Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Will Grayson, Will Grayson #1

by John Green, David Levithan

will grayson, meet will grayson

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two strangers cross paths. Two teens with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, culminating in heroic turns-of-heart and the most epic musical ever to grace the high school stage.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBT, Fiction, Romance, Queer, Realistic Fiction

310 pages, Paperback

First published April 6, 2010

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John Green's first novel, Looking for Alaska, won the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award presented by the American Library Association. His second novel, An Abundance of Katherines, was a 2007 Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His next novel, Paper Towns, is a New York Times bestseller and won the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best YA Mystery. In January 2012, his most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, was met with wide critical acclaim, unprecedented in Green's career. The praise included rave reviews in Time Magazine and The New York Times, on NPR, and from award-winning author Markus Zusak. The book also topped the New York Times Children's Paperback Bestseller list for several weeks. Green has also coauthored a book with David Levithan called Will Grayson, Will Grayson, published in 2010. The film rights for all his books, with the exception of Will Grayson Will Grayson, have been optioned to major Hollywood Studios.

In 2007, John and his brother Hank were the hosts of a popular internet blog, "Brotherhood 2.0," where they discussed their lives, books and current events every day for a year except for weekends and holidays. They still keep a video blog, now called "The Vlog Brothers," which can be found on the Nerdfighters website, or a direct link here.

Reviews

[Lyndsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have no idea what other book I could compare with Will Grayson, Will Grayson. For some reason, I got a very strong sci-fi vibe from the synopsis of this book. The cover itself just screams alternate universes. But nothing like that was involved. It was just two guys in the same ol' regular universe who meet under unusual circumstances. No speculative elements involved. But I still loved it!! Imagine that.

Content warning for this book: Strong (yet hilarious) language including sexual references.

In this book, we meet two Will Graysons.

The first is John Green's Grayson. He is lovable, funny and best friends with this guy named Tiny Cooper, so I call him Best Friend Will. I really appreciate the fact that Best Friend Will isn't the kind of guy who runs crotch first toward any girls who like him. He keeps his distance, physically and emotionally, from relationships but never seems to do the same mentally. He is an over thinker, who notices every little thing about the people around him and analyzes each observation. But I wonder if guys really notice things like "the pale skin of her back, and how she bites her lower lip, and that she smells like over sweetened coffee". Maybe guys like John Green do. Who knows?

The second is David Levithan's Will Grayson, who is a closet homosexual, gothic, and a manic depressive. Him I like to call Eeyore Will. He's soft, fluffy and cute but always so sad and complicated. I get the feeling that David Levithan is a very complicated person. Not like that is a bad thing. Some of my favorite people are "complicated", probably even myself included. However, I really have no authority the subject of Levithan since this is my first book of his. Eeyore Will takes a while to get to know but definitely has the most dramatic turn around and largest character arc.

In truth - Will Grayson, Will Grayson isn't about either of the Will Grayson's. It's about Tiny Cooper. Anyone could see that. Really, it could have been called Tiny's Two Graysons.

Tiny Cooper is the world's largest gay person. Not necessarily the most gay or the most large, but the ultimate combination of the two. His personality is just as large as his exterior, and I loved him.

However, here's where I must issue a warning. Many people will not like him. His characteristics are very cliche and stereotypical, but I personally found him charming, not to mention, hilarious. Which is largely the result of the very good narration in the audiobook that got to the heart of each character. They all felt believable despite their flaws and stereotypes.

This is one of those that I can't possibly imagine NOT listening to as an audiobook. I would even go so far as to say that I really ONLY recommend listening to the audiobook. The quality and narration was ridiculously good. It took a bit to really get into the story, but once I did, I realized that the humor of the book was captured perfectly by the two readers who portrayed each of the Will Graysons. I laughed out loud so often that I didn't even care if I looked like a maniac who loves laughing to herself and driving like a grandma down the highway.

Strangely, I have found that audiobooks have the opposite effect of loud music. They make me drive super slow as I concentrate on and laugh hysterically over the book. So there I am driving along when all the sudden I burst out laughing: Hahahhahaa! Tiny Cooper wearing skinny jeans = denim sausage casings!!! Then after I've recovered from that, I'm driving along again. Dododododo. And Tiny sings this song to the Eeyore Will and he thinks to himself that Tiny's song must have carried all the way to the north pole. Then, he imagines that when Mrs Claus hears it, she turns to Santa and says "What the f*ck was that?" Those aren't even close to being the funniest lines.

It was like listening to a high school drama TV mini series. In fact, it reminded me a lot of My So-Called Life. Since the story is really about Tiny Cooper, that would make him the Angela Chase of this book. So then, Eeyore Will would be the tortured and complex Jordan Catalano and Best Friend Will would then be Brian Krakow, I guess. Angst... Drama... Intrigue... Hilarity.

The only major fail of the audio was how the IM chats were recorded with the screen names being said over and over again, faster every time. A few of the dialogue sections felt the same way with quick switching back and forth between the characters, but you don't notice it once you adapt to it. One of the best things about the audio was hearing Eeyore Grayson's poetry read first hand and hearing that narrators sing interpretations of the songs that Tiny Cooper wrote for his musical. EFFING BRILLIANT!!!

Oh, and in case you were wondering about the picture at the beginning. All of the characters in this book seem to be on a constant sugar high of the grumbles. Alot of whining and complaining and angst. They've got the crumbly grumblies and it can be overwhelming. But I found it a lot of fun. Gotta give me them, grumblecakes.

I loved the book. Though it took some time to connect to the characters, I believe it was well worth it in the end.

At it's heart, this book is really all about friendship. I love that the end all be all is not for certain couples to confess love for each other and end up together. It was about admitting love for your friends and the people who have been there for you.

It made me realize what an incredible thing we have going here on Goodreads.

What I would do with myself now if I couldn't get online and talk to you all about the books that we read? If I didn't have someone to share the ups and downs of these important stories, to talk about life lessons with, or someone just to flat out laugh about random things that non-readers wouldn't understand.

I laugh more than I ever thought I would, find books that I'd never think to pick up, meet people all around that world that I couldn't have met otherwise, and without a doubt, have an unbelievably amazing time with all of it.

We all learn so much about life and about ourselves by analyzing books and have way too much fun doing it.

So.... I appreciate you, Goodreaders. Whether you are grumblecakes or non-grumblecakes. This review is dedicated to you.

Thank you for being awesome!

[Tatiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I am glad David Levithan joined John Green to create this story, because clearly Green is unable to write any other characters different from what he had already offered in Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns and An Abundance of Katherines. His Will Grayson is the same old nerdy, too eloquent boy who is into a smart, attractive, and slightly pretentious girl. Green simply cannot move on to any other ensemble.

