A review by toniatales
Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon

emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Please check content warnings before reading. Seven years ago, I picked up my first YA novel and it was The Sun Is Also A Star, and now seven years later Nicola Yoon’s writing is just as I remember it, memorable and leaving me in tears. Instructions for Dancing discusses the meaning of love, heartbreak, loss, and how to deal with it all. Evet, the main character, is raw as readers explore how she grapples her loss of faith in the institution of love. Through the divorce of her parents, a “Free Little Library,” a vanishing woman, a powerful gift, a dance competition, and a new chance for love, the following questions are looked into: Is there such a thing as unconditional love? Is love worth it even though it is bound to end in heartbreak? If you were given the chance to see how relationships around you end, even your own, would you take it? After being a slump for so long, this is exactly what I needed to kick off 2024. It is a quick read, with short chapters, that is bound to worthwhile experience. Nicola Yoon never disappoints.
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