
Hahahaha
HIM:
we are going to hell
HER:
Maybe so, but not for this
HIM:
nope.
i don’t even need to produce fiction to rebut this kind of stuff
HER:
Harry Potter didn't have any of that shit
HIM:
when i was 13 a boy took me into a bathroom stall, tucked his dick behind his thighs, and asked me to fuck his pussy.
HER:
TMI, J
HIM:
i’m saying
these boys in this book make out for WEEKS
apparently without erections
just, like, plastic figures clacking together neuterly
HER:
*cough*bullshit*cough*
HIM:
long searching looks
rolling around on top of one another
not even petting
FOR WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKS
MCs 17 and 18 yo.
HER:
NO WAY
HIM:
WAY
when i was 17yo i was bending boys over the hoods of their cars
HER:
You were a walking gland, but still
One takes your point
HIM:
i begin to suspect this whole thing is about UST. and/or that they don’t like reading about sex, maybe, some of these writers, and writing about young boys presumably provides ample opportunity for them to deny us any
but LITTLE DO THEY KNOW
that most boys are fucking around with their cocks before they even work right
are then taught to keep it secret
are LYING TO EVERYONE EVERYWHERE AT ALL TIMES about what they do and wish to do and have not yet done
and are not innocent of anything at all by maybe age 10.
because human children are crafty fucks.
...not puppies.
HER:
Nevertheless
There should be a way to write about them
With no on page sex
Without turning them into sexless angels
HIM:
i agree.
surely there have to be written examples of that sorcerous achievement
but i can’t think of any.
maybe discreetly framed discussions in english boarding school lit.
a separate peace or sommat
HER:
It's easier obvs, if the story has other stuff going on and is not just romance
HIM:
that's this story. and it's pretty good
i just
i mean, i get it, right
tastes
niche
i want lurv but no sex and they must be boys and they must be gay
but after a certain number of decisions that are so freighted with, you know, actual experiences that can be correlated among a given population
you are well into fantasy territory
it may as well be 'die hard'
for all the likelihood of it ever happening like that in real life.
HER:
Woot!
Everything should be Die Hard!
HIM:
it really, really should.
HER:
No sex in Die Hard either
That's why everyone is so aggressive
However
Plenty of messy bodily functions are politely left off page
HIM:
*cackle*
yes, very true. and absolute realism is hardly the point
just… could you please stop taking me out of the story so many times? with your boy-shaped, iniquity-free automatons with romantic hair and names like ‘skylar’?
HER:
Yeah, I can't allow 'skylar'
Report for decontamination
HIM:
even if the diminutive is an almost-pleasing ‘sky’, he appears to have an enduring problem with erectile dysfunction
oh, whatever
i'm dnf'ing this badboy right hyuh
wanna watch die hard?
HER:
What a perfectly ridiculous question
Tell me when to hit play
HIM:
so, this book is making me crazy
sporadically possessed of loveliness but
fucking YA, dude
what is seriously wrong with fucking YA
HER:
I dunno
HIM:
i just don’t understand
HER:
The only YA I read is non romance
HIM:
people write them as if boys have no idea what their penis is for until they fall in love
like they all go ‘i have funny feelings in my tummy’ and then go play monopoly
HER:
They are INNOCENT
HIM:
hahahaha
HER:
Hahahaha
HIM:
we are going to hell
HER:
Maybe so, but not for this
HIM:
nope.
i don’t even need to produce fiction to rebut this kind of stuff
HER:
Harry Potter didn't have any of that shit
HIM:
when i was 13 a boy took me into a bathroom stall, tucked his dick behind his thighs, and asked me to fuck his pussy.
HER:
TMI, J
HIM:
i’m saying
these boys in this book make out for WEEKS
apparently without erections
just, like, plastic figures clacking together neuterly
HER:
*cough*bullshit*cough*
HIM:
long searching looks
rolling around on top of one another
not even petting
FOR WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKS
MCs 17 and 18 yo.
HER:
NO WAY
HIM:
WAY
when i was 17yo i was bending boys over the hoods of their cars
HER:
You were a walking gland, but still
One takes your point
HIM:
i begin to suspect this whole thing is about UST. and/or that they don’t like reading about sex, maybe, some of these writers, and writing about young boys presumably provides ample opportunity for them to deny us any
but LITTLE DO THEY KNOW
that most boys are fucking around with their cocks before they even work right
are then taught to keep it secret
are LYING TO EVERYONE EVERYWHERE AT ALL TIMES about what they do and wish to do and have not yet done
and are not innocent of anything at all by maybe age 10.
because human children are crafty fucks.
...not puppies.
HER:
Nevertheless
There should be a way to write about them
With no on page sex
Without turning them into sexless angels
HIM:
i agree.
surely there have to be written examples of that sorcerous achievement
but i can’t think of any.
maybe discreetly framed discussions in english boarding school lit.
a separate peace or sommat
HER:
It's easier obvs, if the story has other stuff going on and is not just romance
HIM:
that's this story. and it's pretty good
i just
i mean, i get it, right
tastes
niche
i want lurv but no sex and they must be boys and they must be gay
but after a certain number of decisions that are so freighted with, you know, actual experiences that can be correlated among a given population
you are well into fantasy territory
it may as well be 'die hard'
for all the likelihood of it ever happening like that in real life.
HER:
Woot!
Everything should be Die Hard!
HIM:
it really, really should.
HER:
No sex in Die Hard either
That's why everyone is so aggressive
However
Plenty of messy bodily functions are politely left off page
HIM:
*cackle*
yes, very true. and absolute realism is hardly the point
just… could you please stop taking me out of the story so many times? with your boy-shaped, iniquity-free automatons with romantic hair and names like ‘skylar’?
HER:
Yeah, I can't allow 'skylar'
Report for decontamination
HIM:
even if the diminutive is an almost-pleasing ‘sky’, he appears to have an enduring problem with erectile dysfunction
oh, whatever
i'm dnf'ing this badboy right hyuh
wanna watch die hard?
HER:
What a perfectly ridiculous question
Tell me when to hit play
August 21, 2013
***FIVE SOUNDLESS AND SMILING STARS***
I finished this book yesterday and I still can’t stop thinking about it. This book just stole my heart and imprinted it with a permanent marker.
‘Gives Light’ is a book about love. Not just about falling in love with someone, but about love in general. Sometimes I am tired about reading those conventional and repetitive love stories, sometimes I want something else. Sometimes I just want to read the story of a kid with a huge capacity to love his family and friends, a kid who doesn’t know what resentment means.
Skylar, a boy who lost his mom and his voice 11 years ago...
He was left with his father and now, 11 years later his father has disappeared and he has to move to the reservation where his Granny lives.
How horrible uncertainty was. How cruel
And that’s the thing about this book, most of the quotes I highlighted are thoughts that I always have on my mind. You’ll feel like you’re reading about your own life.
Rafael, a native american boy who thinks he's responsible for his dad's actions...
Rafael has demons to fight and he hasn’t had an easy life but Sky will bring light to his existence and he’ll understand that he’s not his father.
He always knew what I wanted
What will happen when their worlds collide? How will Skylar react when he realizes Rafael is the son of the criminal who killed his mom?
Death wasn’t a waste of time. My mom was gone. I’d never have the chance to know her. But it was through her absence, aching and acute, that I had come to know Rafael instead.
Where is Sky’s dad? Is he dead? Is he hidden somewhere?
God had a plan for the Universe. And it was a really nice thing to believe
Why does Sky have those strange feelings whenever he’s close to Rafael?
Because my stomach was tight, my chest was hot, and the strangest thoughts kept permeating my better senses – like how full his lips were, hiding sharp teeth; what his teeth might feel like beneath my tongue
If you want to find out the answers to all those questions, READ THIS BOOK.
On a side note, and please don’t take this wrong, I need to point out that I am very sad that this book is not a best seller. I have an opinion, don’t kill me. If this book was about a straight couple, I think it would have been a best seller. This was like reading The Fault in our Stars, same amazing writing style. But guess what? They are two boys in love and that’s why a lot of people won’t give it a try. And I respect that, but you guys don’t know what you’re missing.
Rose Christo’s writing is pure poetry, the kind of writing that you can’t put down, the kind of prose that will stay in your mind at night when you’re trying to fall asleep.
Admitting what I wanted felt so much easier than denying it
Thanks Baba for telling me about this book! Can’t wait to continue our journey with Sky & Rafael.
September 6, 2014
5 beautiful stars.*****Review completed August 22, 2013
Gives Light is a heart-warming, emotional and beautiful story that depicts a young and pure love between two Native American teenagers who physically differ yet at their hearts they are so much alike. Besides, it’s also a journey of coming to terms with who and what you are--accepting there is nothing wrong with you. Our main protagonists are Skylar the mute, calm and very mellow sixteen-year-old boy who meets the same-aged Rafael on the Nettlebush Reserve. When Skylar's father vanishes so suddenly and the authorities can't tell him if he will ever come back, Skylar's grandmother offers to look after him. The temperamental, frantic and restless Rafael is the son of the man who murdered Skylar's mother. Alleged problems are bound to occur, however, the more time Sky and Rafael spend together the more they come to like each other. Even though it's not sympathy at first glance, over time the tentativeness and aversion turns into friendship.
It is not insta-love. It is not rushed love. It is, however, the kind of love that grows slowly yet relentlessly. It’s a tiny seed and it grows a little shyly; it wriggles its way through the soil until it thrives and will be in full bloom eventually. Although we haven’t been privy to the full-bloom part yet. I suppose that will probably happen in the sequel.
Rose Christo writes wonderful kissing scenes that are achingly beautiful and languorous in their intensity. They are filled with want, need and longing. Perfect.
The author’s voice is a vibrant veil of beautiful words. It’s mute. It’s loud. It’s sad. It’s happy. She conveys a rather huge spectrum of emotion through her writing.
It’s a book that you must read with all your senses. Rose Christo lets the sun heat your body and when you need to cool off, the rain is going to refresh your skin like a velvet curtain. The way she describes flora and fauna, the sky and the stars, and the Native Americans and their legacy is a thing of beauty, as is the blossoming love between Rafael and Skylar. She urges you to lie down on the earth and bury your fingers in the soil, to gaze up at the sky and the stars, and soak up all the (sensuous) impressions. It’s also a lesson how you converse without uttering a waterfall of words because actions and facial expressions speak louder than any verbal communication.
As a reader I experience a daily flood of books that provide (manufactured) drama over drama over drama. Granted, Gives Light provides some potential for conflict as well, but overall it’s definitely on the calmer side of this range. It’s pretty much unobtrusive and gentle; a nice change for once and very much appreciated.
Gives Light has it all. Excellent writing and great narrative, very likable, interesting and well drawn characters, as well as a wonderful setting render this story unforgettable. However, the icing on the cake is the intriguing and mystic history of bygone times. Yet a small part of your people keep these bygone times alive and breathing by initiating and living rituals and retelling rites and events. But you also give Native Americans a voice and a face by telling stories like Gives Light. Our history are our roots, and we should never forget where we were coming from. It’s a part of our identity and something we should be grateful for.
This story is a labor of love, I could feel it. It not only gives light, it is light—a ray of sunbeam that is going to warm your soul. Read it.
Recommended read.
P.S.
A thank you goes to Rosa for doing the buddy read with me. I'm looking forward to reading Looks Over with you! xxx
Gives Light is a heart-warming, emotional and beautiful story that depicts a young and pure love between two Native American teenagers who physically differ yet at their hearts they are so much alike. Besides, it’s also a journey of coming to terms with who and what you are--accepting there is nothing wrong with you. Our main protagonists are Skylar the mute, calm and very mellow sixteen-year-old boy who meets the same-aged Rafael on the Nettlebush Reserve. When Skylar's father vanishes so suddenly and the authorities can't tell him if he will ever come back, Skylar's grandmother offers to look after him. The temperamental, frantic and restless Rafael is the son of the man who murdered Skylar's mother. Alleged problems are bound to occur, however, the more time Sky and Rafael spend together the more they come to like each other. Even though it's not sympathy at first glance, over time the tentativeness and aversion turns into friendship.
