Every Day

by David Levithan

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by Booklist • Kirkus Reviews

Celebrate all the ways love makes us who we are with the romance that Entertainment Weekly calls "wise, wildly unique"--from the bestselling co-author of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist--about a teen who wakes up every morning in a different body, living a different life. Now a major motion picture!

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.

There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.
It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.

With his new novel, David Levithan, bestselling co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson, and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, has pushed himself to new creative heights. He has written a captivating story that will fascinate readers as they begin to comprehend the complexities of life and love in A’s world, as A and Rhiannon seek to discover if you can truly love someone who is destined to change every day.

“A story that is always alluring, oftentimes humorous and much like love itself— splendorous.” —Los Angeles Times

• ISBN10: 0307931897
• ISBN13: 9780307931894
• Publish Date: 10 September 2013 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Ember
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780307931894

Reviews

[inlibrisveritas]

Every Day is one of those rare books that managed to work its way into my heart and a permanent place in my thoughts. I don’t get overly emotional when reading but this book really pulled on my heartstrings.

Our main character, A, is a bit different. A doesn’t have a body, so every day he/she inhabits a different body of the same age and lives a different life. For my fingers sake I’m going to simply address A as ‘he’ from now on. He never gets to stick around for longer than a day and so A is very careful to make sure that the person’s life isn’t affected by his presence. That is until he meets Rhiannon and falls for her, and so we are treated to a story that takes us on a journey of two people trying to find love in a very difficult place.

The most beautiful thing about this story is the level acceptance and experience by A. There are so many characters in this that we only meet for a few pages but they have depth, histories, and lives; for a brief moment we get to see a glimpse and their stories drew me in just as much as A’s.

The relationship between A and Rhiannon is a learning experience for both of them. A has never truly had a real relationship and he’s experiencing something that he’s truly never felt before. It initially starts with a bit of insta-love on A’s part and while this would normally bother me, it works for this character. He is capable of seeing more in a person in one day than most other people, but at the same time he has so much to learn about her. I love seeing how Rhiannon deals with the whole situation and I felt that every reaction she made proved that she was a good person and more importantly each decision seemed entirely human.

I wasn’t sure that I wasn’t going to enjoy this one, despite the glowing reviews and all the people who are Levathan fans. I’m new to books like this, because even though it’s fantasy it’s also very contemporary. However now I’m firmly standing next to those people who told me is was worth reading. I’m definitely going to read more from Levathan in the future.

[Jyc]

★ // blergh.

[e_rodz_leb]

Original review here: Reading with ABC

Every Day is the second book by author David Levithan that I read; Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares, which he co-wrote with Rachel Cohn, is one of my favorite books ever. I am glad that I had the opportunity to read Every Day.


The premise of this book is very original and different; of course I have read books before in which a ‘being’ inhabits another’s body, but never for just a day. The ‘being’ in question here calls him/herself “A” in an effort to distinguish himself from the host/body. He has a way to access the host’s memories and tries to leave the life as untouched as possible. One day “A” wakes up as Justin, Rhiannon’s boyfriend, and falls instantly in love with her. I understand the ‘insta-love’ on A’s part because he really does have only a limited number of hours to inhabit a body, therefore it is believable. The same is not true for Rhianon though. She struggles with what A is (which, by the way, is never answered) and with a way to make any type of relationship work.


I have to confess that I also struggled with the concept of an ‘asexual’ being that inhabits both boys and girls bodies. Since I also like boys I would feel completely uncomfortable in viewing a girl (and a stranger at that) as a possible love interest. I understand the way “A” feels, as this is very normal for him (please note that it’s easier to keep assuming that A is a boy) and he had years to get used to the idea, but I found it unfair of him to reproach Rhianon for feeling uncomfortable. I think that Rhianon did the best she could under the circumstances; I’m not even sure that I would have gone that far or believe A in the first place.


The writing is truly amazing and what I enjoy the most. There is a lot of narration and explanations and not as much dialogue, but the story is never boring. Mr. Levithan also approaches difficult topics, such as drug use, depression, suicidal thoughts, bullying, poverty, religious fanatics, racial differences, alcoholism, and same sex relationships.


