will grayson, will grayson

By John Green & David Levithan

310 pages

Paperback

YA Fiction (LGBTQIA+)

I've been intending to read this book for years. A student suggested it to me a long time ago (I think there was a time when everyone was obsessed with John Green?) but I only just managed to pick it up. I saw a really inexpensive copy at our amazing local used book store, so I figured what better time to read it than now?

The book has 2 authors:

I've always found the 2 author thing fascinating. When I started my PhD I realized that I was never taught how to write collaboratively. It's still not a thing I'm comfortable with, but I'm getting better at it. 

This book is about 2 high school kids, gay, that both have the same name. One is kind of "goes with the flow" and the other is angry at the world and living with depression. In the author Q&A, they mention that many of the YA books that deal with depression deal with the onset, discovery moment, not the maintenance, day to day living with it. I thought that was interesting and important. Anyway, 2 Will Graysons, 2 authors. They alternate chapters. 

The lack of capitalization is a deliberate choice that, although off-putting at first, worked well. 

A weird thing to just notice at this point is that it's written in the first person, which I normally dislike. It didn't bother me here. 

It was a good read - I'm glad I finally got to it - but I dont think it's a re-read for me. If I ever get back into my classroom I'll probably put it in my classroom library.