I couldn't possibly put into words what that meant to me. Nor had I realized until that moment how much of a group project it was to grow up. Each of us is just an imprint of the many people who have crossed paths with us over the years, some more times than others. Most of us never think to say thank you. I know I never had.
Death wasn't a waste of life. My mom was gone. I'd never have the chance to know her. But it was through her absence, aching and acute, that I had come to know Rafael instead.
He broke away from my mouth and trailed his lips down the front of my throat. I felt his lips close around my scars. He kissed away their ugliness. His lips parted in tingling butterfly kisses that drained the strength from my knees. I realized he was mouthing words against my skin. Not words. Just one word.
Mine.
I sank my fingers into Rafael's coarse hair. I felt him jolt beneath my fingertips. I coaxed his lips with my own, gently, the lightest touch, an encouraging touch. It was dizzy and intoxicating and enthralling and tranquilizing, paradoxically, all at once.
It is not insta-love. It is not rushed love. It is, however, the kind of love that grows slowly yet relentlessly. It’s a tiny seed and it grows a little shyly; it wriggles its way through the soil until it thrives and will be in full bloom eventually. Although we haven’t been privy to the full-bloom part yet. I suppose that will probably happen in the sequel.
Rose Christo writes wonderful kissing scenes that are achingly beautiful and languorous in their intensity. They are filled with want, need and longing. Perfect.
(…)I pressed up against him and kissed him like he was my lifeline, like he was air and I couldn’t breathe. I kissed him hard enough that I really couldn’t breathe, in the end, and my lips ached when we broke away, and we were both panting, him burying his face against the crook of my neck, his breath burning hot against my skin. I felt his heartbeat, jumping and hard, underneath my hand, my fingers splayed against his chest. He felt so alive. I felt so alive. He entwined our fingers and held my hand hard enough to hurt; but it was a wonderful pain, a soothing pain, the kind of pain that reminds you how human you are, how desperately your heart wants, how good it feels to finally have.
The author’s voice is a vibrant veil of beautiful words. It’s mute. It’s loud. It’s sad. It’s happy. She conveys a rather huge spectrum of emotion through her writing.
It’s a book that you must read with all your senses. Rose Christo lets the sun heat your body and when you need to cool off, the rain is going to refresh your skin like a velvet curtain. The way she describes flora and fauna, the sky and the stars, and the Native Americans and their legacy is a thing of beauty, as is the blossoming love between Rafael and Skylar. She urges you to lie down on the earth and bury your fingers in the soil, to gaze up at the sky and the stars, and soak up all the (sensuous) impressions. It’s also a lesson how you converse without uttering a waterfall of words because actions and facial expressions speak louder than any verbal communication.
How beautiful he looked. Unsullied by the world’s darker secrets; privy to its innocent ones. I could almost believe he was inhuman and had never known anything beyond the profound simplicity of nature, tameless and wild, and the animal hearts that beat within each and every one of us.
As a reader I experience a daily flood of books that provide (manufactured) drama over drama over drama. Granted, Gives Light provides some potential for conflict as well, but overall it’s definitely on the calmer side of this range. It’s pretty much unobtrusive and gentle; a nice change for once and very much appreciated.
Gives Light has it all. Excellent writing and great narrative, very likable, interesting and well drawn characters, as well as a wonderful setting render this story unforgettable. However, the icing on the cake is the intriguing and mystic history of bygone times. Yet a small part of your people keep these bygone times alive and breathing by initiating and living rituals and retelling rites and events. But you also give Native Americans a voice and a face by telling stories like Gives Light. Our history are our roots, and we should never forget where we were coming from. It’s a part of our identity and something we should be grateful for.
This story is a labor of love, I could feel it. It not only gives light, it is light—a ray of sunbeam that is going to warm your soul. Read it.
Recommended read.
P.S.
A thank you goes to Rosa for doing the buddy read with me. I'm looking forward to reading Looks Over with you! xxx
August 19, 2014
**Currently FREE on Amazon! Go snag your copy! 8/19/14 http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008JYCVW4?i...**
This book was so beautiful.
"Gives Light" is about a 16 year old mute boy (Skyler) who is forced to live with his grandmother on an Indian reservation after his father abandons him. His mother was tragically murdered (years prior) and murderer slit Skyler's throat when he walked in on the crime. Skyler slowly makes friends on the reservation but finds himself most drawn to a boy, Rafeal, who seems strongly familiar. As it turns out, Rafeal is the son of Skyler's attacker.
"Gives Light" was touchingly sweet and poignant. It felt very pure and innocent, and it treated a difficult topic with grace. The writing was mature for a YA book, which I appreciated. I adored it. I think I just fell in love with all of the characters and the world of the Indian reservation. I am little disappointed, to be honest, that this book is part of a series because I wanted a resolution but I am also a bit excited to see Sky and Rafeal's relationship mature.
This book was so beautiful.
"Gives Light" is about a 16 year old mute boy (Skyler) who is forced to live with his grandmother on an Indian reservation after his father abandons him. His mother was tragically murdered (years prior) and murderer slit Skyler's throat when he walked in on the crime. Skyler slowly makes friends on the reservation but finds himself most drawn to a boy, Rafeal, who seems strongly familiar. As it turns out, Rafeal is the son of Skyler's attacker.
"Gives Light" was touchingly sweet and poignant. It felt very pure and innocent, and it treated a difficult topic with grace. The writing was mature for a YA book, which I appreciated. I adored it. I think I just fell in love with all of the characters and the world of the Indian reservation. I am little disappointed, to be honest, that this book is part of a series because I wanted a resolution but I am also a bit excited to see Sky and Rafeal's relationship mature.
June 29, 2016
Gives light is my all-time favourite YA series. I don’t believe I will ever find a YA series that will touch me as much as this series did. The first book is beautiful, mysterious, and captivating. I never believed I could fall for a book as hard as I did this. But the truth is, I don’t know many people who wouldn’t love this book, whether you are a fan of m/m or not, this is just one of those books that people must read, in my opinion. It’s always going to be on my favourites list.
From the first page, I was hooked and I remained hooked for a long time. I didn’t want to stop reading. It was one that I was close to tears when it ended, not because of the ending, but simply because it had ended. I felt like a baby, not wanting someone to take something away from me. I was dedicated to this story and the characters.
Skylar’s dad was missing and he needed to find him. The first few pages we see him revealing some parts of his childhood, mainly going through the place he grew up. I think this was then I found myself falling in love with his voice. It suited him perfectly and I was able to picture him in my head. It went from him describing the town he grew up in to his arrival at the police station. That first chapter did a great job of drawing me in. Normally, it would take a while longer for me to really become invested in the plot. But I was intrigued from the moment I picked up the book.
Skylar spent a brief period with a foster mother until he was placed with his paternal grandmother. Upon meeting his grandmother, all I could think was “who is this witch?” Catherine Looks Over was a character that didn’t really appeal to me. I was really unsure about her because she just seemed so cold. When I say cold, I mean she didn’t really show much emotion. But she grew on me. A lot! Maybe that was because, in some ways, she was a lot like Skylar. They really did have several similarities when it came to expressing their emotions. Either way, she became one of my favourite ever secondary characters in a book.
Skylar soon began to settle in, and on his first day he befriended Annie Little Hawk. When Annie was introduced, I didn’t immediately warm to her either. But unlike most books in the genre, we had no trouble from her when it came to the couple in this book. It’s something that did pop into my head, but once I realised she had her own love interest, I was fine with her. They spent some time getting to know each other and she introduced him to her family. It’s not her family who caught his attention, though.
Skylar noticed Rafael almost straight away. Their relationship was a slow burner that began when Skylar figured out who Rafael was, the son of his mother’s killer. But that didn’t discourage Skylar. Neither did Rafael’s standoffish nature. In fact he was drawn to the lonely, misunderstood boy – the boy who soon stole my heart as well. And it was such an instant thing; I almost couldn’t believe how much I loved him. Honestly, I don’t think I could have loved Rafael more if I tried to. He was really just one of those lost souls who was judged because of his family.
Rafael was such a wonderful character. He was a massive part of this story. He brought out the best in Skylar. Not in the conventional way, but he gave me a reason to believe things wouldn’t be doom and gloom. He knew Skylar, could understand what Skylar was saying, even when no words were spoken. Their connection was immediate. It was strong and it was emotional, too. It was gradual in some sense, but instant in another. It was like they had been friends their whole lives. I just have to say really quickly, I adored how they bonded. I’m not always a believer in the meant-to-be-together thing, but I so believed it here.
Though the romance element was not forgotten, it was not shoved in your face either. Neither boy had real experience with romantic relationships. Skylar – having been kissed before – was a lot more forward with what he wanted; Rafael had never been kissed, but learned what he wanted. The way the first kiss was described had me swooning so bad. Yeah, it wasn’t hot and steamy like in erotic books, but it had its own special passion. Maybe it was because I was so eager for them to get together it just felt like that. But I am serious when I say it was one of the best kisses I have ever read.
All the mystery had me second guessing myself. Skylar’s dad, Paul, was where the book finished off, more or less. His return brought more questions than answers. And I’m not going to reveal anything more about his return. I don’t want to spoil this book or the series for people who haven’t read it/them. I will say this book is an amazing beginning to an amazing series. It is one of the best books I have ever read. And I don’t think you need to be a teenager or very young either. To enjoy this book all you really need is to be able to fall in love with amazing characters and a wonderful, mysterious plot.
I highly recommend this book. It was amazing and something special that I will keep with me forever.
My review can also be found on Greedy Bug Book Reviews.
From the first page, I was hooked and I remained hooked for a long time. I didn’t want to stop reading. It was one that I was close to tears when it ended, not because of the ending, but simply because it had ended. I felt like a baby, not wanting someone to take something away from me. I was dedicated to this story and the characters.
“If I’m gone for three days, call the police.”
Skylar’s dad was missing and he needed to find him. The first few pages we see him revealing some parts of his childhood, mainly going through the place he grew up. I think this was then I found myself falling in love with his voice. It suited him perfectly and I was able to picture him in my head. It went from him describing the town he grew up in to his arrival at the police station. That first chapter did a great job of drawing me in. Normally, it would take a while longer for me to really become invested in the plot. But I was intrigued from the moment I picked up the book.
Skylar spent a brief period with a foster mother until he was placed with his paternal grandmother. Upon meeting his grandmother, all I could think was “who is this witch?” Catherine Looks Over was a character that didn’t really appeal to me. I was really unsure about her because she just seemed so cold. When I say cold, I mean she didn’t really show much emotion. But she grew on me. A lot! Maybe that was because, in some ways, she was a lot like Skylar. They really did have several similarities when it came to expressing their emotions. Either way, she became one of my favourite ever secondary characters in a book.
Skylar soon began to settle in, and on his first day he befriended Annie Little Hawk. When Annie was introduced, I didn’t immediately warm to her either. But unlike most books in the genre, we had no trouble from her when it came to the couple in this book. It’s something that did pop into my head, but once I realised she had her own love interest, I was fine with her. They spent some time getting to know each other and she introduced him to her family. It’s not her family who caught his attention, though.
“That was when I saw him. What little I could see of him was obscured by shadow–but then the flames jumped and cast him in sudden light. He was my age, maybe a little older.”
Skylar noticed Rafael almost straight away. Their relationship was a slow burner that began when Skylar figured out who Rafael was, the son of his mother’s killer. But that didn’t discourage Skylar. Neither did Rafael’s standoffish nature. In fact he was drawn to the lonely, misunderstood boy – the boy who soon stole my heart as well. And it was such an instant thing; I almost couldn’t believe how much I loved him. Honestly, I don’t think I could have loved Rafael more if I tried to. He was really just one of those lost souls who was judged because of his family.
