Another Day by David Levithan

 

Publication Date: August 25, 2015

Source: NetGalley (Received in exchange for an honest review)

Format: E-book (Kindle 2^nd Gen)

Rating: ★★★★★

Summary (from Goodreads):  The eagerly anticipated companion to David Levithan’s New York Times bestseller Every Day

In this enthralling companion to his New York Times bestseller Every Day, David Levithan (co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson with John Green) tells Rhiannon’s side of the story as she seeks to discover the truth about love and how it can change you.

Every day is the same for Rhiannon. She has accepted her life, convinced herself that she deserves her distant, temperamental boyfriend, Justin, even established guidelines by which to live: Don’t be too needy. Avoid upsetting him. Never get your hopes up.

Until the morning everything changes. Justin seems to see her, to want to be with her for the first time, and they share a perfect day—a perfect day Justin doesn’t remember the next morning. Confused, depressed, and desperate for another day as great as that one, Rhiannon starts questioning everything. Then, one day, a stranger tells her that the Justin she spent that day with, the one who made her feel like a real person . . . wasn’t Justin at all.

Favorite Quote: As of now, I’m not allowed to use quotes from the book as it is unpublished, but let me tell you I was highlighting lines on the first page.

What I Liked: People always say that reading is like getting lost. They say it takes you away on adventures. And they aren’t wrong. David Levithan’s writing is the kind of writing that you don’t really get lost in. You get blended in with the characters. They feel how you feel and you start to learn how they feel. Rhiannon and I were the same person when I was her age and I connected with that instantly. It was like her mind melted into mine and I feel like she’ll be there for a while.

The same thing happened when I read Every Day. I am not gender fluid. I am the same person every day. I read Every Day almost two years ago and I still feel like A is a part of me. If I think of A, I think I see the world through her eyes and I think I’ll feel the same way in two years after reading… no… experiencing this book.

I was just as nervous as everyone else about a sequel to such a perfect book, but this is more of a partnership. I feel like one could pick up either book and enjoy it either way. There are a lot of cynics in this world that thought this book was just a ploy for money, therefore turning their cheeks. I say, even if you think that, give it a chance. Because this book is just as perfect as the first. Every Day was told from the perspective of A, but imagine if you were the girlfriend of someone that lived in a different body every day? That’s what this book explains. That’s what this book is for.

I know that it seems like I tend to give every book I read five stars, but this book truly deserves it. This book and its counterpart will one day be read as classic literature and you’ll read it now and watch your kids hate reading it at school in 30 years.

What I Didn’t Like: Apart from a few misspellings and grammar errors that will most likely be fixed by publication, this book is a rare, perfect gem. There are always a few things that I don’t care for in a book, but I never find anything to nitpick in Levithan’s novels. Aside from the one he wrote with John Green, in which John Green was the problem.

Why You Should Read It: If you like anything by John Green, I suggest you read this book because Levithan is such a better writer. He captures the spirit of being a teenager without the pretentiousness. He recognizes the confusing state of life when you’re 16 (and even an adult) but doesn’t make fun of it to seem cool. Read this book if you enjoyed Every Day. Read this book if you want to meet a few characters that will stay with you throughout your entire life.