* READING LEVEL: Young Adult
* HARDCOVER: 304 pages
* PUBLISHER: Dutton Juvenile (April 6, 2010)
REVIEW YYYY1/2
"THE HILLS ARE ALIVE WITH THE WORDS OF WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON"
COULD I ADORE A BOOK MORE FERVENTLY AND COMPLETELY? I THINK NOT! NEVER HAVE I LAUGHED SO MUCH OR EMPATHIZED WITH THE CHARACTERS SO WELL AS I HAVE WITH THIS PHENOMENAL BOOK. IT IS JUST SO MUCH "...ER" THAN ANYTHING I HAVE READ THIS YEAR: BETTER, SMARTER, FUNNIER...
JOHN GREEN AND DAVID LEVITHAN HAVE CREATED A BRILLIANT READ IN WHICH I WOULD NOT CHANGE A SINGLE WORD. I AM IN COMPLETE AWE OF HOW THESE TWO AUTHOR "WORD GODS" CAME TOGETHER TO GIVE US A STORY THAT IS LITERARY MAGIC INFUSED WITH THE GLEEFUL SPIRIT.
WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON IS A STORY ABOUT TWO ANGST-FILLED TEENS CONFUSED ABOUT LIFE TO EPIC PROPORTIONS AND BOTH NAMED WILL GRAYSON. ONE NIGHT THEY MEET EACH OTHER IN A MOST UNLIKELY PLACE. THE ROAD THAT LEADS THEM TO ONE ANOTHER AND THE PATHS IN WHICH THEY TAKE AFTERWARDS ARE THUS INTERTWINED GIVING US A STORY THAT IS ENDEARING, FULL OF COMIC RELIEF MIXED WITH MOMENTS OF BRUTAL HONESTY.
WILL GRAYSON #1 IS MY FAVORITE OF THE TWO WILL'S. HE LIVES BY THE HIS SELF IMPOSED RULES OF A) DON'T CARE TOO MUCH AND B) SHUT UP. IT IS HIS SURVIVAL GUIDE TO LIVING A LIFE LESS ORDINARY WHICH I BELIEVE IS IMPOSSIBLE WHEN YOUR BEST FRIEND IS TINY COOPER (WHO IS AMAZING) AND HE IS ANYTHING BUT TINY AND FLAMBOYANTLY GAY. WILL GRAYSON #1 HAS SOME OF THE BEST LINES AND MOMENTS WITHIN THE STORY AND HIS *TEN MINUTES OF TRUTH GAME* WAS BRILLIANT. I LOVED SEEING HOW HE WOULD WORK HIMSELF INTO THESE AWKWARD MOMENTS THAT WERE JUST PAINFUL TO WITNESS. WILL GRAYSON #2 IS BITTER, CRUEL AND DEPRESSED. COMPLETELY CONVINCED THAT HE MESSES EVERYTHING UP IN LIFE AND HE WAS A BIT TOUGHER TO UNDERSTAND AND APPRECIATE BUT HE DID SNEAK HIS WAY INTO MY HEART. HIS INNER DIALOGUE WAS PRICELESS AND I WAS GLAD THAT HE EXPERIENCED SOME PERSONAL GROWTH THAT MADE HIM DEAL WITH SOME OF THOSE PERSONAL DEMONS.
DID I FORGET TO MENTION THAT THE STORY HAS MUSICAL PLAY THAT CULMINATES THE END OF THIS BOOK AND IT IS THE PERFECT ENDING TO A STORY THAT WAS WELL ROUNDED WITH A CAST OF CHARACTERS THAT I WANTED TO BE A PART OF MY LIFE. WILL GRAYSON IS A PERFECT STORY ABOUT FRIENDSHIPS, RELATIONSHIPS AND MOMENTS IN LIFE THAT CAN SHAPE US AND MAKE IT EXTRAORDINARY.
I ADORED THIS BOOK AND WOULD RECOMMEND IT TO ANYONE IN SEARCH OF SOME THING DEEPER AND MORE MEANINGFUL ALL THE WHILE CAUSING YOUR HEART TO BLEED WHILE LAUGHING AT THE SAME TIME.
ONE OF MY FAVORITE LINES:
"YOU LIKE SOMEONE WHO CAN'T LIKE YOU BACK BECAUSE UNREQUITED LOVE CAN BE SURVIVED IN A WAY THAT ONCE-REQUITED LOVE CANNOT.
I cannot wait to meet both of these authors next Monday in San Francisco. It is going to ROCK!