Rafael was such a wonderful character. He was a massive part of this story. He brought out the best in Skylar. Not in the conventional way, but he gave me a reason to believe things wouldn’t be doom and gloom. He knew Skylar, could understand what Skylar was saying, even when no words were spoken. Their connection was immediate. It was strong and it was emotional, too. It was gradual in some sense, but instant in another. It was like they had been friends their whole lives. I just have to say really quickly, I adored how they bonded. I’m not always a believer in the meant-to-be-together thing, but I so believed it here.
He always knew what I wanted.
He was across the room in two strides. He took me by the waist in warm hands. And he kissed me.
Though the romance element was not forgotten, it was not shoved in your face either. Neither boy had real experience with romantic relationships. Skylar – having been kissed before – was a lot more forward with what he wanted; Rafael had never been kissed, but learned what he wanted. The way the first kiss was described had me swooning so bad. Yeah, it wasn’t hot and steamy like in erotic books, but it had its own special passion. Maybe it was because I was so eager for them to get together it just felt like that. But I am serious when I say it was one of the best kisses I have ever read.
All the mystery had me second guessing myself. Skylar’s dad, Paul, was where the book finished off, more or less. His return brought more questions than answers. And I’m not going to reveal anything more about his return. I don’t want to spoil this book or the series for people who haven’t read it/them. I will say this book is an amazing beginning to an amazing series. It is one of the best books I have ever read. And I don’t think you need to be a teenager or very young either. To enjoy this book all you really need is to be able to fall in love with amazing characters and a wonderful, mysterious plot.
I highly recommend this book. It was amazing and something special that I will keep with me forever.
My review can also be found on Greedy Bug Book Reviews.
June 12, 2014
I have so many feelings about this book.
To summarize my emotional experience with Gives Light, I want to post a picture of me clutching my chest while lying on the bathroom floor in fetal position. Instead, I will try to dissect why I love this fabulous novel by Rose Christo.
Feeling #1: Appreciation. Gives Light screams of diversity. The protagonist, Skylar, is a half-white, half-Shoshone sixteen-year-old who cannot speak and has feelings for a boy. Diversity has come up a lot in recent conversations about young-adult literature, and this book hits it right in every way. Christo keeps the main plot compelling - Skylar, whose mother was murdered when he was little, moves to the Nettlebush reserve and befriends the son of his mother's murderer - while weaving in details about Shoshone culture, tradition, and history. Gives Light is a book that makes me think: I am ignorant. I am still ignorant. But thanks to this book and its characters, I am a little less ignorant than I was yesterday, and I will gain even more knowledge if I keep exploring tomorrow.
I don't like to break promises, and that was the only thing keeping me from turning and running away. Because I was having those thoughts again, that I didn't belong here, that I was rubbing salt in an open wound. The same dance had been performed centuries ago and had ended in spilled blood and tears. The Natives had danced and the whites had slain them for it. And really - can you think of anything more ridiculous to fight over? A dance? The eyes on me were patient and expectant. I could feel myself split in two, the two halves of my own history. I was the fallen Plains children and I was the usurpers who had taken their lives and their land. That didn't make sense to me. I didn't make sense to me.
Feeling #2: Admiration. Christo's writing flows like water, the kind of water that leaves you feeling refreshed, satisfied, and thirsting for more. She balances so many different elements in Gives Light: Skylar and Rafael's relationship, Skylar's familial strife, the unique setting of the reservation, and the culture of the Shoshone people. Her prose kept it all on track, and while I felt enamored with Skylar and Rafael's characters, I still searched online for images of promontories and grottoes to even better visualize Christo's imagery-laden writing. These feelings of appreciation and admiration grant this book a five-star rating, but the following emotion gives it a spot in my heart as one of my favorites.
I can't possibly describe the effect that a simple smile had on his face. I can try, but even now I know I won't do it any justice. Because when he smiled, he showed all his teeth - like a wolf - but it was inexplicably innocent, free from ferocity. When he smiled, there was a light in his eyes that didn't usually occupy his visage. When he smiled, his dimples were deep, like laugh lines, and I saw the missing tooth at the back of his mouth and the hidden laughter he had bottled up for years.
Feeling #3: Adoration. Skylar and Rafael. Skylar and Rafael. Skyfael. Oh, how I love these characters. Skylar, a boy with orphan Annie hair and a jacket he never takes off, comes to Nettlebush reserve and meets Rafael, a brooding loner and the son of the man who murdered Skylar's mother and left Skylar mute. An unexpected duo, they spend time together and start to heal the hurt within both of their hearts.
For the first 20% of the book I felt a little unsure of their relationship, but after that initial fifth, I fell in love with them. Rafael's moody tendencies and how he punishes himself for his father's crimes, Skylar's growth from the boy who hid his scars to the young adult who lets people see them, even the simple moments when Rafael sang so Skylar could learn a song on his flute - these two have won my adoration and my affection without a doubt. Together they bond over the burdens their families have placed upon them, and they turn those burdens into gifts that they share with one another.
He broke away from my mouth and trailed his lips down the front of my throat. I felt his lips close around my scars. He kissed away their ugliness. His lips parted in tingling butterfly kisses that drained the strength from my knees. I realized he was mouthing words against my skin.
Not words. Just one word.
Mine.
Feeling #4: Anticipation. Thank goodness there are three more books in this series. I cannot wait to read them, and I also cannot wait for others to read Gives Light and fall in love with the Skylar and Rafael like I have.
Highly, highly recommended for fans of young-adult fiction who desire a diverse and heartfelt story. Gives Light reminds me of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, and those who know about my ardor for that book know that that is not a comparison to be taken lightly.
*review cross-posted on my blog, the quiet voice
To summarize my emotional experience with Gives Light, I want to post a picture of me clutching my chest while lying on the bathroom floor in fetal position. Instead, I will try to dissect why I love this fabulous novel by Rose Christo.
Feeling #1: Appreciation. Gives Light screams of diversity. The protagonist, Skylar, is a half-white, half-Shoshone sixteen-year-old who cannot speak and has feelings for a boy. Diversity has come up a lot in recent conversations about young-adult literature, and this book hits it right in every way. Christo keeps the main plot compelling - Skylar, whose mother was murdered when he was little, moves to the Nettlebush reserve and befriends the son of his mother's murderer - while weaving in details about Shoshone culture, tradition, and history. Gives Light is a book that makes me think: I am ignorant. I am still ignorant. But thanks to this book and its characters, I am a little less ignorant than I was yesterday, and I will gain even more knowledge if I keep exploring tomorrow.
I don't like to break promises, and that was the only thing keeping me from turning and running away. Because I was having those thoughts again, that I didn't belong here, that I was rubbing salt in an open wound. The same dance had been performed centuries ago and had ended in spilled blood and tears. The Natives had danced and the whites had slain them for it. And really - can you think of anything more ridiculous to fight over? A dance? The eyes on me were patient and expectant. I could feel myself split in two, the two halves of my own history. I was the fallen Plains children and I was the usurpers who had taken their lives and their land. That didn't make sense to me. I didn't make sense to me.
Feeling #2: Admiration. Christo's writing flows like water, the kind of water that leaves you feeling refreshed, satisfied, and thirsting for more. She balances so many different elements in Gives Light: Skylar and Rafael's relationship, Skylar's familial strife, the unique setting of the reservation, and the culture of the Shoshone people. Her prose kept it all on track, and while I felt enamored with Skylar and Rafael's characters, I still searched online for images of promontories and grottoes to even better visualize Christo's imagery-laden writing. These feelings of appreciation and admiration grant this book a five-star rating, but the following emotion gives it a spot in my heart as one of my favorites.
I can't possibly describe the effect that a simple smile had on his face. I can try, but even now I know I won't do it any justice. Because when he smiled, he showed all his teeth - like a wolf - but it was inexplicably innocent, free from ferocity. When he smiled, there was a light in his eyes that didn't usually occupy his visage. When he smiled, his dimples were deep, like laugh lines, and I saw the missing tooth at the back of his mouth and the hidden laughter he had bottled up for years.
Feeling #3: Adoration. Skylar and Rafael. Skylar and Rafael. Skyfael. Oh, how I love these characters. Skylar, a boy with orphan Annie hair and a jacket he never takes off, comes to Nettlebush reserve and meets Rafael, a brooding loner and the son of the man who murdered Skylar's mother and left Skylar mute. An unexpected duo, they spend time together and start to heal the hurt within both of their hearts.
For the first 20% of the book I felt a little unsure of their relationship, but after that initial fifth, I fell in love with them. Rafael's moody tendencies and how he punishes himself for his father's crimes, Skylar's growth from the boy who hid his scars to the young adult who lets people see them, even the simple moments when Rafael sang so Skylar could learn a song on his flute - these two have won my adoration and my affection without a doubt. Together they bond over the burdens their families have placed upon them, and they turn those burdens into gifts that they share with one another.
He broke away from my mouth and trailed his lips down the front of my throat. I felt his lips close around my scars. He kissed away their ugliness. His lips parted in tingling butterfly kisses that drained the strength from my knees. I realized he was mouthing words against my skin.
Not words. Just one word.
Mine.
Feeling #4: Anticipation. Thank goodness there are three more books in this series. I cannot wait to read them, and I also cannot wait for others to read Gives Light and fall in love with the Skylar and Rafael like I have.
Highly, highly recommended for fans of young-adult fiction who desire a diverse and heartfelt story. Gives Light reminds me of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, and those who know about my ardor for that book know that that is not a comparison to be taken lightly.
*review cross-posted on my blog, the quiet voice
August 27, 2016
M/M Bingo
Round 8 - Week 4
"Best Gay Friends Become Lovers"
********************
4.5 stars
Some people will read this book and think, “What the heck is all the fuss about?”. Others will read this book and think, “This is glorious.” I’m not quite sure what impacts one differently from the other. I can’t explain the why’s of one being bored and another being mesmerized by this book. I can only say, for me, I was entranced.
“Gives Light”…from page 1, I knew I was going to be swept up into the author’s words. I knew that Skylar St. Clair was somehow going to leave an impact on me. I knew that I was going to want to keep reading and reading more and more. 315 pages of pure butter. I also knew I’d struggle with explaining how it was that I became so mesmerized.
The best way I can describe this book is that it’s like being transported to the middle of the Nettlebush Reserve in Arizona, living among this Native American tribe and becoming best friends with a 16-yo named Sklyar…and then living through his every thought, smell, touch, emotion, experience. I WAS THERE. I felt it. I knew it. I lived it. All as I read it.
Skylar is, quite possibly, the most amazing YA character I have read. He is smart and kind and generous and curious and tragic and sympathetic and brave and strong and loving and funny. He is extraordinary.
Add in Rafael, Annie, Grandma, Dad and a host of other minor characters…all making this story so RICH and FULL…I enjoyed every page. The relationships in this book are so touching and powerful in ways you wouldn’t even imagine or guess: A simple hug. Holding hands. Swimming in a lake. Carrying a loom. Delivering letters. Cooking. Dancing. Drawing. Playing the flute. Little things that each made the story so very lovely.
Despite the difficult storyline (the blurb is exactly the tale that’s told), the writing is amazingly tender. It’s descriptive yet it’s concise and not overdone. It’s slow yet impactful. It’s beautiful even in the ugly parts.
The only thing that I could say that didn’t work for me is that the book didn’t have a natural ending. The storyline just…continues…I’m assuming…on in the 2nd book. I’m not a big fan of how this works in some series. I was hoping a bit for that “reward” at the end. But, I guess getting there was a reward in and of itself.
Highly recommended for a time and place when you don’t need fireworks, when you can appreciate something graceful yet takes its time, when you want a book that feels like a gentle *sigh*.
January 6, 2018
Only a few weeks ago, Susan got dragged into a kinky BDSM-y buddy read with us. Little did I know that Susan may not be a fan of BDSM, she surely has a neat little sadistic streak. According to her, revenge apparently is a dish best served in the form of sexless YA.