Levithan's Will Grayson, on the other hand, is a breath of fresh air with a whiff of depression. He is a loner, a tad mentally unstable, but funny in a sarcastic kind of way. I have read a ton of YA lit and still I think this character is quite unique.

The story itself is a great blend of Green's and Levithan's styles. Essentially, it is about both Wills romantic entanglements, their struggles to connect, to commit and to move on. There are great, difficult friendships and realistic parents. There are gay characters that are not cliches. And there is a fantastical, over-the-top, gay-licious ending in a form of a high school musical (I bet, courtesy of David Levithan) - my least favorite part of the novel, BTW.

The book is funny too, or maybe its audio narrators just did a marvelous job reading it. Either way, I did enjoy it. A lot.

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 1 out of 5]

Assigned reading for MLIS 7421: Multicultural Youth Literature.

I'm calling it quits on this one early. This is not even remotely enjoyable for me. It starts out with a bad tone as one of the Wills keeps fat-shaming Tiny (who, according to JG's website, is the *actual* main character), and then it just goes downhill so fast. The only thing I liked about the pages that I read was the Neutral Milk Hotel referencing, but even that is slightly ruined by how Manic Pixie John's writing manages to make them sound. Neutral Milk Hotel deserves better, okay?

There's also the immediate issue of one of the Wills' way of speaking about Jane, with the whole, "She's not the kind of girl I usually go for because her hair is too curly and she hangs out with boys..." Like, what? Is that seriously a reason not to like a girl? (This is probably a good time to mention that I have now read six of JG's works, and only liked his portrayal of one female character, and that was Hazel Grace. I staunchly believe John Green had some sort of demonic bargain in place when he wrote TFIOS because it is of such a higher caliber than everything he wrote before it, in my opinion.)

Buddy read with Lacy! ♥

[emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

my two enemies came together and wrote this book just to take me down.

GUESS WHAT, DAVID AND JOHN. i'm still here.

but if anything could take me out (and be clear nothing can - my cynicism and hatefulness have jaded me to such an extent that i am now immortal), it would have been this.

gives me the heebie-jeebies to even recall it.

part of a project i'm doing where i try to drive you all to unfollow me through half-assed reviews of books i read ages ago.

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 24%

Alternate title for Will Grayson, Will Grayson: Disappointment, Disappointment.

John Green,



I thought we had a thing going. You write incredible heart-wrenching books, and I cry about them and recommend them to everyone in existence. So what the hell happened with this?



I said in my review of Eleanor & Park that never have I ever been so glad to check a book out from the library. You can just go ahead and scratch that now. I'm happier that I got this from the library.



In the first 23 pages, I was hit with enough teenage angst to last me a lifetime. I couldn't even make it to page 100.



Where to begin? The writing style was ridiculous. Will #2's POV was written like this: nothing was capitalized. everything was lowercase. not even names, like "will". not even "i". And that bugged the ever-loving shit out of me.



The characters weren't much better. "Insufferable" is the best word I can think of to describe them. Yes, all of them. All of the main characters, at least. Will #2 was utterly annoying, Will #1 acted a bit like an asshole, and Tiny, the character who I thought would save the book for me, let me down.



Ar first when I read the book's synopsis, I thought it sounded really interesting. But then I started the book, and my analysis began. Two guys who have the same exact first and last name just happen to randomly meet?



Before you start thinking, "It's possible to meet someone with the same last name and first name as you, you idiot", allow me to explain. This would be more believable if their last name was something like "Smith" or "Johnson." But no, their last name is Grayson. Maybe it's just me, (and it's probably just me) but I have never met anyone, in my entire life, with the last name Grayson. The name Will I can understand. I know three Wills. But no Graysons. I'm not saying it couldn't happen. It's just seems a little unlikely.



I really wanted to like this book. But unfortunately, it just was not for me.

[Baba · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Tiny' is literally the Big Man On Campus at his high school, more so because of his sports jock role, his very big boned body structure and his uncompromisingly loud gay lifestyle; his best friend, usually in crumpled attire is Will Grayson who's just going through life trying to tick all the right boxes, but also at times beseeching 'Tiny' to turn it down a bit. A stretch of coincidences leads Will Grayson to meet another Will Grayson(!), an in the closet high schooler who has only come out to himself so far, but is looking to date.

These two mammoth selling Young Adult writers collaboration on the front of it is risqué, comedic, dramatic (literally!) and heartwarming... can feel my 'but' coming? But... sometimes collaborations work really well, so that you can't tell who wrote what and it's all just beautifully continuous. On this occasion despite the book being a marvellous read on friendship (which in itself is daring with such strong LGBT characters and themes, to not really be about LGBT issues... and something that I really applaud), none of the voices held true for me. Now, being in my fifth decade I know this book wasn't written for me, so I would suggest you take my views in that context. On the other hand, I see no reason why this wouldn't be a very much enjoyed by its primary target audience :) 7 out of 12

[Emily May · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the idea of this book, having two authors create a character each and alternate their points of view throughout the novel. For me it was an entirely different kind of experience and the two authors have such unique styles that I would say it is definitely something everyone should read. It's a story about two teenage boys, both of which are called Will Grayson. They could hardly be more different, there lives have almost nothing in common... until one night when circumstances lead to them meeting by accident (in a porn shop). It's funny and it's ridiculous.

So why the average rating?

Well, because I couldn't get interested in John Green's character at all I'm afraid. This is my first experience of his writing and I know him to be a very highly rated and acclaimed author, one whose books have tempted me numerous times at my local library but I've never got around to reading. If this is any indication, I'm not sure his novels would be for me. I found his Will Grayson boring and a character who quickly became secondary to more interesting personalities like Tiny. I'm also yet to find a young adult novel that does the beauty and the geek story well. Will Grayson is an awkward, nerdy guy who can't believe the smart and beautiful Jane would fall for him. And neither can I, I'm sorry.

That being said, David Levithan's character rocked. He's an angsty "I hate the world" type of guy and it's just effin' hilarious. One of my favourite parts is the part near the beginning where he's having a rant about people using things like "lol" on the internet:

"or ttyl. bitch, you're not actually talking. that would require actual vocal contact. or <3. you think that looks like a heart? if you do, that's only because you've never seen a scrotum.

rofl! what? are you really rolling on the floor laughing? well, please stay down there a sec while I KICK YOUR ASS"

I really really liked Levithan's humour. In fact, I just really like him as an author, I'm yet to be disappointed by his writing. Perhaps I would have liked Green's character better if I didn't have this to compare it to but Green's Will Grayson just pales in comparison.

Some people didn't like the musical at the end but I thought it was pretty funny. I've known a few versions of Tiny in real life - big personality, outrageously shameless - and his character repeatedly made me smile (credit to John Green there). On the whole, the novel was a pleasure to read: very entertaining, very gay (no offense intended in any way - read the novel and see what I mean) and very different.

