Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Book Review: Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Will Grayson, Will Grayson
Title: Will Grayson, Will Grayson
Author: John Green and David Levithan
Publication Date: April 6, 2010
Publisher: Dutton Children's
Genre: Realistic fiction
Pages: 304
Age Rating: Readers over 14
My Opinion: 8/10

Hi, Readers!

       Happy first day of school!  Now that kids are back in school, their thoughts are filled with friends, sports, and homework.  It's much more difficult to make time for a good book during the school year, but Will Grayson, Will Grayson is worth the effort.  This collaboration between John Green and David Levithan is a great coming of age novel infused with comedy on every page.  
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A quote from Will Grayson

       When Will Grayson gets roped into attending an underground concert with his best friend, Tiny, he thinks that the evening will be fairly ordinary.  However, things take a turn for the unexpected as soon as the concert bouncer notices a mistake on Will Grayson's fake ID and doesn't let him in.  Will's friends ditch him and he is left wandering on the street.  He runs into a boy who asks if he is "Isaac".  Turns out, that boy is also named Will Grayson!  The two boys develop an unusual friendship and struggle to figure out their high school traumas, from romance to social media, together in this funny, soul searching novel that makes being different cool.

       Although Will Grayson, Will Grayson isn't John Green's most powerful, life changing novel, it is certainly entertaining.  The story is narrated off and on by both Will Graysons.  One narrates in all lower-case, which makes it easy to differentiate whose point of view the story is being told through at any given point.  This lower-case narration also adds an interesting twist to reading.
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Will Grayson's pastime

       The characters in the novel are absolutely, positively lovable. My personal favorite (and the most popular) character would have to be Tiny, the first Will Grayson's best friend.  Tiny is extremely large and openly gay, and he speaks his mind without any second thoughts.  He does play along with some societal stereotypes, but he is still a character that I wish could come to life off of the book pages.  My second favorite character is the second Will Grayson because he manages to turn his life around from being a depressed loner to being a caring young man with some excellent friends.  He faces some hardships head on, such as coming out, with absolutely no help from his classmates at school.

       Sure, Will Grayson, Will Grayson isn't a prize-winning novel, but it is a very quirky book with realistic characters and a unique plot line.  I would recommend it to any high school student, male or female, and it has wide reader appeal.  Now I will be adding this novel to my list of favorite John Green books!

Happy reading!
Katie



1 comment:

  1. If you've read John Green and you've atleast heard of David Levithan you would know this book is bound to be awesome. One important thing is the odd and even chapters that belong to both authors but that being said, i would really encourage you to read this book. Sure it's more of the LGBT community but contrary to what the synopsis at the back may have you believe..this book is more about Tiny Cooper than the Will Graysons which if you ask me is nothing to frown upon. Reading this book will simply plaster a smile on your face, needless to say it isn't a tragic heartbreaking story like tfios etc so it's a good light read that'll have you turning pages to find out what happens next. I'm not saying it's fast-paced and addictive (maybe so) but it'll set you into a mellow rythm as you turn each page. So go on dare yourself to read a good book! :]

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