Book Title/Author: Every Day by David Levithan
Publisher/Year: Knopf Books for Young Readers 2012
Genre: Contemporary + maybe magical realism? Really defies genre.
Series: No.
Other Books From Author: The Lover’s Dictionary, Will Grayson, Will Grayson, Boy Meets Boy, The Realm of Possibility, Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List, Love Is the Higher Law, Wide Awake, Every You, Every Me, Are We There Yet?, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares
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| Goodreads | David Levithan’s Website
Every day A, a teen who is neither male nor female, wakes up up in another body and experiences another life for twenty four hours. The teen has no control over it and never knows what body will be next nor the rhyme or reason to it. All A knows is that the best way to get through the day is to just go through the motions of the characters life and try not to do anything out of character or that would really interfere with their life. A has successfully been able to do that until Justin’s body where A meets Rhiannon — Justin’s girlfriend — and makes a very real connection with her.
As somebody who is normally overly verbose and always has something to say, I’m at a loss for words when it comes to Every Day by David Levithan. I will try to explain why I loved it so much but just know this, because I’m afraid my words will just get in the way, I FREAKING LOVED THIS BOOK. One of my favorites of this year and pretty close to being an all time favorite. If there was ever a time for you to listen to me and read a book I loved, please make it be this one because it is just so beautiful, unique in EVERY sense of the world and just a book that will touch your heart.
The plot itself was just so fascinating. The idea of someone jumping from body to body every day just intrigued me from the start and I loved learning all about how A has coped with it and how it must feel to exist in a completely different way as other people. Life as A knew it was way different than we see life. I was so in I loved getting these little vignettes of the people’s lives and how A related to them or tried to assert themselves. Some of the lives were just incredibly sad. And then once he formed this relationship with Rhiannon I was already invested in A’s life and was so intrigued as to how everything was going to work out considering he was never in the same body. Right from the moment that A made the choice to act differently than he did with all the other bodies I KNEW I was in for a complicatedly good story. I have to say that I SO wished that we knew the WHY/HOW it happened to A but I was completely satisfied not knowing and just accepting it as it was.
A is one of those characters whose presence didn’t just linger for a few hours after I finished but seems to be nestled within the folds of my heart somewhere. A’s story was just incredible. I instantly felt how lonely A was having to switch bodies day after day and be basically rootless. A’s love for Rhiannon was just so overwhelming to me as I could feel ALL OF THE FEELINGS that came with making a real connection with somebody for the first time.
What I found most interesting was how A was gender ambiguous. To be honest, I had the hardest time writing this review because I wanted to keep saying “he” but then had to stop myself. It was interesting because I kept thinking of A as a male even though it was clear that A didn’t know what gender he/she was since A didn’t exist outside of the bodies, both male and female, that he jumped in and out of each day. I found it interesting that I kept thinking of A as a male. I don’t know what it was that kept me hearing A’s voice as male. It challenged me to think a little bit about why that was and if Rhiannon was actually a male would I have seen A as a female? I didn’t have any answers but I thought it was interesting that Levithan was able to challenge my own notion of making A fit nicely into a box of either male or female which was sort of an issue Rhiannon had.
As per usual, David Levithan’s writing is beautiful and gets straight to the heart. He’s really outdone himself this time though making this my favorite David Levithan book thus far! This book is imaginative, will dazzle you with its beauty, make you fall in love with A and make you just want to promptly start it all over again. Every Day defies genre and age — I will recommend this to EVERYONE I know — regardless of what they typically read. Both beautiful and page-turning
For Fans Of: Incredibly unique stories, books that make you think a bit, books that defy genre
Let’s Talky Talk: Have you read this one? Heard of it? What did you think if you have read it? LOVE it as much as I did? Did you think of A as male or female in your head?
DannyBookworm says
This book was outstandingly phenomenal! I also had a hard time putting my thoughts down after reading it! It was beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time!
I also referred to A as a he. It’s how we meet him and then he when he falls for Rhiannon it somehow made the most sense to me. I listened to the audiobook and it was incredibly awesome too!
Rinn says
Haha, sometimes you just have to use less eloquent phrases to express your feelings =P
I’m so annoyed, I really want to read this one and none of the libraries in my county have it yet! =(
Savindi@The Streetlight Reader says
I loved your review of Every Day Jamie! I know what you mean about trying not to refer to A as “He”. I had the same problem when I was writing my review for it. David Levithan is simply a wonderful author :).