[Rae · Rating 1 out of 5]

artificially inflated by the greens' ubiquitous little girl empire. for christ's sake, hamlet only has a 3.9.

the feeling you get when you realize you've just wasted time and energy you could've spent reading one of infinitely many worthwhile books on something that has left you no richer for the wear is absolutely crushing. i read it over two days, first in the evening before picking it up again in the morning. when i fisnished, i threw it across the room and went back to sleep.

[Megs ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is one that I'm having a hard time rating. It's nothing to do with the fact that the book is written by two authors and I would split up the writing or anything like that. I found that their writing blended well together, and although I found one Will more fun to read about than another I don't think it had to do with the writing really. I've read many other reviews where people liked the other Will more so that doesn't really matter. It's just that although this book has the usual humor I have come to expect from John's books there was not much more than that to love about this book.


Two boys named Will Grayson are both living in Chicago. At the start of the story they have no idea the other exists, but their paths are soon to cross. Will 1 is a straight teen with a very large gay best friend. This character is John Green's go-to guy. I've read about this same exact character now in three other John Green's books and that's why I didn't find this Will to be the most exciting or fresh character to read about. Will number 2 was written by David Levithan and he was a gay teen who is seemingly depressed, but becomes very hopeful when he finds out he's going to be able to meet his internet love, Isaac.

I didn't really like any of the other characters. I guess if I had to pick any that were okay I would say Jane, but the rest were just annoying.


The plot didn't have anything exciting happen, and I didn't get all emotional like I have when reading other John Green books. This book will probably be very unmemorable to be honest, but I thought it was an alright quick read. The book was seriously predictable, though. I mean pretty much from the start you can tell a few things are going to happen, but on the chance that someone didn't see them coming I will hide them.


1. Of course we knew the only two gay guys were going to hook up. 2. It was also pretty obvious how things would end up for Will number 1 and Jane. It was also fairy obvious that "Isaac" wasn't going to work out because...well did ya read number 1? I will admit that even though I knew he wouldn't end up with "Isaac" I didn't think it would be who it was doing it all along, though.

And then we get to the ending. I almost didn't get to the ending after Tatiana here on GR warned that it was very "Glee"...So yeah. The musical. Wow. She was right. Very Glee or High School Musical. Over the top and unrealistic. I actually really like Glee, but it's fun on TV, not books. I'm sure there are some who may really like this book, but for me it was just okay.


So yeah. This concludes my John Green reading for now. I wanted to read all of his books, and this was the final one for me. This experience has been all over the place.


As far as Will Grayson, Will Grayson goes I would say it's much better than An Abundance of Katherines, but not as good as some others. This may just be because it's the last of his I'm reading and all of the similar main characters and road trips are leaving me feel like I need a change.

[Elyse Walters · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is terrific ---one that adults could spend time together discussing.....(high or low rating, there are topics worthy of discussion in this book)
Sixteen year olds may enjoy this book - but I think the deeper insights might be more appreciated when older. There are already 15, 300 reviews ....
I read two: ( 2 years ago), by Larry Hoffer, and Glenn Sumi. Larry's review was contagious and Glenn's thought provoking.

With the recent floods in San Jose-an ongoing reminder for Paul and I - as we are hosting flood victims this month - and the two bomb threats at our Local Jewish Community center this week--I was hoping for a fun escape. ( so I grabbed this off my shelf)....
However....THIS BOOK WAS FUNNY ....THE VERY FIRST SENTENCE WAS HILARIOUS....but I forgot -- TEENAGERS HAVE ISSUES: serious issues!!
Underneath the laughter and funny dialogue, these kids were dealing with depression, love, loss, gay and straight relationships WITH PROBLEMS , friendships WITH PROBLEMS , struggles within their family, school, and struggles with their own painful awareness. ---
...........so basically -- The only way I really got my escape, was escaping into the teenage world of problems that were irresistibly funny... that we all know are a little bit sad.....and .... a little bit funny!! AS LIFE IS!!! FUNNY&SAD!

At times some of these characters were annoying- rude - and unlikable -
Other times we step back and our hearts open - we feel the tenderness - we feel the luv.
The real star - standout - of this story is not the title characters -- but a character named: Tiny Cooper.

"Tiny Cooper is not the worlds gayest person, and he is not the worlds largest person, but I believe he may be the world's largest person who is really, really gay, and also the worlds gayest person who is really, really large."

......It's a different experience reading a book written by two authors where there're each creator of a character. John Green and David Levithan's writing style are 'very' different resulting in both characters of Will Grayson being 'completely' different.....but it's a beautiful blend ......ending with a bigger-than-life musical!

These kids lives are complicated. The relationships are each entangled. Add social media- texting- smart phone -emails... and a musical stage production.

There is a word taught in this book I thought was cool: "weltschmerz".... which means:
"It's that depression you feel when the world as it is does not line up with the world as you think it should be".
And as my mother would say, "Que Sera Sera"..... 'what shall be will be"

[Limonessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm kind of ashamed to give this book such a poor rating because, clearly, everybody else liked it. I wouldn't even have given it 2 stars if not for the fact that it made laugh a couple of times.
I think this book is SO not for me.
First off, I'm not quite sure why it's called Will Grayson, Will Grayson because, clearly again, this book is not about either Wills. It's about Tiny Cooper, a humongous, self-centered, selfish, loud and super clichéd gay guy. This guy is so self-centered that the plot of the book is basically about him staging a musical about himself. WTF? I thought it would be more about the two Graysons, interacting with each other but they are actually connected only through Tiny.
And, truth be said, I didn't like either of them. Will #1 (Green's) is a nerdy straight guy whose two main rules in life are: 1) don't care; and 2) shut up. I couldn't empathize. He's passive, subject to Tiny's whims and still he loves him. His romance with Jane felt contrived and popped out all of a sudden.
Will #2 (Levithan's) is even worse. He's gay, emo, chronically depressed, tormented by his parent's divorce and perpetually in a bad mood. He's kind of the worst case scenario for a teenager.
Both Wills ramble a lot, there's a lot of IM in the book and weird pointless conversations. Even the whole musical scene at the end was just plain silly. I don't really know who would care about a musical about Tiny Cooper's gay love life. I wouldn't and didn't. I kept thinking: maybe there's some weird symbolism I'm not getting here? I have no clue, I felt this book to be surreal at times. AND I don't really see how Will #2 managed to make other people with the same name go to a stupid musical in a couple of hours. Why would THEY care?

So, again, it might be this book might be better appreciated by real teenagers - not teen at heart like me -but truly, if not for some rather startlingly genius passages like this:

"you know, how people say it's good luck if a bird shits on you? and people believe it! i just want to grab them and say, 'dude, don't you realize this whole superstition was made up because no one could think of anything else good to say to a person who'd just been shit upon?"

or this:

<3. you think that looks like heart? if you do, it's only because you've never seen a scrotum.
(rofl? what? are you really rolling on the floor laughing? well, please stay down there a sec while I KICK YOUR ASS.)

this would book would have not got even that extra star from me. But, obviously, it must be me because check out the awards it got!
Sorry, Green and Levithan, you're just not my cup of tea.