The only thing that I wasn’t crazy about was the part about the involvement of the church and the ‘possessed’ pastor, especially when it didn’t answer any questions, and it seemed too ‘out there’ to be believable.
The ending was bittersweet, but expected, and I have to confess that I cried. Overall, Every Day is a great read. Oh, and by the way, the setting of the story is Maryland; I’m having really good luck with books set in the state I call home :)


Here are some non-spoiler quotes from Every Day:


“This is what love does: It makes you want to rewrite the world. It makes you want to choose the characters, build the scenery, guide the plot.”


“I don’t have the heart to tell him that’s the wrong way to thing about the world. There will always be more questions. Every answer leads to more questions. The only way to survive is to let some of them go.”


“Every relationship has a hard part at the beginning. This is our hard part. It’s not like a puzzle piece where there’s an instant fit. With relationships, you have to shape the pieces on each end before the go perfectly together”


About the cover: The cover is different and beautiful in its own right. We can clearly see a boy and a girl and some other person too. Is like ‘something’ represented by the light here is separating them.


Have you read Every Day? Did you like it? What do you think of this premise?

[lizarodz]

Original review here: Reading with ABC

Every Day is the second book by author David Levithan that I read; Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares, which he co-wrote with Rachel Cohn, is one of my favorite books ever. I am glad that I had the opportunity to read Every Day.


The premise of this book is very original and different; of course I have read books before in which a ‘being’ inhabits another’s body, but never for just a day. The ‘being’ in question here calls him/herself “A” in an effort to distinguish himself from the host/body. He has a way to access the host’s memories and tries to leave the life as untouched as possible. One day “A” wakes up as Justin, Rhiannon’s boyfriend, and falls instantly in love with her. I understand the ‘insta-love’ on A’s part because he really does have only a limited number of hours to inhabit a body, therefore it is believable. The same is not true for Rhianon though. She struggles with what A is (which, by the way, is never answered) and with a way to make any type of relationship work.


I have to confess that I also struggled with the concept of an ‘asexual’ being that inhabits both boys and girls bodies. Since I also like boys I would feel completely uncomfortable in viewing a girl (and a stranger at that) as a possible love interest. I understand the way “A” feels, as this is very normal for him (please note that it’s easier to keep assuming that A is a boy) and he had years to get used to the idea, but I found it unfair of him to reproach Rhianon for feeling uncomfortable. I think that Rhianon did the best she could under the circumstances; I’m not even sure that I would have gone that far or believe A in the first place.


The writing is truly amazing and what I enjoy the most. There is a lot of narration and explanations and not as much dialogue, but the story is never boring. Mr. Levithan also approaches difficult topics, such as drug use, depression, suicidal thoughts, bullying, poverty, religious fanatics, racial differences, alcoholism, and same sex relationships.


The only thing that I wasn’t crazy about was the part about the involvement of the church and the ‘possessed’ pastor, especially when it didn’t answer any questions, and it seemed too ‘out there’ to be believable.
The ending was bittersweet, but expected, and I have to confess that I cried. Overall, Every Day is a great read. Oh, and by the way, the setting of the story is Maryland; I’m having really good luck with books set in the state I call home :)


Here are some non-spoiler quotes from Every Day:


“This is what love does: It makes you want to rewrite the world. It makes you want to choose the characters, build the scenery, guide the plot.”


“I don’t have the heart to tell him that’s the wrong way to thing about the world. There will always be more questions. Every answer leads to more questions. The only way to survive is to let some of them go.”


“Every relationship has a hard part at the beginning. This is our hard part. It’s not like a puzzle piece where there’s an instant fit. With relationships, you have to shape the pieces on each end before the go perfectly together”


About the cover: The cover is different and beautiful in its own right. We can clearly see a boy and a girl and some other person too. Is like ‘something’ represented by the light here is separating them.


Have you read Every Day? Did you like it? What do you think of this premise?

[kimbacaffeinate]

When I read the synopsis for Every Day I knew that I had to read it. I found the idea of waking each morning in strangers body thought provoking. Could I love someone who appeared differently each morning? What about all the senses surrounding that love..like the way they smell, the feel of their hand, the way their eyes sparkle when they laugh. David Levithan not only addressed these questions, he made me think about so much more. I feel in love with the characters, the journey and didn’t want this bittersweet novel to end.

