Review: Every Day

Every Day by David Levithan

"If you want to live within your own truth, you have to choose to go through the initially painful and ultimately comforting process of finding it."

"A" has no body, and instead wakes up every morning in a different one. There is no predicting which body A will be in except that they are always the age A would have been and always geographically near where the last one was. A has complete control over that body for the day and even has access to all the persons memories allowing for as "normal" of a day as possible. But then, A wakes up as Justin and falls in love with Justin's girlfriend Rhiannon.


The ultimate question remains...Can love conquer all?

Like all of Levithan's novels, Every Day is rich with wisdom and beautifully written prose. It is the type of novel to savor. The language is rich yet completely embraceable to the modern reader. 

Besides just the story of love, this story examines people and their connection to life and to one another. Have you ever tried to talk about someone without using their gender, it's harder than you might imagine. That is how it has been discussing A. You cannot use him or her, he or she. It really changes how gender is viewed. Watching Rhiannon interact with A in different genders, sizes and shapes further examines the different ways we treat people based on what we know about them visually. Also, A examines different lives and how different people see the world. A describes this once to Rhiannon explaining that the color blue looks different through different eyes. Isn't that a wild concept to imagine? But it is true, tastes, smells and sights would be different to everyone.

So much of what we think about a person, how we react to them, how we interact with them is based on the way they present themselves visually. We treat men different than women, the old different than the young, someone professional differently than someone who is sloppy, the fat different than the thin, the ugly different than the beautiful. A even notices the different ways Riannon reacts depending who she is standing next to. She is more affectionate with males she finds attractive than she is with females. She acts intimidated when next to the overly beautiful woman. She is disgusted by the incredibly obese young man.

Over all, this is my favorite book to date and certainly my favorite book for 2013. I highly recommend it for teens and adults alike.

Review: Done Deal

Done Deal by Rene Shultz


If you were to die tomorrow, what would you be remembered for?

For Cissy, she was remembered as a nurturing mother, a compassionate friend, and the woman who saved thousands of lives from her death bed.

What Schultz has done here is created a novel that doesn't only chronicle a woman’s journey through cancer, but shows the value of living a life that makes a difference for others. Cissy, a woman just shy of her fiftieth birthday, finds out she has cancer and the prognosis does not look good. From the first page of the novel we learn that she did not survive. Knowing she is gone altered the way this story is perceived. Because we know this, we see everything she does as her mark she will leave on the world. Based on the background story we learn through other vivid characters, we know Cissy to have touched lives and been cherished throughout her life. Then we watch as she does the unimaginable to leave a better place for all cancer victims who will come after her. She is selfless in her final acts on this earth. This is a quick read with a past paced plot that will leave you regretting that it has to end.

For me, some parts of this novel were especially sad because I have lost family members to cancer. I feel very strongly about any novel that commemorates the lives of people who have struggled whether it is cancer or something else. I would recommend this novel for sure and look forward to more by Ms. Schultz in the future.

Review: Two Boys Kissing

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan


Every once in a while, a book comes along that is so profoundly beautiful, so emotionally evocative, so special and important that I simply must buy a hardback copy to keep on my shelf. (And the kindle copy to travel everywhere with me in my purse)

 Leviathan wrote such a unique and touching story that I struggle to even find another book to compare it to. The story surrounds two high school aged boys who set out to break the world record for longest kiss. They do so publicly in the lawn outside of their high school. Much preparation must go into this kiss and the rules of the world record must be followed. Their kiss is broadcast via live video feed which slowly gains interest until they become a Internet sensation. The story is not
just about these boys, and in fact, they don't do much but stand there kissing for the majority of the book. Instead, we get a peek into the lives of other gay teenage boys who have been in some way influenced by this kiss through the watching of the live feed or even being able to watch it take place in person.

 The part of the story that is most profound is the choice of narrator. It is narrated in the first person by someone who isn't even part of the story. The ghosts of all the gay men who have died of AIDS tell the story of these two boys and all the boys watching as if they are the fly-on-the-wall observer. Their inability to interact with the characters while delivering touching narrative is the most emotional narration I have ever read. This is a beautiful piece of YA Literary Fiction. Just as the genre suggests, it focuses more on the characters than a fast moving plot. Really, you only see into a little over a day in time. But it is a very monumental day, for sure.