Follow my reviews at NightReader

[Arlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! What did I just finish reading? I don't know whether to cringe, cry, walk away baffled, or sing from the top of the mountain in a musical-esque crescendo BRILLIANT! The writing was refreshing, edgy, raw, and offensive at times but never off the mark.

Okay, how do I explain this book without mucking it up? Here is my attempt: Truly a honest and thought-provoking portrayal of two very confused and angsty teenage boys, both named Will Grayson who are just trying to figure out who they are and ultimately crossing paths in the least likely of scenarios. I started laughing from the first page and continued to laugh out loud throughout the story, but not without its occasional but constant tangents of sad and revealing moments and ultimate heart changing conclusion. This book covered the gamut of teenage struggles, including homosexuality, depression, love, loss, true friendship and painful self-revelation.

The first Will Grayson, who I will refer to as WG#1, was my favorite as he’s the hilarious, self deprecating typical of John Green’s likeable characters. His motto in life is don't care… and shut up. But that can only last for so long. His best friend, Tiny Cooper, is a 300+ pound, gay guy who is constantly challenging WG#1’s feelings and adding a fair share of struggle into his life. WG#1 has some very revealing moments that come across as valuable lessons, some of them profound and others... well kind of gross actually. My favorites were You like someone who can't like you back because unrequited love can be survived in a way that once requited love cannot. and You can pick your friends, and you can pick your nose, but you can‘t pick your friend‘s nose. *LMAO and cringing at the same time* I loved his ten minute game of just the truth. Overall, his observations were hilarious and intriguing. In my opinion, he could do, say or feel nothing wrong, I just down right fell for this character.

Now WG#2, I struggled with him a bit. I couldn't really relate to this character... well for obvious reasons, primarily him being a snarky, twisted teenage boy, but at minimum I was hoping to develop some level of compassion for him. That took some time for me, but ultimately it did occur; the first of which came when he met Tiny and his internal self-revelation helped me understand his dark side. His humor was completely different from WG#1 as it was harsh, destructive, negative and sometimes just down right cruel. WG#2 has his fair share of life lessons that I felt were... well let’s just call them interesting, such as The things you hope for the most are the things that destroy you in the end. and his bird shite rule was kind of harsh, but funny. Overall, his moment of self-revelation was his turning point for me as he shared his hurt about his dad, depression, money struggles, and homosexuality. It was sad to see that all this guy ever wanted in life was a simple break, so you ultimately hope he gets one.

Okay lastly, why did I remove one a star? Two words... Tiny Dancer... Errrrr... Tiny Cooper.. okay that's four words and an unintelligible sound, but anywho... I could NOT stand him or his project/musical and his songs to me were crude. Tiny was selfish, self absorbed, exasperating and downright annoying. Despite his squealing to WG#1 that everything he did was for others, I did not buy it for one minute. Everything he did and said was to benefit him and his interests. How WG#1 remained friends with him simply baffled me. So minus one for a poorly developed character. But other than that perfect!

Overall, great story with some intriguing characters and thought-provoking material. The writing might be offensive at times and the foul language could come across as harsh, but it was truly well done. Hats off to John Green and David Levithan for this brilliant piece of work.

[Julio Genao · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remarkable both for its polished wit and intense compassion, this is a story about three things: honesty, bravery—and Tiny Cooper.

Mostly Tiny Cooper, though. He's the comma between the dumbass Graysons, y'see.

Extravagantly emotional even in its hipster self-possession, this thing runs deep and wide, and I don't think you have to stagger up and out from the last line on the last page in the last minute of the last hour before dawn, sobbing in snot-nosed catharsis and joy and hope, to receive the very same message as I:

Love as thou wilt.
—Jacqueline Carey, Kushiel's Dart

[Josu Diamond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me ha sorprendido muchísimo. He terminado la novela a la velocidad que canta un gallo, sumergiéndome en esta historia tan enternecedora escrita por John Green y David Levithan. He de admitir que aunque los personajes de la novela me han gustado mucho por lo general, no puedo decir lo mismo del Will Grayson de John Green. Es un Will Grayson al que no le vi nada, y que pecaba de ser similar a los personajes masculinos protagonistas del resto de novelas del autor. Pero por otro lado, tengo al grandioso Tiny Cooper. Él es el verdadero protagonista de la historia; un personaje redondo en los dos sentidos con el que te reirás y con el que sentirás emociones humanas. Cuando Tiny se plantea como nexo de ambos Will, la historia gana muchísimo y consigue llegar al lector con una gran cantidad de debates morales y situaciones, como digo, humanas.

Porque esta novela es humana. Refleja situaciones realistas con sentimientos reales, no una idealización de éstos. Situaciones como la amistad entre dos personajes homosexuales o la amistad entre un heterosexual y un homosexual son temas que apenas se tocan en novelas/películas LGBT y que en este caso, dotan a la novela de una profundidad y un realismo que es espectacular. Bravo a los autores por plasmar esa realidad. Bravo por no quedarse callados y llamar a las cosas por su nombre. Y bravo también por no caer en una historia típica.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson se quedará conmigo durante mucho tiempo y la recomendaré durante aún más tiempo. Una novela RECOMENDADÍSIMA para aquellas personas que busquen una novela contemporánea agridulce, realista y con temas no habituales.

(Nota: es la segunda vez que escribo la review por culpa de un error de Goodreads. Me he dejado cosas en el tintero que ahora no recuerdo, y no es tan entusiasta como la primera versión, pero escribiré una más larga en mi blog y hablaré de la novela en el canal, así que no os preocupéis ♥)

[jv poore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely everything I've come to expect from John Green coupled with the fun, frank writing of David Levithan.

I'm not sure only one person would have been able to cover so much of the angst that comes with being a teen; much less a teen with facing unnecessary challenges due only to society's stubbornness.

This is definitely one of those books that takes your emotions on a rollercoaster-ride.....in the best possible way.

[Juliana Zapata · Rating 4 out of 5]

La verdad es que me costó decidirme entre 3 y 4 estrellas para calificar este libro. El libro es indudablemente entretenido, tiene diálogos muy chistoso y otros un tanto profundos, pero sin embargo siento que esta historia funcionaría mucho mejor como película que como libro, ya que la culminación de la historia (que para mí fue una de las mejores escenas) es un musical, y creo que no se disfrutaría mucho más viéndolo y escuchando.

