We're an Open Book
 |
| Between 2013-2014 I attempt to read a large selection of David Levithan novels. See the full list here |
I’m reviewing these books together because they are both pretty short and deal with the theme of young people who become part of something bigger than themselves.
…
- U.S Release Date: November 12, 2013
- Genre: Thriller
- Pages: 384
- Publisher: Bloomsbury
At Book Expo America last summer, Hostage Three was all the buzz at the Bloomsbury booth, so when I saw it on NetGalley I decided to give it a try.
…
The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
I’ve reviewed a few sequels this year and though I usually have a pretty good idea of what to expect but Maggie Stiefvater really surprised me with her approach to The Raven Boys sequel.
The Dream Thieves is the sequel that’s not trying to be a sequel (and I guess it’s not since it’s the second book in a four book series.) It wasn’t trying to set up for an overarching plot or wrap up loose ends from book one, it just told a story. The complicated and dark story of The Raven Boys resident bad boy Ronan Lynch.
…
| Join Kat as she reads and reviews the works of David Levithan
from his debut novel to his National Book Award longlisted novel, Two Boys Kissing |
- Pages: 176
- Genre: Adaptation/ Paranormal
- Publisher: Dial (Penguin)
- Publication Date: December 1, 2006
In Marly’s Ghost, David Levithan collaborates with illustrator and author Brian Selznick who is best known for his book The Invention of Hugo Cabaret. Together the authors remix the story and illustrations of Charles Dickens’ classic novella, A Christmas Carol into a modern day Valentine’s Day tale.
This novel is a little different from most Levithan novels because it is essentially a packaged novel. In the back of the book Levithan discusses how this novel came about because he was approached by two Penguin editors to write a Valentine’s Day spin on A Christmas Carol. Once he had a theme down, he describes how he sat down with the text of the original and worked piece by piece to create Marly’s Ghost. Because this novel sticks so close to the source material and borrows much of the language from it has a different feel than Levithan’s previous books. …
 |
|
|
“It’s hard to believe in coincidence, but it’s even harder to believe in anything else.”
― John Green, Will Grayson, Will Grayson
“I think the idea of a ‘mental health day’ is something completely invented by people who have no clue what it’s like to have bad mental health. the idea that your mind can be aired out in twenty-four hours is kind of like saying heart disease can be cured if you eat the right breakfast cereal. mental health days only exist for people who have the luxury of saying ‘i don’t want to deal with things today’ and then can take the whole day off, while the rest of us are stuck fighting the fights we always fight, with no one really caring one way or another, unless we choose to bring a gun to school or ruin the morning announcements with a suicide.
― David Levithan, Will Grayson, Will Grayson
–
- Release Date: April 6th 2010
- Pages: 304
- Genre: Realistic Fiction
- Publisher: Dutton’s Children (Penguin)
Will Grayson, Will Grayson is probably David Levithan’s most well-known co-authorship and served as my introduction to David Levithan 2 years ago. I’d liked John Green’s vlogbrothers channel and decided to start reading his books. I got what I expected from Green’s writing, but Levithan’s just blew me away. It reminded me of how unique and diverse the voices in YA writing can be. For Days of David Levithan, I did a re-read of Will Grayson, Will Grayson, but decided to switch it up with the audiobook
Will Grayson,Will Grayson is told in the alternating perspective of two 16-year-olds named WillGrayson,each leading separate lives unknown to each other. Until faith and a little bit of bad luck has them cross paths. From that moment the story unravels as each Will Grayson is forced to examine everything they thought they knew about love, relationships and coincidence….
- Release Date: October 1st 2002 (AUS) / May 2006 (US)
- Pages: 357
- Publisher: Random House (Knopf)
- Genre: Realistic Fiction
Synopsis: Ed Kennedy is an underage cabdriver without much of a future. He’s pathetic at playing cards, hopelessly in love with his best friend, Audrey, and utterly devoted to his coffee-drinking dog, the Doorman. His life is one of peaceful routine and incompetence until he inadvertently stops a bank robbery.That’s when the first ace arrives in the mail. That’s when Ed becomes the messenger.
I seem to be on a roll with these Australian books. This is the third one I’ve read after Finnikin of The RockandGraffiti Moon. Originally published in 2002, I Am Messenger made its US debut in 2006, just a year before Zusack started climbing the bestseller’s list with his runaway success The Book Thief….