Vengeance at its finest!
Not only don’t I like YA anymore, I’m shallow. I want my gay sex cake and eat it too. But I suppose that one who forces kinky books upon others must gracefully accept the consequences... So looking at those burly toddlers on the cover of Gives Light, I took a deep breath and dove in, fully expecting another melodrama fueled childish angst-fest.
...and was blown away instead.
When you lose your vision, your ears will pick up on more sounds, your nose will distinguish more scents. When you take away sex as a means and a climax, will you cling to the simplest of touches? In the expert hands of this author, yes. A kiss no longer is a rushed foray into something more, but an earth-shattering experience. A meaningful look becomes more penetrating than a..well.
In a pace that’s more soothing than anything, you’ll get invited into a Native American reservation along with the endearing and admirable main character, the 16 year old Skylar. What follows is a heart-warming, slowly unfolding coming of age story, in which past and present clash and love conquers all.
I’ll admit it! The unhurried pacing and sharp focus on little, gentle gestures made my cynical heart swell. It didn’t take much; a discarded jacket, a soundless laugh or charcoal drawings. Until a scene involving a bedroom and a photo occurred and I simply couldn’t feel any more feels than I felt in that one breath-catching moment. For me, the essence of love is captured beautifully in this book, in all its facets and depth. This is how I feel love too and I applaud Christo for making its power palpable.
My only niggles would be that the story slowly petered out in the final pages, whereas I had expected a final assault on my senses that, I’m sure, would’ve sent me straight to cloud nine. And I personally would’ve made these boys 2 years younger. Their behavior and acts (or more accurately, their lack thereof) felt a bit too innocently sweet and at odds with their given age. All in all, I will say (not even grumpily anymore!) that Gives Light is very beautiful indeed and highly recommended. I wish schools would include this one on their reading lists.
You can check out our group review plus enter the giveaway to WIN all 4 books in the series (Posted 16/03/2014):
Vengeance at its finest!
Not only don’t I like YA anymore, I’m shallow. I want my gay sex cake and eat it too. But I suppose that one who forces kinky books upon others must gracefully accept the consequences... So looking at those burly toddlers on the cover of Gives Light, I took a deep breath and dove in, fully expecting another melodrama fueled childish angst-fest.
...and was blown away instead.
When you lose your vision, your ears will pick up on more sounds, your nose will distinguish more scents. When you take away sex as a means and a climax, will you cling to the simplest of touches? In the expert hands of this author, yes. A kiss no longer is a rushed foray into something more, but an earth-shattering experience. A meaningful look becomes more penetrating than a..well.
In a pace that’s more soothing than anything, you’ll get invited into a Native American reservation along with the endearing and admirable main character, the 16 year old Skylar. What follows is a heart-warming, slowly unfolding coming of age story, in which past and present clash and love conquers all.
I’ll admit it! The unhurried pacing and sharp focus on little, gentle gestures made my cynical heart swell. It didn’t take much; a discarded jacket, a soundless laugh or charcoal drawings. Until a scene involving a bedroom and a photo occurred and I simply couldn’t feel any more feels than I felt in that one breath-catching moment. For me, the essence of love is captured beautifully in this book, in all its facets and depth. This is how I feel love too and I applaud Christo for making its power palpable.
My only niggles would be that the story slowly petered out in the final pages, whereas I had expected a final assault on my senses that, I’m sure, would’ve sent me straight to cloud nine. And I personally would’ve made these boys 2 years younger. Their behavior and acts (or more accurately, their lack thereof) felt a bit too innocently sweet and at odds with their given age. All in all, I will say (not even grumpily anymore!) that Gives Light is very beautiful indeed and highly recommended. I wish schools would include this one on their reading lists.
You can check out our group review plus enter the giveaway to WIN all 4 books in the series (Posted 16/03/2014):
August 4, 2025
I had to take my time with this book. It is so beautifully written that I had to savor every single word.
I can't say whether life on the reserve or the life and culture of the Native Americans is portrayed correctly, I don't have the necessary knowledge. But I feel that it fits and it's all very well done. Every aspect of the plot fits perfectly into the atmospheric setting. Every character has a sense of realism and is beautifully described.
Told solely from Skylar's perspective, everything is as new to the reader as it is to the character. It is his perception that lends the whole story such wonderful harmony. Because he is mute, he has his own unique way of perceiving people, and it is fascinating how he describes them all.
I also really like how he communicates and how others communicate with him. Some know sign language, others don't. And even though it may seem limiting, there aren't really any limitations for Skylar.
I especially like how his father and Rafael seem to be able to read his mind. It may come across as a bit supernatural, but I like it a lot.
Skylar and Rafael... the friendship that develops between them is very tender and wonderful. And when friendship turns into something more, it's such a beautiful, smooth transition. There's no fuss, and even though Skylar is a little worried about what it means to like boys, there's no melodrama.
The two together are difficult to describe. It is a very special story, and I am very pleased that I finally read it.
Also, don't expect more than kisses, but these kisses are magnificent …
This first book could theoretically even stand alone. There is no cliffhanger, no major plot point left unresolved. So if you are apprehensive about committing to the many books, you can limit yourself to this first one.
I will definitely continue reading; it's simply too good to stop now.
I raised my eyebrows at Rafael. Power metal. Really?
Rafael gave me a look of disgust. "So what? What do you listen to, that easy listening crap?"
I mimed a saxophone.
"That's even worse," he said dismissively. 🤭🖤🤭
Sometimes I wondered whether it bothered Rafael that he was doing all the talking. On the other hand, Rafael sure had a lot to say. No one would have looked at him and pegged him for a chatty guy--not when he was scowling and skulking in the shadows--but he had an opinion on everything, absolutely everything, under the sun. 😊
I'd get a glimpse of his rare smile, wolfish and boyish and radiant. I really liked his smile. I'd never particularly admired a smile before, and it mystified me when I realized that I admired Rafael's. I guess what I liked about it was that it was honest. It was a look into his heart and soul, both of which he typically kept hidden behind dark scowls and curtains of knotted black hair, fearful that exposing them to the world meant exposing them to pain. 🥰
Rafael pushed me up against the wall and kissed me, hard and wanting and fierce, filled to the brim with emotions spilling over, and I held him close and anchored him to me, anchoring him to earth. Those were the kisses that left me shaken. Those were my favorite kisses. 🫠💕🫠💕🫠
I can't say whether life on the reserve or the life and culture of the Native Americans is portrayed correctly, I don't have the necessary knowledge. But I feel that it fits and it's all very well done. Every aspect of the plot fits perfectly into the atmospheric setting. Every character has a sense of realism and is beautifully described.
Told solely from Skylar's perspective, everything is as new to the reader as it is to the character. It is his perception that lends the whole story such wonderful harmony. Because he is mute, he has his own unique way of perceiving people, and it is fascinating how he describes them all.
I also really like how he communicates and how others communicate with him. Some know sign language, others don't. And even though it may seem limiting, there aren't really any limitations for Skylar.
I especially like how his father and Rafael seem to be able to read his mind. It may come across as a bit supernatural, but I like it a lot.
Skylar and Rafael... the friendship that develops between them is very tender and wonderful. And when friendship turns into something more, it's such a beautiful, smooth transition. There's no fuss, and even though Skylar is a little worried about what it means to like boys, there's no melodrama.
The two together are difficult to describe. It is a very special story, and I am very pleased that I finally read it.
Also, don't expect more than kisses, but these kisses are magnificent …
This first book could theoretically even stand alone. There is no cliffhanger, no major plot point left unresolved. So if you are apprehensive about committing to the many books, you can limit yourself to this first one.
I will definitely continue reading; it's simply too good to stop now.
I raised my eyebrows at Rafael. Power metal. Really?
Rafael gave me a look of disgust. "So what? What do you listen to, that easy listening crap?"
I mimed a saxophone.
"That's even worse," he said dismissively. 🤭🖤🤭
Sometimes I wondered whether it bothered Rafael that he was doing all the talking. On the other hand, Rafael sure had a lot to say. No one would have looked at him and pegged him for a chatty guy--not when he was scowling and skulking in the shadows--but he had an opinion on everything, absolutely everything, under the sun. 😊
I'd get a glimpse of his rare smile, wolfish and boyish and radiant. I really liked his smile. I'd never particularly admired a smile before, and it mystified me when I realized that I admired Rafael's. I guess what I liked about it was that it was honest. It was a look into his heart and soul, both of which he typically kept hidden behind dark scowls and curtains of knotted black hair, fearful that exposing them to the world meant exposing them to pain. 🥰
Rafael pushed me up against the wall and kissed me, hard and wanting and fierce, filled to the brim with emotions spilling over, and I held him close and anchored him to me, anchoring him to earth. Those were the kisses that left me shaken. Those were my favorite kisses. 🫠💕🫠💕🫠
July 19, 2025
I honestly admit I didn’t expect to fall in love when I started Gives Light. But here we are, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
Skylar is a mute boy whose father disappeared one night without a word, except instructions to call the police. He ends up in a reserve with his Native grandmother, feeling like a fish out of water, but despite his severe childhood trauma and the physical consequences, Skylar is an open, outgoing boy, and soon starts making friends. And then he meets Raphael, a broody boy with a storm in his eyes, braided hair, and a face belonging to a person responsible for Skylar’s trauma.
I’ve had a bit of a hard time getting into it, and I partly blame my mental exhaustion from the previous read. It’s also written in first-person, which always has to work harder to win me over; my preference has always been a third-person narrative. Also, Skylar is 16, and the book mostly reads on the younger side of YA.
I’m so glad I persevered though, because oh my god. Gives Light has a serene sort of magical atmosphere that utterly entranced me. It’s suffused with grief and mourning, with a strong theme of parental death (especially mothers), but mainly it’s full of softness and the joy of finding a new place and people to call home. Of finally belonging to a tight-knit community, and learning about your heritage.
I absolutely adored Skylar and Raphael’s gentle relationship, and both boys stole a bit of my heart for themselves. The setting in the Native reserve was nothing short of incredible - so many beautiful descriptions of the wonders of nature! One can’t help but admire how appreciative the Natives are, and I loved learning about some of their traditions and history.
I dotted down some of my favorite moments, until I stopped because I would’ve done nothing else:
• Raphael gifting Skylar a flute, giving him a kind of voice
• Skylar slowly falling for Raphael’s smile - which goes from a rare to a common occurrence, especially around him
• Raphael casually laying his head in Skylar’s lap, and Skylar just as casually playing with Raphael’s beautiful hair
• Skylar’s grandmother visibly thawing at Skylar’s presence - I adored their relationship
• The soft kisses and the fierce ones
• The gentle way Raphael traced Skylar’s scars with his fingertips, then with his lips
Some minor details didn’t make sense and raised both my eyebrows, but nothing that pulled me out of the story for long (still, some degree of suspension of disbelief was needed).
I feel like the story could very well end here on a satisfying note, but I don’t think I have enough of Skylar and Raphael and their wonderful home.
The more he talked, the more I listened. The more I listened, the more I forgot that I wasn’t talking back. I could scratch my chin or quirk my eyebrows or tilt my head and he knew exactly what the gesture meant. He knew what I was feeling, if not what I was thinking. He made me feel like I had a voice.
I liked the feel of him on my lap, warm and solid and comforting. I liked having access to his every thought, his face as clear and readable as the surface of a mirror. I liked carding my fingers through his hair, and the way he shivered, just slightly, when I grazed his skin.
A stupid sensation of complete contentment crept through me. It struck me as kind of crazy, kind of amazing, that one person could make me feel so serene just by being.
”I won’t let them,” Raphael said. “I won’t let anyone take you away. I won’t let anyone hurt you. I’ll protect you. I’ll always protect you. I don’t care how. I just will.”