Algo que quiero resaltar en este libro es la temática gay, amo que los libro contemporáneos se tomen el tema con tanta naturalidad y que en cierta forma estén ayudando a muchas personas a encontrar, aceptar y sentirse orgullosas de su identidad y también que ayuden a otras cuantas personas a culturizarse y relacionarse mas con el tema.

Reseña Completa: http://bastvilard.blogspot.com.co/201...

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, this is one of those books where I won’t read the lower rated reviews, which I almost always do either before or after reading a book. The reason I won’t for this book is because it touched something so deeply personal that I think I might feel like I’m reading about someone that doesn’t understand me.

I’ll never review this book as well as it could be, but read the sample and if it doesn’t immediately draw you in, you might never ever relate to it. If you do enjoy it, it only gets better and more honest.

The one criticism I might make about this book is I don’t know how YA it truly is. Of course, maybe I’ve just never truly grown up. All I know is I don’t think at 16 I would have nearly appreciated this book for what it is, but at 30, the characters and the insight spoke to me in volumes. I was and am some of these kids – if not all of them at different times.

Some might say it’s depressing and that’s very true. But, depression is real and as a teenager (and adult) you don’t always think things are going to get better. You can be cynical and feel drawn to other cynical people. You sometimes think those that are always THEM aka the 'others' aren’t really how people are. As Will would say, that statement is both true and not true. But for as depressing as it might be, my fuck, I laughed my ass off the majority of it. Of course, there were a few ugly-face-cry moments thrown in as well.

Characters like Tiny Cooper break up both Wills’ inner dialogue and he’s not there just as a ploy to bring happiness. He’s a real breathing character that exists – as they all do vividly – and he shows the reader that sometimes you can take a break and realize that people are different, and no one is perfect, but difference in all shapes and sizes, genders, personalities, etc can intersect and add something to your life. Sometimes you feel like you are alone and no one gets you. You keep your head down and you are an introvert going through life with a hilarious inner dialogue commenting on things you are desperate to release but sometimes feel no one will get.

That when you least expect it, sometimes all you have to do is breathe and reach out to someone unexpected that might understand you. They don’t have to get all of you. No one probably truly ever will. But, someone will get some part of you and some special moments can happen.

Loved it. Adored it. This book has its stars in Tiny, Will, Will, Jane, Gideon, Nick, Gary, but what it really does is tell the reader that things are both right and not right all the time, but you can get through it.

[emi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nope; I definitely did not like this book. I found it boring, bland and just pointless. Sure, the characters were interesting and unique, but I just found myself really struggling with motivation to read it. In fact, I stopped reading it completely. I don't recommend it.

[Ami · Rating 5 out of 5]

Livre, je t'adore ....



Took me awhile to think about what I wanted to write -- but at the same time, everybody else on friends list have done a GREAT job with their own review. So I don't know if I can add more and I'm not sure that I CAN do a better job. All I can say is ...

+ Emotions. This book made me feel A LOT OF EMOTIONS. I was happy, I was entertained, I was pissed-off mad and was ready for MURDERING ONE FICTIONAL CHARACTER(!!!!), I was touched, I was sad (*sniff*), and in the end, I was floating away with love.

+ I loved both Wills immensely. I loved how Will Grayson realized that keeping his feelings in silence would not get him anywhere, especially in friendship and in love. I loved how will grayson was such a prick with everyone else but so different when he was online and later on realized that well, life wasn't that bad for him.

+ But ... TINY COOPER. He was the heart of the book for me. He was the one who were able to break both Wills and then brought them all together. He was larger than life. He was my FAVORITE character here. This book should have him in the title as well #justsayin'

+ And the ending ... I know some of my friends thought it was corny and cringe-worthy, but I LOVED IT. The story was also about music, with the going to concert, with Will dedicating a song, with GAY! lyrics ... and I thought the ending was just perfectly romantic (yes, people, I LOVED Glee's Pilot, so that should give you an idea *grin*). I was laughing with tears in my eyes when Tiny shouted out his phone number and then asked people to write down the Gay God's number for him. Such a Tiny's reaction.

It was an amazing book -- and since this was my 2nd book in 2013, I wish most of the books I will read this year would be as good *sigh*. And this book can be sum up with this quote ...

“Being in a relationship, that's something you choose. Being friends, that's something you just are.”

[Optimist ♰King's Wench♰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know how people say so and so is a "force of nature" and people usually take notice but then you see/read/meet said "force of nature" and really they're just a loud talker who's kinda bossy and then you feel let down?

Well, I'm here to tell you Tiny Cooper is a bonafide force of nature!

Tiny Cooper, who in fact, is not tiny. At all. The dude is gigantor. He is a loud talker but he's also magnetic in that tractor beam sort of way that attracts everyone around him to orbit his Tiny Cooper planet.

Tiny Cooper is such a contradiction in terms that it's comical.

He's as out and proud gay as a Pride parade complete with drag queens and a marching band IN HIGH SCHOOL!

He's on the football team as an offensive lineman that has a legit chance of being recruited by NCAA teams.

AND He has written, directed, is going to star in, produced, cast and did the costume design for a musical of his life story titled... brace yourselves... Tiny Dancer: The Tiny Cooper story! He ends up renaming it but it'll always be Tiny Dancer to me.



And the thing is brilliant! All the different cliques of kids sign up to be in it, because TINY COOPER! He gets the school to fund it. The community shows up for it.

Tiny Cooper is a glitterbomb divided by a rainbow.

Tiny Cooper is a fucking unicorn, y'all.

I haven't laughed this hard in quite some time. I listened to ABs mostly in the car on my commute and at two separate points I was laughing so hard I literally saw other drivers looking at me wondering if I was having some sort of attack so they could save themselves. I had tears on my face. My sides hurt.

Before I mislead anyone this book isn't just about Tiny Cooper. It's really more of an ensemble cast coming of age young adult novel with queer representation rather than a romance. Though there are romantic elements.

The Will Graysons orbit Tiny Cooper. One is his best friend since grade school, the other is his 18th boyfriend.

Tiny Cooper falls in love. A lot.

Best friend WG I really liked. He is kind of sensitive and he needs to learn to use his words but he's a worthy BFF for Tiny Cooper. He always has been and he always will be. They have some growing pains during this tale that ended up being very touching. He's also hilarious in his own rite.

18th boyfriend WG... he took some getting used to. He did grow on me but he's a misanthrope. His negativity, while humorous at times in that gallows humor sort of way, gives the narrative a weightiness that I think is a reality for many teens.

All of them collide into each other and affect one another, something I found realistic in that it's part of the 'coming of age' experience.

We try. We fail. We try again. Sometimes we succeed and it's great. Other times we fail and it's awful. But we have our friends and loved ones to tell us it'll be ok. Sometimes we learn profound truths. Other times simple ones. But they all matter. They all have meaning.



But really it's about Tiny Cooper.

"And now he's in me, always with me, tiny dancer in my hand
hold me closer TINY DANCERRRRR..."

