Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Boy Meets Boy- David Levithan

Boy Meets Boy
Boy Meets Boy
Levithan, David

[Preloaded Digital Audio Player]


ISBN-13   978-1602526013
ISBN-10  160252601X
Publisher: Full Cast Audio; Unabridged edition, 2007


Genre: LGBTQ Fiction
Reading Level: 730 Lexile
Interest Age: 14-18

Reader's Annotation:
Paul knows who he is and is proud of it. He also know's who he wants, can he get him?

Plot Summary:
Paul goes to school in what would seem to be an average high school, except it is not. Stereotypes are thrown out the window in this school. The prom queen Darlene, used to be Daryl and the cheerleaders like to come to school on motorcycles. Paul enjoys his life at school. He is in charge of the next dance coming up and is very excited about making it the best one yet.

Noah is new to the school and Paul falls for him. The problem is he is still hung up on his old boyfriend Kyle. When Kyle comes back in his life, Paul does not know what to do. There is also Tony and Joni. These two are Paul's best friends and between Joni's new boyfriend and Tony's overbearing parents, the friendship is strained. Hopefully Paul can pull it all together for a great end to the year.

Critical Evaluation:
This book is short but very well written. The audio version is read by a full cast and really brought the story to life. Paul's character exudes confidence from the beginning of the story and even though he has a few problems along the way, he still knows who he is. Darlene's character was very well developed. She had attitude and was a great addition to the story. Levithan made her character strong even though being transgender is very difficult for people of this society to accept.

The setting was well thought out and perfect for this story. Boy Meets Boy is about being who you are and Levithan created an environment where this was possible for the most part. There were a few people in the story who did not accept Tony, but the school environment was welcoming. This is not the reality for many teens, but it brought a lighter attitude to the whole story.

About the Author:
David Levithan was born in 1972 and lived a happy childhood. He graduated from Brown University in 1994 and his first book Boy Meets Boy was published for the first time in 2003. He spends a lot of time writing and wanted to make this book different from the other gay teen literature out there. This half fantasy, half reality book is supposed to show the public where we should be in terms of acceptance.

Every Valentines day Levithan writes something for his friends. This is how Boy Meets Boy was started. He is an editorial director for Scholastic in his free time. Levithan also started PUSH Imprint which is a compant devoted to finding new authors with a different voice. It is a place where people can safely put their thoughts out. www.thisispush.com

http://www.davidlevithan.com/about/

Curriculum Ties:
Roles in society.

Book Talking:
How would a school like this make you feel to be part of it?

Challenging Issues:
If this book were to be challenged, I would go through the selection process with the challenger as well as explain the rationale for the book. There are many good qualities in this book that could be reason to have it in a collection.

Why Read this Book:
This book is not an average gay teen book. It pushes the boundaries and makes the reader think about a different world than the one we live in today. This book gives an ideal situation for many in being accepted for who they are. It can give hope to those who need it and encouragement for others. It is an uplifting story. 

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