Skylar is a mute boy whose father disappeared one night without a word, except instructions to call the police. He ends up in a reserve with his Native grandmother, feeling like a fish out of water, but despite his severe childhood trauma and the physical consequences, Skylar is an open, outgoing boy, and soon starts making friends. And then he meets Raphael, a broody boy with a storm in his eyes, braided hair, and a face belonging to a person responsible for Skylar’s trauma.
I’ve had a bit of a hard time getting into it, and I partly blame my mental exhaustion from the previous read. It’s also written in first-person, which always has to work harder to win me over; my preference has always been a third-person narrative. Also, Skylar is 16, and the book mostly reads on the younger side of YA.
I’m so glad I persevered though, because oh my god. Gives Light has a serene sort of magical atmosphere that utterly entranced me. It’s suffused with grief and mourning, with a strong theme of parental death (especially mothers), but mainly it’s full of softness and the joy of finding a new place and people to call home. Of finally belonging to a tight-knit community, and learning about your heritage.
I absolutely adored Skylar and Raphael’s gentle relationship, and both boys stole a bit of my heart for themselves. The setting in the Native reserve was nothing short of incredible - so many beautiful descriptions of the wonders of nature! One can’t help but admire how appreciative the Natives are, and I loved learning about some of their traditions and history.
I dotted down some of my favorite moments, until I stopped because I would’ve done nothing else:
• Raphael gifting Skylar a flute, giving him a kind of voice
• Skylar slowly falling for Raphael’s smile - which goes from a rare to a common occurrence, especially around him
• Raphael casually laying his head in Skylar’s lap, and Skylar just as casually playing with Raphael’s beautiful hair
• Skylar’s grandmother visibly thawing at Skylar’s presence - I adored their relationship
• The soft kisses and the fierce ones
• The gentle way Raphael traced Skylar’s scars with his fingertips, then with his lips
Some minor details didn’t make sense and raised both my eyebrows, but nothing that pulled me out of the story for long (still, some degree of suspension of disbelief was needed).
I feel like the story could very well end here on a satisfying note, but I don’t think I have enough of Skylar and Raphael and their wonderful home.
The more he talked, the more I listened. The more I listened, the more I forgot that I wasn’t talking back. I could scratch my chin or quirk my eyebrows or tilt my head and he knew exactly what the gesture meant. He knew what I was feeling, if not what I was thinking. He made me feel like I had a voice.
I liked the feel of him on my lap, warm and solid and comforting. I liked having access to his every thought, his face as clear and readable as the surface of a mirror. I liked carding my fingers through his hair, and the way he shivered, just slightly, when I grazed his skin.
A stupid sensation of complete contentment crept through me. It struck me as kind of crazy, kind of amazing, that one person could make me feel so serene just by being.
”I won’t let them,” Raphael said. “I won’t let anyone take you away. I won’t let anyone hurt you. I’ll protect you. I’ll always protect you. I don’t care how. I just will.”
March 17, 2014
4.5 Stars
I know that ‘Gives Light’ doesn’t need another glowing review but how can I not when its effect on me is the same. I had NO IDEA the things I would learn and the effect it would all have on me. So this review is about all the things I didn’t know … but now I do :)
I didn’t know that the Moon and the Sun used to be married before they quarrelled and parted ways.
I didn’t know what it felt like to lay on my back by the creek and stare at the stars till my eyes went blurry.
I didn’t know that doves are among the only birds that produce milk for their young.
I didn’t know that the power of a soundless laugh is magnified a thousand times more than a vocal one.
I didn’t know what it felt like to breathe in tandem with a character. It hurts sometimes, but in a wonderful cathartic way.
I didn’t know how much I would covet the life within Nettlebush. Community, heritage, the gift and share economy and belonging somewhere made me ache with longing. I want that too. So much.
I didn’t know that a book could contain actual physical tranquilising side effects.
I didn’t know that the greatest strength of this story would be its quiet gentleness.
I didn’t know how much I too would grow.
I didn’t know that a story could ever bring me so much peace. My soul feels utterly sated.
I didn’t know that it would be among the most memorable books I’ve ever read.
I didn’t know how grateful and humbled I would feel for having read it.
I didn't know that this book would turn me into such a damn sap!
Urgh, I'm done with these YA books (after I read the rest of this series), all these stupid happy-shiny emotions will be ruining my rep. So. Anyone up for a blood curdling, angst ridden, erotic orgy, with cheating and zombies?
This review is the result of a reading challenge that Susan threw down for the team at BIOB. You can check out our group review plus enter the giveaway to win all 4 books in the series (Posted 16/03/2014).
I know that ‘Gives Light’ doesn’t need another glowing review but how can I not when its effect on me is the same. I had NO IDEA the things I would learn and the effect it would all have on me. So this review is about all the things I didn’t know … but now I do :)
I didn’t know that the Moon and the Sun used to be married before they quarrelled and parted ways.
I didn’t know what it felt like to lay on my back by the creek and stare at the stars till my eyes went blurry.
I didn’t know that doves are among the only birds that produce milk for their young.
I didn’t know that the power of a soundless laugh is magnified a thousand times more than a vocal one.
I didn’t know what it felt like to breathe in tandem with a character. It hurts sometimes, but in a wonderful cathartic way.
I didn’t know how much I would covet the life within Nettlebush. Community, heritage, the gift and share economy and belonging somewhere made me ache with longing. I want that too. So much.
I didn’t know that a book could contain actual physical tranquilising side effects.
I didn’t know that the greatest strength of this story would be its quiet gentleness.
I didn’t know how much I too would grow.
I didn’t know that a story could ever bring me so much peace. My soul feels utterly sated.
I didn’t know that it would be among the most memorable books I’ve ever read.
I didn’t know how grateful and humbled I would feel for having read it.
I didn't know that this book would turn me into such a damn sap!
Urgh, I'm done with these YA books (after I read the rest of this series), all these stupid happy-shiny emotions will be ruining my rep. So. Anyone up for a blood curdling, angst ridden, erotic orgy, with cheating and zombies?
This review is the result of a reading challenge that Susan threw down for the team at BIOB. You can check out our group review plus enter the giveaway to win all 4 books in the series (Posted 16/03/2014).
August 30, 2013
Just because we don’t talk about the hole in our heart doesn’t mean it’s not there.
Skylar St. Clair, a 16 year old mute boy, tells this heartfelt tale and introduced me to a beautiful world. After Skylar’s Dad disappears without word one, Skylar is forced to return to a place that wields such power and pain over his childhood memories. Nettlebush, the Plains Shoshone Reservation, where his mother was taken from him. The place where his voice was taken from him. But the Reserve community and life surprises Skylar. Layers of nature, history and tradition begin to settle in, embrace, and spark life and light in Skylar’s world. I loved watching Skylar find his way on the Reserve—with Granny, cooking, friends, and connecting with his past. And then… *sigh* there was Rafael.
”It struck me as kind of crazy, kind of amazing, that one person could make me feel so serene just by being.”
Rafael Gives Light. What to say about Rafael? I adore the dumbass! :) A gruff, moody young man haunted by his father’s crimes. Guilt and anger simmer and boil under his skin. But also a boy so alive with vulnerability, sweetness, smarts, and heart. He fit so perfectly alongside Skylar’s sunshine, smiles, and curls. Hell, I loved these two at first sight. The way Rafael and Skylar communicate, touch, and talk with silence, music, and facial expressions is pure magic. I’m sorry. I wish I could capture their energy for you, but how do I explain the rush and blush that hit my face every time Rafael called Skylar “Sky” or how my smile glowed whenever Skylar played with Rafael’s braids? I can’t even come close to capturing their heat. Their time on the page, the moments they shared were simply stunning. From an early morning walk to see the sunrise to shoulder shoves and smiles! I loved it all! They understood each other without saying a word. The harmony and energy they found in each other was cathartic, passionate, hilarious, and sweet. A slow building friendship and love that made me laugh, awww, and cry. You MUST meet these two.
”I could feel his taut belly against mine and our legs—his hard and muscular, mine skinny and long—a tangled mess. His arms were around me, searing and heavy across my back, but safe. Safer than anything.”
A big part of my love for this journey is the land and all it has to offer us. It dazzles me how much beauty and light Ms. Christo fit in this book. Flowers, trees, animals, insects, sun and the moon. Nature and all its wonder brought this story, the Shoshone people, culture, Skylar, and Rafael so alive for me. You will feel the wind, heat, and air on your skin. Feel the music and the dance. And cherish every hidden quiet corner. Ms. Christo possesses a beautiful way with words that will kick your sense of wonder into overdrive. I felt so emerged in the beauty. Blue skys to golden sunsets. Rushing waters, willow trees, and whispers in the grass. Breathtaking views of the land that awakened every tingle in my senses. I found myself listening to Greensleeves over and over and wondering what chokecherry pudding tastes like. Or even cricket cookies! Well—maybe not the cricket cookies. :) On my walks home at night, I tend to linger rather than rush now. Picking up acorns to roll around in my palm or leaves to twirl between my fingers. Nature not only sprang to life on the page, but all around me as well. I liked being in these pages. Inspiring and beautiful! And dare I whisper educational...haha… I had to look a lot of things up. Like what spittle bugs look like or pinyon pines or a promontory. The list goes on and on. I loved learning, seeing, and feeling it all.
Ooops…That turned into a gushfest. And there is so much more to say!
Gives Light is a coming of age tale filled with inspiration, power, and love. A tale of trying to live your life with the weight of family and guilt in your heart. Trying to learn to forgive and accept who you are and how to share your love with the ones around you. I hope we all find our Skylar or Rafael in life.
Highly recommended.
June 4, 2016
How could the story of a boy named Skylar and another's whose last name is Gives Light not be amazing?
As an European, my knowledge of Native Americans is limited. I know the basics, but I'm sure they teach much more in American schools.
This book amazed me. I learned many things I don't know. The writing is so flawless and the author does a great job in describing the Native characters, their surrounding environment and their wonderful stories.
Skylar is a 16 yo boy, whose life has been cruel, leaving him motherless and voiceless, with internal and external visible scars. Skylar's father disappears abruptly and he is taken to live with his Native grandmother at a Reserve in the middle of Arizona. Skylar looks nothing like the people living there. He has blonde curls and his skin is so much lighter.
“I said goodbye to the familiar cracks in the walls, to the fish tank that had never housed fish.”
The residents are wary of him initially, but soon he wins everybody over. He makes friends, people start to love him and teach him things that his father didn't, things that make him love his origins. Among everyone, there is a boy named Rafael, dark haired and blue eyed.
Rafael is a broken little boy blamed for his father's cruelties and loathed by the community. He likes to draw and this is his way of apologizing for things that weren't/aren't his fault. Skylar's arrival at the Reserve changes everything. They start a beautiful friendship. Rafael becomes Skylar's missing voice.
It was so wonderful watching this pure friendship transform into something more emotional. In this journey, they discover and explore their sensuality together for the first time. Those innocent but passionate kisses between them made my heart flutter. Rafael's protectiveness melts hearts.
“I won't let them," Rafael said. "I won't let anyone take you away. I won't let anyone hurt you. I'll protect you. I'll always protect you. I don't care how. I just will.”
I liked how the community doesn't judge anyone for his choices of whom to love or befriend. The secondary characters were awesome. Sky's Granny was an amazing strong woman. I loved how supportive of Skylar she was.
Apart from Skylar's story, the book had a real secondary plot, which worked perfectly and in harmony with the main story.
I'm so glad I gave this book a chance. My ancestors's doings put me to shame. I'm absolutely sure that the Native people described in this book (and in real life) are beautiful people with beautiful spirits. I love how they see, love and respect Nature. I hope someday they find peace in their tormented souls.
As an European, my knowledge of Native Americans is limited. I know the basics, but I'm sure they teach much more in American schools.
This book amazed me. I learned many things I don't know. The writing is so flawless and the author does a great job in describing the Native characters, their surrounding environment and their wonderful stories.