SING IT WITH ME, PEOPLE!!!

Recommend to those who want a laugh with a side of teen angst.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book that very distinctly was not written for me. Hip high school students try to figure out if they care for one another while a fat gay kid writes a musical about his life while also trying to date a boy who has the same name as his best friend.

By two authors writing alternate chapters, this is more than a generically bad book. Every second chapter is written entirely in lower case, and that character is so possessed by his self-loathing and misanthropy that there is nothing to recommend him. The style of writing detaches you from him so wholly that I wanted to jettison half of the book into the ocean.

The other half? Will Grayson (who writes with caps! Imagine that!) is a guy, I guess ... he's a guy with a stupid policy of not getting involved, which means we've got a novel in which all of the characters are stagnating.

Would this book be meaningful to high school students? I've no idea. Its portrayal of gay high school life seems entirely unrealistic to me (they let one character stage a goddamn musical of his life), and if something doesn't ring true it doesn't matter how much truth is actually in it. On top of this, both Will Graysons decide to have Tiny Cooper as their focal point.

Tiny Cooper, among the worst fictional characters I read in 2010, is narcissistic to the point of intolerability. Worse still is that all of the characters are expected to accommodate him. He pisses off both Will Graysons but they have to make it up to him! Forget their feelings, this is Tiny's show!

Speaking of Tiny's show, it is terrible. We are shown his musical and told that it's a surprisingly good masterpiece. No. It is onanism only backed up by one of the most ridiculous, unrealistic and frankly stupid conclusions in my reading career.

Young Adults deserve fiction that speaks to them. If Will Grayson speaks to anyone, I want to meet that person and kick them into the real world. When Dan Savage said "it gets better", he meant "life isn't as shit as the collaboration between John Green and David Levithan".

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically, 300+ pages of a cutzy gay musical.

First, as with so many books about teenagers, the teenagers really don't act much like teenagers. It seems most adult authors have forgotten what it was like to be a teenager. I never found myself relating or caring for any of the characters. There are some funny moments that brought a smile to my face. The ending I thought was a bit too contrived and unrealistic.

I'm not sure about other high schools but I know the one I recently graduated from would never have supported a "gay" themed musical. Even if the administration would have said yes to it, no students would have tried out for it. To have done so would have meant being bullied for the rest of their school career. It's a nice dream but still a dream.

It’s an okay book but not really something I would recommend.

[Maryam Rz. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 STARS! a witty and rude, fascinating and heartwarming, magically musical and original young adult tale of friendship and identity [♪]

It's the belief, not the words, that mean everything.

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two strangers cross paths.

Reality is the anvil.

The unfeeling and cloesd-off Will Grayson¹, waiting outside a Maybe Dead Cats concert for his theatre lover best friend, Tiny Cooper, and Jane Turner, the girl with the bad music taste.

the things you hope for the most are the things that destroy you in the end.

and the depressed and angry will grayson², walking into a porn store (with great horror) waiting for his to-be boyfriend, isaac.

“It's hard to believe in coincidences, but it's even harder to believe in anything else.”

Two teens with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, culminating in heroic turns-of-heart and the most epic musical ever to grace the high school stage (♪)

Though I've been completely knocked off course,
I'm not getting off my faithful horse!
It wasn't you, it's true,
but there's more to life than you.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson debuted on The New York Times children's best-seller list after its release and remained there for three weeks! It was the first LGBT-themed young adult novel to make it to that list, with multiple awards and nominations :)


Storyline

The book's idea came to David Levithan because he used to be mistaken for a certain David Leventhal on campus; and the thing is, Leventhal was an extraordinary dancer, Levithan was not. So people would keep coming up to him obsessing over his great dancing and Levithan would have to awkwardly repeat he hasn't been on stage last night 😂
Finally, David¹ (our David) went looking for David² (the dancer) before graduation, and they became fast friends!
And the punch line? David Levithan's now best friend, David Leventhal, used to have a roommate named ... Jon Green!!

Why try to hide it?
What good would that do?
I was born this way
And if you don't like it
That says more about you

John Green and David Levithan started writing the first chapters separately, with no idea what the other person was writing!
And magnificently enough, the ideas they both started on are so similar you almost can't tell :))

“it is so hard to accept that life is falling. falling and landing and falling and landing. i agree it's not ideal. i agree.”

What this book is about: It is about how another person can unlock—often inadvertently—the potential of your personality.
It's about identity and owning yourself, and it's about love and the importance of caring for eachother and yourself.

he may be heavy, but right now he floats.

And while I'm not a high school story fan, John Green has always managed to pull it off; and so in this book, even when things got too teenager-y (a type I rarely read), it was so hilarious and ridiculous and I just kept reading for amusement of it!
Well, that is, until the show hit the stage :)))


Storytelling

John Green's: Simple, flowing, easy, and laugh-out-loud humourous as always 😂

God, I swear I will take a vow of silence and move to a monastery and worship you for all my days if you just this once provide me with an invisibility cloak, come on come on, please please invisibility cloak now now now.

Also, masterfully tied to a scientific fact (as John Green does in his books), being Shrödinger's cat :) I think he is the best person to explain his intention:

JG: I think initially I was looking for another way to think about my Will's aversion to attachment; i.e, so long as you don't open the box, the cat is still alive. (Of course, the cat is also dead.)
But I think a lot of the novel is about the weird relationship between identity and existence: In some ways, you are who you are because other people observe you; but in some ways, you are who you are in spite of other people's observations of you.
One of the reasons nonphysicists have latched on to Schrödinger's thought experiment is because we all feel that tension between observed identity and interior identity.

David Levithan's: his chapters are ‘roaringly angry’ and bitter and careless; but they are also funny and special.

i am constantly torn between killing myself and killing everyone around me. those seem to be the only choices. everything else is just killing time.

but what's really unique about his writing is how utterly he can enter the mind of someone with major depression.

when things break, it's not the actual breaking that prevents them from getting back together again. it's because a little piece gets lost–the two remaining ends couldn't fit together even if they wanted to. the whole shape has changed.

i wasn't used to Levithan's writing at the beginning, but i got over it soon and enjoyed his half of the book!


Characterization

John Green's: Will Grayson¹ is a teenage boy with two rules in his life, to a) not care, and to b) shut up. And I'm pretty sure you can imagined who those rules have turned him into:

“If you can't trust your gut then what can you trust?”
“You can trust that caring, as a rule, ends poorly.”

His gay—and sometimes—best friend is the exact opposite; Tiny Cooper is the definition of caring and loud! And also probably the most interesting character of the whole book!
Will¹, Jane, and Tiny and Green's other characters (i.e. members of the Gay-Straight Alliance) are all three dimensional and greatly developed! I LOVED them! Even Ethan!

