Sunday, October 21, 2012

Book Review: Every Day by David Levithan

EVERY DAY BY DAVID LEVITHAN

REVIEW BY NICKY

This is the book I can't stop talking about.  I can't stop thinking about it.  It is the best book I have read this year.  

The story is one of the most unique concepts I have ever read.  "A" wakes up each day in the body of a new person.  A pretends to be that person in a way that leaves the least amount of disruption possible.  A has experienced life as male, female, black, white, Asian, heavy, thin, beautiful, ugly, sick, addicted.  Never experiencing a true home, family, or connections of any kind, A knows no other existence and doesn't question the way things are until a day spent in Justin's body, where A falls in love with Rhiannon, Justin's girlfriend.

I think it's a stroke of genius that Levithan never reveals A's gender.  Told in the first person, it's up to the reader to decide A's voice.  I read that voice as male because the author is male, and I rarely have seen an author write in a different gender's voice.  I think that's the perception I had of A from the moment I first picked up the book.  I like that Levithan leaves it up to the reader, because I think we can all see ourselves in A.  I hope we all can, because A's experiences have provided insight and wisdom few of us can ever hope to attain. 

I can't quite explain how much I love this book.  It's one that I wish everyone would read because it really makes you think, and question, and it makes you want to be a good person because of all the goodness you read in the characters.  It is extremely difficult to write a good review of this book and to truly do it justice.  Just go read it.  NOW. 

David Levithan signing Janine's copy of Every Day at the National Book Festival

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