Skylar is a 16 yo boy, whose life has been cruel, leaving him motherless and voiceless, with internal and external visible scars. Skylar's father disappears abruptly and he is taken to live with his Native grandmother at a Reserve in the middle of Arizona. Skylar looks nothing like the people living there. He has blonde curls and his skin is so much lighter.
“I said goodbye to the familiar cracks in the walls, to the fish tank that had never housed fish.”
The residents are wary of him initially, but soon he wins everybody over. He makes friends, people start to love him and teach him things that his father didn't, things that make him love his origins. Among everyone, there is a boy named Rafael, dark haired and blue eyed.
Rafael is a broken little boy blamed for his father's cruelties and loathed by the community. He likes to draw and this is his way of apologizing for things that weren't/aren't his fault. Skylar's arrival at the Reserve changes everything. They start a beautiful friendship. Rafael becomes Skylar's missing voice.
It was so wonderful watching this pure friendship transform into something more emotional. In this journey, they discover and explore their sensuality together for the first time. Those innocent but passionate kisses between them made my heart flutter. Rafael's protectiveness melts hearts.
“I won't let them," Rafael said. "I won't let anyone take you away. I won't let anyone hurt you. I'll protect you. I'll always protect you. I don't care how. I just will.”
I liked how the community doesn't judge anyone for his choices of whom to love or befriend. The secondary characters were awesome. Sky's Granny was an amazing strong woman. I loved how supportive of Skylar she was.
Apart from Skylar's story, the book had a real secondary plot, which worked perfectly and in harmony with the main story.
I'm so glad I gave this book a chance. My ancestors's doings put me to shame. I'm absolutely sure that the Native people described in this book (and in real life) are beautiful people with beautiful spirits. I love how they see, love and respect Nature. I hope someday they find peace in their tormented souls.
April 6, 2018
A stunning and evocative prose telling a special and beautiful story. The narration is so good you are transported there from the very first page. You can feel Skylar, you can see what he sees, you are able to love him, feel sorry for him, empathize and almost touch him. It also has a very subtle humor coloring some of Sky’s thoughts and that transmitted me even more tenderness, lighting up the the perception of sadness that Skylar’s life inspires.
And oh, Skylar! What a strong voice he owns. He is only sixteen but leading the story like a pro, like the grown man he is not (yet), like the shinny star he already is. He is kind and that kindness is perceived in every action toward the others, and in his attitude about life in general. His vision is a delight because you want to hug him, talk to him, understand him and let him know he’s understood.
Skylar has suffered a lot. He is mute since he was 5 and he faces the world in a way not many people would. He is brave and unselfish. He, as a character, is bright and unique. He is the light and you are the moth and the only thing you can do is follow him in this journey, discovering his origins and learning who he is.
He is the blonde guy in a Native American reservation. The white unwelcome boy with no ties with his Indian side. With a dead mother, a missing father and with no voice. Physically disable, yes, but otherwise his internal voice is so potent I could hear him from my home and through the pages. He talked directly to me and he was amazing enough to introduce me two things I want to highlight:
- First of all, Raphael: the native, the gruff guy with the heavy baggage, the uncomfortable heritage and the huge heart. The teenager who deserves to be treated as the unique man he is. Not as his father’s son, not as the seed of something bad because he is not. Far from it, Raphael I don’t mope, I brood is compassionate, and kind and he can talk to Sky as if he was hearing each unpronounced word.
- Second: The journey to another culture, another society, another way of living. This is fiction and I don’t know the accuracy of all of it but it was very interesting to read about Native Americans and some of their rules, traditions and ways of living. To be honest, it could have been a dystopian story and I would have loved it the same because the prose is magnificent and what it’s told beautiful, appealing and special. It’s an ordinary story about extraordinary guys showing us their everyday routine, their falling in love.
There are 6 books in this series and I haven’t read any of the blurbs so I don’t know what they are about but I guess I’ll read book two just to check where the story goes. Because Gives Light is the beginning, the story of first kisses and holding hands. The story of two cute teenagers supporting each other and bonding. A friendship forged in trust and understanding and I want to know what comes next.
Very recommended read if you are in the mood for something sweet with a good and remarkable prose.
Reviews for Book Lovers
And oh, Skylar! What a strong voice he owns. He is only sixteen but leading the story like a pro, like the grown man he is not (yet), like the shinny star he already is. He is kind and that kindness is perceived in every action toward the others, and in his attitude about life in general. His vision is a delight because you want to hug him, talk to him, understand him and let him know he’s understood.
Skylar has suffered a lot. He is mute since he was 5 and he faces the world in a way not many people would. He is brave and unselfish. He, as a character, is bright and unique. He is the light and you are the moth and the only thing you can do is follow him in this journey, discovering his origins and learning who he is.
He is the blonde guy in a Native American reservation. The white unwelcome boy with no ties with his Indian side. With a dead mother, a missing father and with no voice. Physically disable, yes, but otherwise his internal voice is so potent I could hear him from my home and through the pages. He talked directly to me and he was amazing enough to introduce me two things I want to highlight:
- First of all, Raphael: the native, the gruff guy with the heavy baggage, the uncomfortable heritage and the huge heart. The teenager who deserves to be treated as the unique man he is. Not as his father’s son, not as the seed of something bad because he is not. Far from it, Raphael I don’t mope, I brood is compassionate, and kind and he can talk to Sky as if he was hearing each unpronounced word.
- Second: The journey to another culture, another society, another way of living. This is fiction and I don’t know the accuracy of all of it but it was very interesting to read about Native Americans and some of their rules, traditions and ways of living. To be honest, it could have been a dystopian story and I would have loved it the same because the prose is magnificent and what it’s told beautiful, appealing and special. It’s an ordinary story about extraordinary guys showing us their everyday routine, their falling in love.
There are 6 books in this series and I haven’t read any of the blurbs so I don’t know what they are about but I guess I’ll read book two just to check where the story goes. Because Gives Light is the beginning, the story of first kisses and holding hands. The story of two cute teenagers supporting each other and bonding. A friendship forged in trust and understanding and I want to know what comes next.
Very recommended read if you are in the mood for something sweet with a good and remarkable prose.
Reviews for Book Lovers
Read
October 12, 2019
5 Breathtaking Stars
SKYLAR
RAFAEL
I just knew from the very beginning that this book was going to steal my heart, I didn't realize how much.
The hero of our story is 16 year old Skylar St Clair, half white/half Native American.
Skylar lives with his father, one day his father fails to return home. Skylar is then forced to live at Nettlebush Indian Reservation with his estranged grandmother. This is where he forms new friendships. It's here he meets the beautiful brooding Rafael.
It felt like Skylar had lead me to the bonfire where I sat and watched through the dancing flames, this magical story unfold in front of my eyes.
The best books are the ones that make you think and feel. It felt so real that if I reached out I could run my fingers through Rafael's beautiful hair and run my hand gently across Skylar's cheek and smile.
The writing is beautiful, I look forward to so much more from this author.
Absolutely Stunning Book - I truly loved this story.....You simple MUST read it.
SKYLAR
RAFAEL
I just knew from the very beginning that this book was going to steal my heart, I didn't realize how much.
The hero of our story is 16 year old Skylar St Clair, half white/half Native American.
Skylar lives with his father, one day his father fails to return home. Skylar is then forced to live at Nettlebush Indian Reservation with his estranged grandmother. This is where he forms new friendships. It's here he meets the beautiful brooding Rafael.
It felt like Skylar had lead me to the bonfire where I sat and watched through the dancing flames, this magical story unfold in front of my eyes.
The best books are the ones that make you think and feel. It felt so real that if I reached out I could run my fingers through Rafael's beautiful hair and run my hand gently across Skylar's cheek and smile.
The writing is beautiful, I look forward to so much more from this author.
Absolutely Stunning Book - I truly loved this story.....You simple MUST read it.
May 3, 2017
I have no idea how to describe my feelings once I'd finished this story, it was absolutely beautiful, and I'm so glad Trish recommended it to me and Rosa made me boot it up the queue. It was perfect, completely captivating, any and all superlatives you care to use, this wonderful, wonderful book deserves them....it was a privilege for me to read it. 5 stars on here, but worth millions
AND 5 GLITTERING GOLDEN STARS 
This is the amazing story of Skylar and Rafael, and yes, you did read my shelves right in the introduction, there is NO sex in this book whatsoever!! Skylar is the son of Paul Looks Over, a native American, and his father is missing...he's always told Sky that if he doesn't return within 3 days, he is to go to the police. Skylar himself is not your normal 16 year old, he is mute, and once he steps inside the police station, things change forever for him and for everyone else he comes into contact with. Eventually, he is taken to the reservation at Nettlebush Arizona where he meets his grandmother Catherine whom he hasn't seen since he was five.....I'm not going into any more detail other than to say that I've already downloaded the other 3 books in the series, and if you miss out on this story, you'll be sorry you did. Yet another Young Adult story that I myself would have missed out on had I not started to seriously look at the genre. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Rosa made the point in her review that one of the reasons this book is not so popular could be that it's m/m. I'd like to put forward another reason and that's the fact that the MC's are Native Americans...I hope that isn't the reason but it does make you wonder...as the book says 'White colonists had pushed the Native Americans out of their homes, and then they had slaughtered them for expressing their beliefs'...that is FACT, it may not be pleasant for people nowadays to accept, but the truth rarely is.
March 22, 2019
4.25 stars!
I’ve been going through the biggest M/M book slump ever! So I was beyond happy having found this book randomly on GR. I enjoyed this book so much. I literally had zero expectations especially since I’ve never read this author.
“Gives Light” slowly sneaked up on me an emotional and poignant story. The MC Skyler and Rafael share a tragedy but instead of making them hate each other it surprisingly brings them together. Their relationship was so tender as only first love can be. Their first kiss was the sweetest thing I’ve read in a while. When they were together was like watching the calm after the storm. With everything going around them things that should of torn them apart only bonded more. I loved that the reservation community accepted both Skylar and Rafael. Loved the secondary characters too, but I loved it more that it didn’t take the spotlight from the Sky and Rafa.
The writing was so good! The plot refreshing and with realistic characters. I know that this was the first book of a few more on Sky and Rafa. I haven’t read the blurbs of the other books but I’m hoping we see this characters older and more establish. Looking forward to book two. ❤️
I’ve been going through the biggest M/M book slump ever! So I was beyond happy having found this book randomly on GR. I enjoyed this book so much. I literally had zero expectations especially since I’ve never read this author.
“Gives Light” slowly sneaked up on me an emotional and poignant story. The MC Skyler and Rafael share a tragedy but instead of making them hate each other it surprisingly brings them together. Their relationship was so tender as only first love can be. Their first kiss was the sweetest thing I’ve read in a while. When they were together was like watching the calm after the storm. With everything going around them things that should of torn them apart only bonded more. I loved that the reservation community accepted both Skylar and Rafael. Loved the secondary characters too, but I loved it more that it didn’t take the spotlight from the Sky and Rafa.
The writing was so good! The plot refreshing and with realistic characters. I know that this was the first book of a few more on Sky and Rafa. I haven’t read the blurbs of the other books but I’m hoping we see this characters older and more establish. Looking forward to book two. ❤️
October 30, 2015
***5 Beautiful Stars***
This book...OMG, this book! It's one of the most beautiful, heartwarming, inspiring stories I've ever read. Since my reviewing skills are limited I'll just leave you with one of my favorite quotes and urge you to read this book. Hopefully you'll love it as much as I did.
“He broke away from my mouth and trailed his lips down the front of my throat. I felt his lips close around my scars. He kissed away their ugliness. His lips parted in tingling butterfly kisses that drained the strength from my knees. I realized he was mouthing words against my skin.
Not words. Just one word.
Mine.”
This book...OMG, this book! It's one of the most beautiful, heartwarming, inspiring stories I've ever read. Since my reviewing skills are limited I'll just leave you with one of my favorite quotes and urge you to read this book. Hopefully you'll love it as much as I did.