The tale begins when we meet "A". Every morning "A" wakes up in a different body, sometimes male, sometimes female but always "A"’s age. "A" takes a moment and accesses the bodies memories and proceeds to live in them for a day. Every night at midnight "A" falls asleep and every morning the cycle repeats. "A" follows simple rules, avoids harming the body and goes about life. "A" has accepted the way things are, until the day "A" wakes in Justin’s body and meets his girlfriend Rhiannon. This is the day "A" begins to break the rules. Why? Because "A" needs to see her again. The tale that unfolds is absolutely beautiful, heartwarming, thought provoking and original.

"A" is such an unusual soul. "A" is neither male nor female. He is a soul, a mind , an essence. For as long as he has lived this is the only true version of life he has ever known. Despite this crazy life he lives, he cares for his hosts..even does their homework for them. He is careful not to permanently affect their lives until he meets Rhiannon. Rhiannon is sweet, sad and maybe a little shy. "A" loves when she opens up and her face glows. She holds back a lot and "A" blames Justin. Justin is a typical, self-centered high school dude and I didn’t care for him. The relationship between "A" and Rhiannon was complicated and sweet. At times "A" seemed a little obsessed but I kept asking myself how I would feel. While their relationship, screamed insta-love, it was the catalyst necessary for "A" to break character. The characters that "A" spends a day in came from every background and I became wrapped up in each of their stories. They had as much substances as the main characters .

The world building is absolutely spectacular. From the first few pages I knew I was embarking on a journey that would forever change me. Levithan provides a beautiful tale of love, wonder and loss. He offered me a thought provoking read that I won’t soon forget. This was a fascinating look into life’s complexities. Levithan provided me with a window to countless souls; their joys and tribulations. The author wove moral messages and questions about whom and what we really are. My emotions were all over the place on this journey. I laughed, I cried, I experienced shock and anger, hope and fear. It was mesmerizing. There wasn’t a single character that did not affect me or leave their mark. The flow was perfect and I loved the author’s writing style. His words rang true and made the tale feel genuine and the characters real. I quickly consumed this as the outside world melted away. The ending was beautiful, bittersweet and touched me in so many ways.

Every Day is an absolute must read; a book you will want to think about, talk about and share long after you finish it. This is a timeless tale and will appeal to all ages. I think it's the perfect read for a book club, group or high school English class. I have added David Levithan to my list and look forward to reading more of his work. I am also hoping he continues A's story.*hint-hint*

I want to thank Knopf Publishing and netGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

[rakesandrogues]

Originally posted at: http://muggle-born.net/every-day-david-levithan-book-review/

Imagine if you woke up in a different body every day, but was in love with the same girl? How far would you go to make this love work? In David Levithan’s most unique novel yet, he explores this concept as A wakes up every day in a different body of a wide variety of teens.

What makes EVERY DAY by David Levithan so ground-breaking is the fact that the protagonist is not confined to a single gender. A is genderless; neither a boy nor a girl. A does not feel more comfortable or at home depending on the gender of the person. Admittedly, it is a tough habit to break not to refer to a character using pronouns but A stresses so many times in the novel that A does not categorize as one or the other. I think that this is important because of the message that David Levithan is trying to point out in regards to love: gender does not matter. Love should be between two people. That’s it.

At first, I worried that I would not be a fan of the romance in EVERY DAY. The protagonist meets Rhiannon from the very first chapter of EVERY DAY by David Levithan. There’s an instant spark; they have chemistry. My biggest fear was that this would turn out to be a meaningless insta-love match. I was wrong. David Levithan is a talented author and he evokes so much feeling through A. You are instantly able to feel the connection between A and Rhiannon and it feels like they’ve known each other for a lot longer.

I fell in love with the writing in EVERY DAY immediately. David Levithan has written a book that will make you want to mark a passage to read over and over in the future. The writing alone was a reminder as to why David Levithan book is one of my favorite authors ever.

EVERY DAY is easily one of my favorite David Levithan books right next to Boy Meets Boy and The Lover’s Dictionary. EVERY DAY by David Levithan is a book that I can see myself reading over and over again.