David Levithan's: will grayson² is a teenager living with major depression and a complete dislike for any social life. he is angry, and does not care for the world.
well, if you've noticed, all the david levithan parts are in lowercase; better that's how his will writes and things. will² sees himself in lowercase, and is more comfortable where he's anonymous. it's actually so fascinating how levithan decided to show this!!

i am a pinless grenade over the world being cruel. but every time i'm proven wrong, that pin goes in a little more.

but, there's an exception to his attitude against the world; isaac. you see, will² is gay but no one knows, and it's not because he's afraid of coming out. he just doesn't care for people enough to think it's important for them to know. he just doesn't think it's their business and doesn't want to talk at all about himself to people.
i was annoyed by him at the beginning, tbh. but then i understood why he's that way, and then i really loved him at the end!
there's also maura; her character played an important role, but i think levithan kind of skipped her and didn't develop her as the story desired. she could've been an intriguing three-dimensional character; instead she was two-dimensional and incomplete.


Relationships

John Green's: While there's romance in this book, and a great one at that, the main focus is friendship and caring; and it's absolutely touching and just beauiful.

I think about how much depends upon a best friend. When you wake up in the morning you swing your legs out off bed and you put your feet on the ground and you stand up. You don't scoot to the edge of the bed and look down to make sure the floor is there. The floor is always there. Until it's not.

John Green amazes me yet again with his manouvers on friendship!

David Levithan's: the best relationship of his chapters was will²'s and his mom's. i loved seeing how they grew together and bonded; honestly, one of the best mother and son bondings in all books!

me: you know what sucks about love?
o.w.g.: what?
me: that it's so tied to truth.

david levithan's other relationships were enjoyable, but nothing more than that. they could've been better written, hmmm :(


Companions

Related book:
• Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story (Will Grayson, Will Grayson, #2) by David Levithan (Tiny Cooper's story as a musical novel; the edited version of the play at the end of Will Grayson, Will Grayson) [ MY REVIEW ]

Also by John Green:
• Turtles All the Way Down [ MY REVIEW ]
• The Fault in Our Stars [ MY REVIEW ]
• Looking for Alaska [ MY REVIEW ]
• Paper Towns [ MY REVIEW ]
• An Abundance of Katherine's [ MY REVIEW ]
• Let It Snow with Maureen Johnson & Lauren Myracle [ MY REVIEW ]
• An Imperial Affliction with Peter Van Houten [ MY REVIEW ]
• The Price of Dawn [ MY REVIEW ]

Book playlist:
• “You Are the Moon” by The Hush Sound
• “All at Once” by The Fray
• “You’re No One ‘Til Someone Lets You Down” by John Mayer
• “Streetlights” by Ludo
• “Dreaming with a Broken Heart” by John Mayer
• “Gravity” by Sara Bareilles
• “Company of Friends” by Danny Schmidt
• “Holland, 1945” by Neutral Milk Hotel (it's mentioned in the book :))

[Elle (ellexamines) · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNFed this around 100 pages in. This was actually my second attempt to push through this book, after a failed attempt last year at camp. I think it's clear at this point that this book wasn't for me.

To get something out of the way: Levithan's character actually interested me to some degree. He's a little too emo, maybe, but definitely not your average ya protagonist. My problem with this half of the book is completely personal, yet took away any possibility of enjoyment for me. Everything is in low caps. I know this is storytelling medium, I know it's creative and interesting, but I cannot read something written in all lower-case without wanting to tear my hair out. I highly recommend actually trying to read in all lower caps for five pages before you actually buy this one.

My problems with John Green's character, Will One, were easier to figure out. He comes off as homophobic. The word “gay” is mentioned six times in one paragraph, and that's not an exaggeration. Will thinks of his friend Tiny exclusively as “the gay one.” He is condescending and rude to Tiny. I'd believe that Green was going to subvert the “token gay friend” trope, had he not written Tiny as every gay stereotype in existence. Guys like Tiny exist, but they have personalities beyond being flamboyant. Trust me. The romance plot is between a guy and a girl who meet at a gay-straight alliance, which for some reason doesn't have a single lgbt+ person in it who isn't a gay guy. Has John Green ever been to a gay-straight alliance?

Beyond the gross stereotyping, Will One also has no character. He's exactly the same character as every other John Green dude protagonist. This formula got old at least three books ago, and I don't want to read it anymore. When is John Green going to come out with a book as interesting as his YouTube channel on history? I'm being serious here. He's clearly a smart, interesting, funny guy, but all his characters are an idealized version of himself, and it's not enjoyable.

Not recommended at all.

[Camus Grimwood · Rating 1 out of 5]

ACTUAL RATING: 0 STARS Warning for excessive cursing.

Life's too short to read a shitty book. If, at 25% into a book, you still fucking hate it, then it is the responsibility of the reader to end such a book (or, in this case, put it the fuck down, because you deserve better than that) before you end yourself. I was once the type that believed you should always push through and finish ever book you read, no matter how fucking awful it really is. Maybe it'll get better. But you know what? I cannot see anything that could possibly save this work of fiction.

Let's start with Will #1; boring as hell, and a cardboard cutout John Green boy—melancholic and pretentious. He has no chemistry with Plain Jane, and I mean absolutely fucking none, and yet somehow they're still WILDLY attracted to one another; i.e., pretentious John Green Boy falls for mysterious, indie-loving John Green Girl. It's not like we've all read that one four times before or anything. And then there's Tiny Cooper. Maybe Mr. Green thought he could erase all the other boring, inaccurate stereotypes he pumped into Tiny by making him huge and on the football team, but the gay stereotypes were still fucking exhausting. Tiny was so self-obsessed and cliché that I hated him right from the get-go, as well as all the other boring-as-fuck characters from Green's chapters.

And then there's Will #2.

This is my first encounter with David Levithan, and it was a horrible one; I have a bad taste in my mouth reading this piece of shit, and I hesitate to read another book by him. Maybe in the future, I'll try his work out, but I am not looking forward to it.

For those who haven't read this shit book, Will #2 is a whiny, edgy, obnoxious-as-HELL little bitch who can be summarized as this: a modern Holden Caulfield x 10, and then add the phrase "2 edgy 5 me." He's supposedly depressed, but Levithan's writing is so fucking offensive to my eyes and my brain that I almost closed this fucking book during chapter two, when I first met his character. Talk about a fucking pissbaby jackoff. What a little fucking asshole. There's absolutely NOTHING to like about the little shithead. He's a dick to his mom, a bully to his friends, and we're supposed to love him because, what? He's depressed? He's gay? Yeah, sorry. Will #2 can go fuck himself.

Basically, this book is shit and I hate it. I'm certain that the only reason it's got such a high rating is because John Green fangirls are deluded into thinking he's nothing short of a god of literature, and I hate to break it to them, but he's not. He's so far from it. If you read this, don't say I didn't warn your ass.

