There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.
It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.
OPINION:
Every Day has an interesting premise, and one that I think is hard to really pull off... but Levithan does it. I was captitavted by A's story, by the almost mind-boggling way of life. All the little things that would come with waking up each day as a different person are woven in so smoothly, without taking away from the simple fact that every single day, A has to adapt to a new body, a new family, a new way of life. And nothing is off limits in this, from an abusive home to a wealthy one, A has been through it all. The effect this has had, especially the genuine appreciation for the people who have it good, where the end of the day isn't an automatic blessing, is fabulously well done.
The romance of this one was a little tricky for me, dabbling in some gray areas that I had a little bit of a hard time totally getting behind. Still, there was such a strong emotional element to this one, and I really did enjoy how with this one, "love" was very much stripped down to something far more basic than usually seen. While it's hard, in a way, to be okay with A wanting Justin's girlfriend, when Justin quite obviously would also want his gf, and it sort of feels like cheating when it's also sort of not... this one definitely made me think, and challenged me in some good ways.
Though the ending didn't have quite the impact as I hoped, I still really enjoyed this one overall. The characterizations were so well done, especially with the situation and the issues inherent to that. The writing is solid, full of voice even if A doesn't exactly have any specific sex attached, beyond whatever the body of the day is. There is something so raw and basic about all that, and it totally had me hooked.
Details:
Source: Netgalley
Reading level: Ages 12 and up
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: August 28, 2012
I liked this book a lot too-it was my first introduction to Levithan's writing and it left me eager to check out more of his work even if this wasn't my favorite story ever.
ReplyDeleteDavid Levithan can be a hit or miss for me, but I do adore his writing. There's something unique about it. I am looking forward to reading this for sure.
ReplyDeleteI have heard so many amazing things about this author. I need to just pick this book up already :)
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