David Levithan

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to my post for the

Authors #Takeover!

David Levithan

David Levithan was born on September 7th, 1972 in Short Hills, New Jersey. He's an author for young adult fiction. David Levithan is gay and Jewish. Both can be found as themes in his books. Many of his books feature strong male gay characters.

When Levithan was 19 he received an internship at Scholastic Corporation. He still works as an editorial director for Scholastic.

Books

I want to introduce you to five of David Levithan's most popular books. Of these books I've read two myself: "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" and "Every Day". Have you read any of his books?

Boy Meets Boy (2003)

"Boy Meets Boy" is David Levithan's first novel. It started out as a story he wrote for his friends for Valentine's Day but was then turned into a teen novel.

David Levithan says about the book that it's the kind of book he wished to get as an editor. It changes how gay teens are represented in literature because it isn't full of negativity or portrays the gay character as outsider.

"Boy Meets Boy" tells the story of Paul, a gay sophomore at a high school with a significant amount of other lgbtq+ students. Paul's best friends are Joni and Toni.

At a party Paul meets Noah and after some misunderstandings they get together. Joni starts dating someone who was rude to one of Paul's friends so their friendship is at risk. Paul and one of his ex boyfriends get closer again and become friends. There are rumours spread at school. Noah's feelings towards Paul seem to cool. Tony struggles with his homophobic parents and rumours are spread that he's dating Paul. He's no longer allowed to see Paul.

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2006)

with Rachel Cohn

"Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" is David Levithan's fifth novel. His friend Rachel Cohn had the idea to write a back-and-forth novel with her writing from the girl's perspective and him writing from the boy's perspective.

Nick is the only straight member of a queercore rock band and Norah is the daughter of a well known music producer. They meet after a concert. Norah pretends to be Nick's girlfriend because he has seen his ex girlfriend and she wants to find a ride for her drunk friend. Somehow they end up spending the whole night together.

Wide Awake (2006)

"Wide Awake" is David Levithan's sixth novel. It's set in the near future after fictional elements such as The Greater Depression, the establishment of Worldwide Health Care, The Reign of Fear and The War to End All Wars.It starts with the election of the first gay Jewish president, and is about two boyfriends who must go to Kansas when the election results are threatened.

To David Levithan this novel is a sort of sequel to "Boy Meets Boy" because it talks about many similar topics such as love, friendship, tolerance and to stand up for what you believe in.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson (2010)

with John Green

"Will Grayson, Will Grayson" was inspired when David Levithan was still in college. There was another student named David Levithan who was a dancer and who he got continuously mistaken for. At the end of college they finally met, moved both to New York and became best friends. Inspired by this David Levithan had the idea to write a book about two boys with the same name. He ed John Green who's a friend of his to ask if he wanted to write it with him and he said yes. The book is written in chapters alternating the perspective of both Wills. David Levithan has written from the perspective of one Will while John Green has written from the perspective of the other Will.

Will 1 written by John Green is a heterosexual student whose best friend is Tiny Cooper who is very gay and very large. Tiny is trying to create an autobiographical musical.

Will 2 written by David Levithan is shy and gay and has an online relationship with Isaac. When he finally wants to meet Issac he meets the other Will instead.

They become friends. The novel tells the story of their now connected lifes and how it has changed them.

Every Day (2012)

"Every Day" tells the story of the teenager A who wakes up in a different body each day and has to live the person's life for one day. The novel starts with A waking up in the body of Justin who is Rhiannon's boyfriend. A falls in love with Rhiannon which changes A's life significantly.

According to David Levithan the novel is trying to answer the question what it's like growing up without a gender, sexuality, family, friends etc and what it would be like to be in love with someone who changes every day.

"Every Day" tells the story from the perspective of A. The companion novel "Another Day" (2015) tells the same story from the perspective of Rhiannon who A falls in love with. The sequel "Someday" (2018) is told from both the perspective of A and Rhiannon but also from other perspectives.

"Every Day" has lots of representation in it. It represents all sorts of people including of LGBTQ+ community. A is in a different body each day and sees the world from a different perspective each day. I think we all should try to see the world through different eyes more often.

Like in his other books David Levithan doesn't make a big deal of his characters being LGBTQ+. He portrays it as the completely normal and natural thing it is. That's very refreshing.

A doesn't really have a gender since A wakes up in a different body each day. A is a different person with a different gender each day. I can't what A said about their own gender but I'd describe it as either genderfluid since the gender changes with the body A is in or agender because A doesn't really have an own gender but just takes the gender of the body A is in that day.

A's sexuality could be described as pansexuality. A says "In my experience, desire is desire, love is love. I have never fallen in love with a gender. I have fallen for individuals." which sounds a lot like many would describe pansexuality.

Sources

David Levithan's website has lots of information on him and his books. Most of the information about the books I've taken from his about me since on there he talks about how each book came to be, what inspired him to write them and what they mean to him.

I really recommend reading David Levithan's website if you want to learn more about him or if you just need something to cheer up. David Levithan is funny in a weird but good way - you'll see for yourself. You'll find the answers to all his frequently asked questions but also to his infrequently asked questions . If you're looking for viagra or alternatives to it you'll also find some sources on his website.