[Garima · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, firstly, the Title of this book should be “Will, Tiny, Will”, as clearly Mr. Tiny Cooper is having, just like his physical persona, a huge presence in the lives of both Wills. I started this book by accusing John Green of having written the character of Will Grayson *First* similar to that of Holden from Catcher in the Rye but accusation soon faded away as the story proceeded. The book is hilarious in capital letters on many occasions that earn it an extra rating point but on a whole you feel like witnessing a High School Drama where the ending is quite predictable and not at all exciting. Both Will Graysons are flawed personalities and it’s hard to like them but I guess that’s exactly what both authors expect from their readers. This book is about Love, loving yourself, loving others and loving those you love to hate.

While reading you remain in a state of confusion that whether you like this book or you find it an okay read. It made me laugh really hard at times and at times it bored me.It’s no more than a one-time read as I don’t expect it to come anyway differently on reading it again.

The treatment given to homosexuality is cool and easy going mainly because it has a main role play in the story. For me it’s a 3 star because even after having its flaws it gives you a break of reading a different style of prose which is a mixture of various elements like hilarity, seriousness, philosophy, etc.

[annelitterarum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Définitivement un bon moment de lecture!! L’histoire m’a beaucoup surprise car je ne m’attendais pas à ce que ça parte dans cette direction avec le résumé (et c’est positif) et en plus la plume est toujours très drôle comme tous les livres de John Green. J’avais jamais lu de David Levithan mais une si belle collab donne définitivement envie de lire ses autres livres à lui! Et les quelques moments touchants valent la peine, il y a une touche de relatable qui ne disparaît pas même si les personnages s’envoient encore des messages sur MYSPACE
Bref je ne pense pas penser à ce livre très longtemps mais il m’a diverti, c’était gay et j’ai aimé donc c’est mission accomplie

[Maria Clara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entre 3.5/4. Y, sinceramente, me ha gustado mucho más de lo que esperaba. Sobre todo porque al final el mensaje del libro no trataba sobre el amor romántico sino sobre la amistad 😊 Una muy buena lectura.

[Eren Nadir Akşamoğlu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muh-te-şem-di ＼(^o^)／ Söylemek istediğim iki şey var. Bunlardan ilki will grayson will grayson'un lgbt temalı olduğu. Yani eğer homofobikseniz sizi rahatsız edecektir. Muhteşem bir kitaptan mahrum kalacaksınız ama ne yapalım •﹏• İkincisi ise bu kitap sadece John Green'in değil. John ne yazsa okurum zaten ama David sen neymişsin öyle *-* Sen hep yaz. Bizim yayınevleri o cesareti gösterebilirler mi? Ölüp gitmeden Everyday hariç diğer kitaplarının da yayın haklarının alındığı haberini duyabilir mıyız bilmiyorum ama sen yaz.

[Keertana · Rating 4 out of 5]

what do i say about Will Grayson, Will Grayson that hasn't already been said before? on one hand, i am well aware that this novel has its fair share of flaws. i'll be the first to admit that john green writes very formulaic characters, from his dorky male single-child protagonist to the manic pixie dream girl he falls in love with. i'll also admit that the characters in Will Grayson, Will Grayson are often annoying, flawed, and highly irritating. its narrative style may grate on some readers, it is kind of hard to connect with at times, and the beginning is disastrously slow. yes, Will Grayson, Will Grayson has its flaws, i'll be the first to admit that, but it also has its own rare form of beauty, brilliance, and heart that in my eyes, more than makes up for any flaws that it might have.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson is the first novel i've read that has been narrated by two authors. it's also my first foray into the work of david levithan and i have to admit, i'm impressed. it's only my third john green novel and while i love his vlogbrothers videos, Looking for Alaska really didn't work me, despite my love for The Fault in Our Stars, so i was a little worried going into this. david levithan and john green have such distinct styles, though, and the combination of their two voices is just...magic. although john green's Will Grayson is distinguished by the capitalization in his narration, opposed to david levithan's will grayson whose narration reads much like this review (you wouldn't believe how hard it is not to use the "shift" key!), any distinguishing characteristics are completely unnecessary, simply because it would be impossible to get these two boys, who share the same name, mixed up.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson is your run-of-the-mill contemporary tale, but the night that Will Grayson meets will grayson, roughly a third of the way into the novel, their lives irrevocably change. Will Grayson is a nerdy, almost forgettable character who lives life not really caring by much. at first, Will Grayson seems rather bland and his narration is spiced up by jane, the girl he grows to appreciate and crush on, and tiny cooper, his best friend who is gay and really isn't tiny. at all. will grayson, on the other hand, is immediately a much more complex character than his counterpart. as a sarcastic adolescent who takes pills for depression, will fails to connect with the people in his life, with the exception of isaac, his online friend who will is actually in love with - and vice versa. will, however, has a girlfriend, maura, who he still hasn't come out to yet for reasons of his own and, needless to say, this causes quite a few difficulties in his life.

in all honesty, it's hard for me to put into words why Will Grayson, Will Grayson is such a fantastic novel. not only is it beautifully written, with profound statements dispersed between a very authentic teenage voice, but its ultimate message is incredibly moving. in some ways, this is less a novel about the two will graysons and more a novel about tiny cooper, the guy who keeps their lives connected. as i mentioned previously, Will Grayson, Will Grayson is not the kind of contemporary you immediately jump out and connect with. rather, what green and levithan attempt to do is convey the sense that although we all have difficult lives, many of us with problems that other people cannot even begin to understand, they are all real and problematic to us, no matter if there are starving children in africa with hiv/aids. while we cannot always reach out and understand others, we can appreciate them and what they do and that, sometimes, is more important than anything else.

in addition to conveying this beautifully, though, i loved the friendships throughout this story. first and foremost is the very complex, but sad, friendship between will grayson and maura. in all honesty, i'd love to see a sequel featuring her because, no matter how cruel her actions may have been, it is evident that she has a plethora of issues of her own to resort to such desperate methods in her life. most importantly, though, is the friendship between Will Grayson and tiny cooper, one filled with tiny lamenting over his ex-boyfriends as Will Grayson tags along. what neither of them understand is how important they are to one another and the realistic direction of their friendship, their gradual growing apart with time and coming back together with a deeper understanding, is the type of friendship we all experience, or want to experience.

just read Will Grayson, Will Grayson, okay? i know it has characters that can come across as incredibly selfish, but that's all part of their flawed charm. i know its characters may resemble other typical ones, but i promise you they all have one aspect of originality. i know it may seem as if you've read this story - the one about the gay couple, the one about friendship, the one about understand - before, but you haven't read it this way. you haven't read it written by these authors. although i had knocked off levithan's Every Day from my shelves, he's made me sure to pick up his other novels with this piece and john green? well, he always had my heart, but he'll have my money now too.

You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.