Kate says
I’ve been without power because of the hurricane, but I borrowed this book earlier from the library so I decided to read it last night by candlelight. I could not put it down! Read it straight through. Simply one of the best and most unique books I have ever read. I’m hoping for a sequel. I originally read the character as male, but as I continued to read I was able to disassociate the character with a gender.
Linda says
I have this one in my library loot stack. I hope to get to it soon!
Rebecca Scaglione says
Ooooooh I can’t wait to read it!!! It sounds so good!!!
Margot says
I LOVED this book. I was lucky enough to start it on a flight and it was the best flight I ever had. I didn’t stop reading once, not even to drink my complementary soda and eat my peanuts. It is THAT good.
Brittany @ The Book Addict's Guide says
I cannot wait to read this one! I absolutely love the concept. It’s so creative and it sounds very interesting as well as moving.
Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books says
I am so, so excited to read Every Day! I’ve had it on my shelf for a while, but haven’t picked it up yet. I feel like I’m waiting for the right moment to read it, if that makes sense, although your review has certainly made me think about reading it sooner rather than later.
Nikki @ Foil the Plot says
Ever since we saw David speak and do his reading of “Everyday” at the BookFest, I’ve been itching to hear/read more. I FINALLY picked it up the other week and it’s next on my list of things to read. I couldn’t be more excited for this one!
Sara (of the Page Sage) says
Just moved this book up on my TBR list! I did read the first chapter a while back, and I thought of A as male, too. (I haven’t gotten to the romance part yet, but since I knew he’d fall for a girl from the back cover, maybe that set me up from the start to believe he was a guy?) Either way, I can’t wait to read this!
Princess Ash @ Paranormal Indulgence says
I so was not planning on reading this book for a while yet, but gosh how you’ve changed my mind. I had a sneaking suspicion that this book was going to be on Beautiful Level, but I was a little afraid it would end sadly or something so I took two steps back and have been making excuses. But, I loooove beautiful writing and messages, so I’m going to stop being a punk and get on with it.
Megan says
I loved this one too! Great review, Jamie:)
Andrea says
I have really wanted to read this one because the synopsis just sounds amazing, and now your review makes me need to read this ASAP. It sounds beautiful and I love stories that are just so amazing it’s hard to put into words how you feel. Beautiful review Jamie!
Emily's Reading Room says
So, I read it, and while it definitely made me think, I didn’t really enjoy it. I felt like I needed something else besides the body hopping and the suspense of whether or not Rhiannon would accept A for who he/she was. There were things I thought were interesting, but truthfully, I just didn’t find it compelling. And, I was a little put off by A sometimes and the way he acted towards Rhiannon (stalker). Anyway, I know I’m in the minority, but there you have it.
Estelle says
Jamie, Jamie, Jamie. I must take the time to read this because yet again, fantastic review & making me crazy I haven’t gotten tot his book yet. I love David’s writing, and I love the premise of this book. As for not knowing the gender of one of the characters, you should check out Between You & Me when you get a chance by Marisa Calin. I’m interested myself to see how those two compare.
Ryan Hunter says
Loved your review of this book! Definitely want to check this one out to see how he’s made this idea work so well. Thanks for the recommendation!
Asheley (@BookwormAsheley) says
Oh my goodness. Seriously, everything David Levithan just gives me chills anyway. He is just a favorite of mine. I think I’ve read The Lover’s Dictionary seven times this year (It’s short!) because I love his turn of phrases so much and his words are just so beautiful. But to hear you say that this could be your favorite? That makes me so nervous! What if it is my favorite too? I love The Lover’s Dictionary soooo much. Like I said in another blog post, I just bought this last night for a signing this weekend, but I’ll probably bring it home and stare at it in awe because of my odd starstruck-ness quirk. But I WILL eventually read it. Maybe sooner rather than later.
Also about not really knowing the gender of A, like you mention? I wonder if that is an up-and-coming trend in YA? This isn’t the only book I’ve heard of lately that has a character like that. Interesting that you include this in your blog post – I hadn’t heard it, although to be fair I don’t think I’ve read another blog post on this book yet! Great, great review, Jamie. As always. I’m so pumped about this Levithan book and all of his books. He is truly a favorite of mine. And I hope I don’t embarrass myself in front of him. Haha.
Leanne Yang @ Escaping With Books says
I am so excited to read this one! I received as a Secret Santa exchange gift. Thanks for the review! 🙂