“He broke away from my mouth and trailed his lips down the front of my throat. I felt his lips close around my scars. He kissed away their ugliness. His lips parted in tingling butterfly kisses that drained the strength from my knees. I realized he was mouthing words against my skin.
Not words. Just one word.
Mine.”
March 18, 2014
The song of this story is gorgeous.
It flows beyond the pages and touches you; leaving you forever changed.
My heart is full...my heart is happy...my heart now contains pieces of Skylar and his world.
I believe a Native American proverb pulls my thoughts together nicely….
Skylar is not only the epitome of the good wolf, but he stirs the good wolf inside me. I was overcome with peace and love listening to Skylar’s story. He made me want to be better...be more. He may not be able to speak, but his voice is probably the most powerful I’ve ever read.
The characters absolutely made this book. I fell head over heels for Skylar and I adore Rafael nearly as much. The beautiful flow of Christo's words transported me to the Reserve. Brilliant writing!
The blurb is clear and accurate.
Skylar is the sun and Rafael is the wildflower...and together they grow, bloom and thrive in each other's presence. It was calm, serene and soothing despite the ugly shadows lingering from the past. Shocking and disturbing secrets are revealed and I fought the urge, the need, to comfort and hug Sky. A boy with more heartache than anyone should endure, yet somehow he continues to brighten the world around him. His name is fitting, for he shines and he seems to enrich everything he touches.
From tattoos...
to sun-catchers...
...I was spellbound.
~The writing is dazzling- creating vivid pictures of the Native American culture.
~The characters are exceptional, intoxicating and despite their flaws, lovable.
~The story that unfolds is touching, unforgettable, and heart-warming.
A beautiful coming-of-age tale blended with friends to ‘more-than-friends’ and self-discovery and acceptance.
Overall, I believe it is truly an epic love story of the balance between light and dark and the miraculous power of compassion and pure love.
*4.5 forever-in-my-heart stars*
Stop by Boys in Our Books to check out our group challenge and a chance to win the ENTIRE 'Gives Light' series...
It flows beyond the pages and touches you; leaving you forever changed.
My heart is full...my heart is happy...my heart now contains pieces of Skylar and his world.
I believe a Native American proverb pulls my thoughts together nicely….
“There is a battle of two wolves inside us all.
One is evil.
It is anger, jealously, greed, resentment, lies, inferiority and ego.
The other is good.
It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy and truth.
The wolf that wins? The one you feed.”
Skylar is not only the epitome of the good wolf, but he stirs the good wolf inside me. I was overcome with peace and love listening to Skylar’s story. He made me want to be better...be more. He may not be able to speak, but his voice is probably the most powerful I’ve ever read.
The characters absolutely made this book. I fell head over heels for Skylar and I adore Rafael nearly as much. The beautiful flow of Christo's words transported me to the Reserve. Brilliant writing!
The blurb is clear and accurate.
Skylar is the sun and Rafael is the wildflower...and together they grow, bloom and thrive in each other's presence. It was calm, serene and soothing despite the ugly shadows lingering from the past. Shocking and disturbing secrets are revealed and I fought the urge, the need, to comfort and hug Sky. A boy with more heartache than anyone should endure, yet somehow he continues to brighten the world around him. His name is fitting, for he shines and he seems to enrich everything he touches.
From tattoos...
to sun-catchers...
...I was spellbound.
~The writing is dazzling- creating vivid pictures of the Native American culture.
~The characters are exceptional, intoxicating and despite their flaws, lovable.
~The story that unfolds is touching, unforgettable, and heart-warming.
A beautiful coming-of-age tale blended with friends to ‘more-than-friends’ and self-discovery and acceptance.
Overall, I believe it is truly an epic love story of the balance between light and dark and the miraculous power of compassion and pure love.
*4.5 forever-in-my-heart stars*
Stop by Boys in Our Books to check out our group challenge and a chance to win the ENTIRE 'Gives Light' series...
February 20, 2024
Oh, it's so easy to fall in love with this book and its characters!
It's a beautiful, touching and tender coming of age story.
I’m already looking forward to the other books in the series!
I loved:
- The unique setting on a Native American reservation, the vivid insights into Shoshone culture, tradition and history.
- The writing. It's simple but beautiful - it flows like water.
- Skylar and Rafael's relationship, their slowly developing romance - tender and innocent. If you need steamy moments in your romance novels, then this is not the right book for you. There is only kissing and some touching, but those moments give you all the feels!
- The secondary characters (Annie and Granny in particular!)
Highly recommended if you are looking for a heartwarming, beautiful YA book in a unique setting.
I really liked his smile. I'd never particularly admired a smile before, and it mystified me when I realized that I admired Rafael's. I guess what I liked about it was that it was honest. It was a look into his heart and soul, both of which he typically kept hidden behind dark scowls and curtains of knotted black hair, fearful that exposing them to the world meant exposing them to pain. It was Rafael. And he wasn't afraid of exposing his heart and soul to me.
It's a beautiful, touching and tender coming of age story.
I’m already looking forward to the other books in the series!
I loved:
- The unique setting on a Native American reservation, the vivid insights into Shoshone culture, tradition and history.
- The writing. It's simple but beautiful - it flows like water.
- Skylar and Rafael's relationship, their slowly developing romance - tender and innocent. If you need steamy moments in your romance novels, then this is not the right book for you. There is only kissing and some touching, but those moments give you all the feels!
- The secondary characters (Annie and Granny in particular!)
Highly recommended if you are looking for a heartwarming, beautiful YA book in a unique setting.
I really liked his smile. I'd never particularly admired a smile before, and it mystified me when I realized that I admired Rafael's. I guess what I liked about it was that it was honest. It was a look into his heart and soul, both of which he typically kept hidden behind dark scowls and curtains of knotted black hair, fearful that exposing them to the world meant exposing them to pain. It was Rafael. And he wasn't afraid of exposing his heart and soul to me.
May 11, 2025
5.0 stars ...
(Re-read: May '25)
OH, Jiminy Christmas ... I don't even know where to start! 🥴 This was SO freakin' awesome! It checked every single box for me. It's a coming-of-age m/m romance, of course, but it's also a mystery drama which unfolded perfectly and came to a spot-on delicious resolution!👍👍
I immediately fell in love with Skylar and Rafael, exquisitely crafted main characters, as well as the supporting cast ... Annie, Aubrey, Lila, Granny (OOPS! I mean "Grandmother"! 🤭) and the others.
Skylar's been mute since the age of 5 ... and that was a big deal to me. It was handled so well. Another check box was the setting/backdrop of the Native American reservation. The story is rich with the fascinating and beautiful culture of our Native Americans and I soaked that up like a sponge.
OH! And the best part?!? There are five more books in the series! YAY! 👏😁👏
(Re-read: May '25)
OH, Jiminy Christmas ... I don't even know where to start! 🥴 This was SO freakin' awesome! It checked every single box for me. It's a coming-of-age m/m romance, of course, but it's also a mystery drama which unfolded perfectly and came to a spot-on delicious resolution!👍👍
I immediately fell in love with Skylar and Rafael, exquisitely crafted main characters, as well as the supporting cast ... Annie, Aubrey, Lila, Granny (OOPS! I mean "Grandmother"! 🤭) and the others.
Skylar's been mute since the age of 5 ... and that was a big deal to me. It was handled so well. Another check box was the setting/backdrop of the Native American reservation. The story is rich with the fascinating and beautiful culture of our Native Americans and I soaked that up like a sponge.
OH! And the best part?!? There are five more books in the series! YAY! 👏😁👏
April 11, 2014
lucky girl that I am, I WON this series!
Thanks to the lovely ladies at : http://boysinourbooks.com
4.25*
Oh wow.
This book has popped up in my feed numerous times and each time I think..I need to read this.
Then I entered a giveaway and won the whole series, and boy am I glad I did. Otherwise I'm not sure how long I would have waited to read it.
Skylar is such a wonderful boy, really what a giving and open heart. He really did have every reason to carry anger. At the unfairness of his life from an early age, leaving him mute and motherless. Now he's without his father and living on an Indian reservation with almost no knowledge of his own culture, history and place there.
But the thing is, Skylar isn't angry or resentful. He's forgiving, hopeful and so full of light.
He seems like a very old soul, wise beyond his years.
He meets Annie his first day there and it the start of a new life. He finally has friends and is accepted by them.
He ( and though him I) learned a lot of the history of his tribe and the native Americans in general.
I was fascinated by it and feel like I have a while new understanding and admiration for these people.
Rafael is such a fascinating and heartbreaking character, for me at least, even more so than Skylar.
This was a book that grabbed me right away and didn't let me go until the very end.
I'm so glad I finally read this book and also very glad I have the others already loaded on my reader.
Thanks to the lovely ladies at : http://boysinourbooks.com
4.25*
Oh wow.
This book has popped up in my feed numerous times and each time I think..I need to read this.
Then I entered a giveaway and won the whole series, and boy am I glad I did. Otherwise I'm not sure how long I would have waited to read it.
Skylar is such a wonderful boy, really what a giving and open heart. He really did have every reason to carry anger. At the unfairness of his life from an early age, leaving him mute and motherless. Now he's without his father and living on an Indian reservation with almost no knowledge of his own culture, history and place there.
But the thing is, Skylar isn't angry or resentful. He's forgiving, hopeful and so full of light.
He seems like a very old soul, wise beyond his years.
He meets Annie his first day there and it the start of a new life. He finally has friends and is accepted by them.
He ( and though him I) learned a lot of the history of his tribe and the native Americans in general.
I was fascinated by it and feel like I have a while new understanding and admiration for these people.
Rafael is such a fascinating and heartbreaking character, for me at least, even more so than Skylar.
This was a book that grabbed me right away and didn't let me go until the very end.
I'm so glad I finally read this book and also very glad I have the others already loaded on my reader.
February 27, 2016
If I have to describe this book just in a few words I'd chose
beautiful
quiet
warm
poignant
and sweet.
It's a YA book but it is one of those books I'd recommended even as a family reading in front of a fireplace, yes, for a whole family, because there is so much heart and soul in this book; there is nothing forbidden dark or melodramatic here; there are no any sexual excesses in it.
The heart-warming book tells in a very poetical way the story of of Skylar, a half white/half Native American 16 years old boy who has to come back to the place of his birth, in the Shoshone Nettlebush reservation, because his farther disappeared.
This reunion with his past will change his life.
Gives Light is about friendship,trust, lost, love and...life how it is- unpredictable, tragical, intense and... grateful...
Amazingly written!
Highly recommended.
October 21, 2012
no voice, but certainly he has a lot to say.... That's the better line I can find to describe the main character of this story, Skylar
Blurb
Sixteen old boy, alone and voiceless. How you feel if you where him, Skylar? The book begin with this only man, abandoned by his father and took to his grandmother house.
Sky is not just a teenager. A surviver from a brutal crime, that left him with useless vocal cords, and a dead mother, he is also a Native American by blood, his father is Shoshone. His story is the voice of someone that don't know much about his family traditions and the way of live in the Shoshone reservation.
What is the best quality of this book?
In my modest opinion all the information about the native americans. Sky will learn and tell you everything about his father's tribe (his mother is not a Native American) but also start to see and learn about many other tribe. Each pauwow he will learn more about other reservations, and of course also you. It's mesmerizing... I love each story, each character and their unique traditions.
It's a young-adult story?
I think so, but I prefer to classify it a "for everyone" not just YA story. Certainly it's also a romance, because Sky will meet a boy and start a deep friendship with him. His name is Rafael, and what an irony... Sky best friend and possible his biggest crush, is the son of the serial killer that destroyed his family. I said "possible" crush, I know. He is young, he is starting to discover his origins, but also starting to understand he maybe be in love with Rafael. I will not spoil saying more, you must read to know.
There is also some activism or it's just a 5 stars nonfiction book?
Oh yeah, definitively this book is much more than just a boys story.
There is a bitter message too, of how Native American are saw, and treated.
Each time the main character will be frustrated, seeing the injustice and prejudice you will be frustrated too. Each time he will be mad, you will want to go, hug him and tell everything will change... but maybe it's not that easy.
I don't know particulars about Native Americans... I never even travel to USA.. what I know is what I read/saw online/watch in movies. So yeah, I'm very ignorant in this topic... but I know... I really know (for my own personal experience) how you feel after a racist comment, a hate stare, just because you are you.
I can't say if all the Native American information is this book is precise or not. It help me to know more? I will certainly answer YES.
This is a Native American tale, from a boy that happen to be also gay
Don't fool yourself reading it just because of the LGBT theme. It's really not the main focus of the story.
This is a story of a voiceless young boy, that represent many other voiceless Native American fighting for their rights to be... themselves.
I recommend it to readers with open mind. Don't read it thinking it will a boring lesson about Indians. It's a very funny story (Sky is really a very funny boy!), with interesting tales... but also a little activism... to pass you a message of equality and human rights... Yeah human not civil rights, that should be applied to everyone, despite of all races, colors, sexual orientation and creeds.... because it's what we all are, humans.
5 stars
October 26, 2012
I loved this book! My favorite of the year. Native American culture comes alive and delivers a wonderful sense of place. Not only a love story, but a story of family, friendship, revenge and forgiveness. Sometimes a book transcends it's genre with wonderful results. This is that book.
Gives light is a trilogy and I have started the next book Looks Over. So far it is delivering the promise of the first.
Update:
Just found out there is a fourth book released 3 days ago
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16...
Gives light is a trilogy and I have started the next book Looks Over. So far it is delivering the promise of the first.
Update:
Just found out there is a fourth book released 3 days ago
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16...
July 20, 2016
This book is the first in a series, that changes and grows through the subsequent books.
This first installment is perhaps the simplest, and the easiest to read. Skylar is a 16-year-old who survived an attack that left him mute at age 5. The same attacker killed his mother, and his father took him away from the Nettlebush Reserve where they had lived, to an isolated upbringing in the city. Now Skylar's dad is suddenly missing and he has to go back to the reserve to live with his grandmother. There he is reunited with people he knew and a Native way of life he'd almost forgotten. He also meets Rafael, a tall, somber young man whose face is almost the same as his father's - the man who killed Skylar's mother and permanently took his voice.
Skylar is the most open, positive and easygoing guy you could ever hope to meet, and that nature lets him get to know Rafael without judging him by his father. In Rafael, he finds a friend, a voice, and a guide to his past and future. And in Skylar, Rafael finds what he has been missing - someone who looks at him and sees only him, not the ghost of his murderous father.
But life isn't that simple - the mystery of Skylar's missing father, threats to the reservation, history lessons that reveal the ugly side of broken promises, broken treaties and broken lives - the boys have a lot of growing up to do, and the promise of what they might become to one another is barely starting.
This book has just a hint of the paranormal in it (and it bugged me just a bit, that both Skylar's father and Rafael were somehow mind readers who knew what Skylar was trying to say, while not tipping all the way into the paranormal to allow for an explanation.) Each book does stand alone, but with very HFN endings.
The remaining series can be read two ways - 1,2,3 (Skylar's books) 5,6 (Rafael's) and then 4 (set 15 years later)
Or 1,5,2,6,3 - 4 (alternating Skylar and Rafael over comparable time frames.)
Rafael's books go much further into a mystical, paranormal vein for the same events, both explaining and broadening what happens in Skylar's. I read 1 and 2 first, and was glad I did because I found Skylar's POV more gripping, so when I went back to 5 and found myself skimming a little, I was hooked on the series.
The writing is very good, the vocabulary and descriptions are lyrical, but Skylar's nature allows you to accept them as his thoughts, and they seem fairly natural since he doesn't speak them aloud. Both boys are a bit too good to be true, but Rafael at least has some flaws and annoying habits that give him reality and depth and character. The bits of Native history and current truth that surface are real, and poignant, and painful. I learned a lot (and researched a fair bit, grinding my teeth at injustice) through this series.
This first installment is perhaps the simplest, and the easiest to read. Skylar is a 16-year-old who survived an attack that left him mute at age 5. The same attacker killed his mother, and his father took him away from the Nettlebush Reserve where they had lived, to an isolated upbringing in the city. Now Skylar's dad is suddenly missing and he has to go back to the reserve to live with his grandmother. There he is reunited with people he knew and a Native way of life he'd almost forgotten. He also meets Rafael, a tall, somber young man whose face is almost the same as his father's - the man who killed Skylar's mother and permanently took his voice.
Skylar is the most open, positive and easygoing guy you could ever hope to meet, and that nature lets him get to know Rafael without judging him by his father. In Rafael, he finds a friend, a voice, and a guide to his past and future. And in Skylar, Rafael finds what he has been missing - someone who looks at him and sees only him, not the ghost of his murderous father.
But life isn't that simple - the mystery of Skylar's missing father, threats to the reservation, history lessons that reveal the ugly side of broken promises, broken treaties and broken lives - the boys have a lot of growing up to do, and the promise of what they might become to one another is barely starting.
This book has just a hint of the paranormal in it (and it bugged me just a bit, that both Skylar's father and Rafael were somehow mind readers who knew what Skylar was trying to say, while not tipping all the way into the paranormal to allow for an explanation.) Each book does stand alone, but with very HFN endings.
The remaining series can be read two ways - 1,2,3 (Skylar's books) 5,6 (Rafael's) and then 4 (set 15 years later)
Or 1,5,2,6,3 - 4 (alternating Skylar and Rafael over comparable time frames.)
Rafael's books go much further into a mystical, paranormal vein for the same events, both explaining and broadening what happens in Skylar's. I read 1 and 2 first, and was glad I did because I found Skylar's POV more gripping, so when I went back to 5 and found myself skimming a little, I was hooked on the series.
The writing is very good, the vocabulary and descriptions are lyrical, but Skylar's nature allows you to accept them as his thoughts, and they seem fairly natural since he doesn't speak them aloud. Both boys are a bit too good to be true, but Rafael at least has some flaws and annoying habits that give him reality and depth and character. The bits of Native history and current truth that surface are real, and poignant, and painful. I learned a lot (and researched a fair bit, grinding my teeth at injustice) through this series.
September 22, 2013
This story is about Skylar Saint Clair whose laughs are soundless and who speaks with his smiles, who’s cheeky and open-hearted; about Rafael Gives Light, whose father ”liked hurting women”, who draws gifts for the dead, who’s fierce and protective, and can read Skylar’s face. It’s about them gaining something beautiful and positive out of something ugly and terrifying.
”[…] Rafael pushed me up against the wall and kissed me, hard and wanting and fierce, filled to the brim with emotions that spilled other, and I held him close, and anchored him to me, anchoring him to earth.”
From serial killer’s victim and son, they become buddies, boyfriends and members of a pack of friends, they bring each other solace and balance, and are on their way of finding their place in a world they’re attuned to.
I agree with Elizabetta that the author’s voice took precedence over her character’s, there were moments when I longed for Rafael’s POV, for duality and excitement; it is a little one-sided too. I loved it and fell for Skylar and Rafael all the same.
“Gives Light” is a lovely story that speaks of the Plains people and of harmony.
This was a buddy read with Elizabetta for The Blog of Sid Love
March 17, 2014
Maybe it’s a weird thing to say in a review about a book I chose to read, but here goes. I feel grateful for having experienced Gives Light. This book was one of the most unassuming, comforting novels I've read in quite a long time. It’s one of those books that sits quietly, patiently on your shelf, and once you've read the last page, you wonder how in the world you waited so long to start.
If you asked me to describe it in just one word, out of ALL the words, I could tell you instantly, and without hesitation. Reading Gives Light left me with an overwhelming sense of...quiet. It’s a story of both losing and finding yourself. It’s a story of forgiveness, redemption, family, heart, love.
It’s about talking without speaking—literally and figuratively. There’s mystery. There’s fight, there’s beauty. No words are wasted, every word paints a picture.
From Skylar’s father (and mother) to Granny to Annie, to Raf’s father and every single, solitary character in between, there’s magic.
I’m not going to pretend I’m something I’m not. I like heat and intimacy in my books. I don’t need it to be gratuitous, I just want it there. Of course in YA, and well, any other book, sometimes that magic happens off the page. Sometimes it works, a lot of times it doesn't. Not so with Gives Light. I felt so much intimacy between Sky and Raf. They’re clearly in love, they clearly enjoy giving and showing affection. And I felt it, in what wasn't there, and it was beautiful. It came through in the smallest of ways, and if you don’t pay attention, maybe you’ll miss out. When Raf gives Sky the plains flute, the way Raf knows what Sky is feeling and thinking. It's the things *not* done or said that bring so much feeling into the story. The intimacy...unf.
Listen, I could go on and on and on, or my review could be these four words alone: I loved this book. I’ll leave it at that for now.
If you haven’t already, you should read Gives Light. The sooner the better. As for me, I can’t wait to experience the rest of the series; I won’t wait long, that’s for sure.
I read Gives Light as part of a BioB team challenge. Check out our group review, plus enter to win all four books (LUCKY YOU!) in the series by clicking here.
If you asked me to describe it in just one word, out of ALL the words, I could tell you instantly, and without hesitation. Reading Gives Light left me with an overwhelming sense of...quiet. It’s a story of both losing and finding yourself. It’s a story of forgiveness, redemption, family, heart, love.
It’s about talking without speaking—literally and figuratively. There’s mystery. There’s fight, there’s beauty. No words are wasted, every word paints a picture.
From Skylar’s father (and mother) to Granny to Annie, to Raf’s father and every single, solitary character in between, there’s magic.
I’m not going to pretend I’m something I’m not. I like heat and intimacy in my books. I don’t need it to be gratuitous, I just want it there. Of course in YA, and well, any other book, sometimes that magic happens off the page. Sometimes it works, a lot of times it doesn't. Not so with Gives Light. I felt so much intimacy between Sky and Raf. They’re clearly in love, they clearly enjoy giving and showing affection. And I felt it, in what wasn't there, and it was beautiful. It came through in the smallest of ways, and if you don’t pay attention, maybe you’ll miss out. When Raf gives Sky the plains flute, the way Raf knows what Sky is feeling and thinking. It's the things *not* done or said that bring so much feeling into the story. The intimacy...unf.
Listen, I could go on and on and on, or my review could be these four words alone: I loved this book. I’ll leave it at that for now.
If you haven’t already, you should read Gives Light. The sooner the better. As for me, I can’t wait to experience the rest of the series; I won’t wait long, that’s for sure.
I read Gives Light as part of a BioB team challenge. Check out our group review, plus enter to win all four books (LUCKY YOU!) in the series by clicking here.
July 14, 2015
What a beautiful story!!
I read this book with a friend, we took our time to slowly enjoy it and talk about it.
It's just what this book deserves, a special attention!
Skyler is such a sweet 16 year old boy. He is mute, after his mother's murderer failed to do the same to him.
After 11 years away from the reservation he was born at, he is back, living with his grandmother.
He is quick to make friends, one of those friends is his mother's murderer's son, Rafael.
The broody Rafael is the opposite from the smily Skyler, but together, they form a quiet friendship, and then more.
I love these two boys, and they are dear to me now, that I'm going straight to the next book to find out what's next for them.
I read this book with a friend, we took our time to slowly enjoy it and talk about it.
It's just what this book deserves, a special attention!
Skyler is such a sweet 16 year old boy. He is mute, after his mother's murderer failed to do the same to him.
After 11 years away from the reservation he was born at, he is back, living with his grandmother.
He is quick to make friends, one of those friends is his mother's murderer's son, Rafael.
The broody Rafael is the opposite from the smily Skyler, but together, they form a quiet friendship, and then more.
I love these two boys, and they are dear to me now, that I'm going straight to the next book to find out what's next for them.
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