Spoilery Book Reviews

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Back of the book

One night in Chicago, two guys – both named Will Grayson – cross paths. What follows is...

My thoughts

I chose to read this book next because from what I remembered about the story it covered the themes Solitaire was aiming for, but well. I remembered two apathetic or depressed characters that were mean to those around them yet an enjoyable read. Now I will try to describe what I liked about this book, with minimal comparisons to Solitaire because that's not what these reviews are supposed to be.

Please hold your incredulity while reading. This book is silly and has witty writing styles that make it a joy to read. I am a slut for unique character voices and this book delivers the goods. Despite the main plot points being silly (super gay, super large teenager making a high school play about his own love life), it covers realistic themes of love, friendship and depression in a meaningful way.

I feel this book tackles everything Solitaire tried to do but better.

Firstly, mean characters. (for clarity: Will Grayson versus will grayson are separate characters) Will Grayson is determined to shut up and not care, so that he can avoid any form of drama, but makes him seem outwardly rude and stand offish. He also gives off mixed vibes as he struggles against what he wants compared to sticking to his self-imposed rules. will grayson is constantly cold and rude to Maura, refusing to cross a boundary that could make them real friends instead of people who hang out. Each character is self-absorbed in a different way and have their own learning arcs and apologies to people they hurt.

The depressed will grayson is not triggering. There are some books with a depressed character that sit in their misery so much that is makes you miserable whereas we see will constantly moving through his life. His general outlook on things is constantly shadowed by the low mood but there is no excessive rumination on all that is bad and reasons to be sad.

Do I understand Schrödinger's cat better after this? Maybe, maybe not.

Tiny feels like the main character even though he is never a narrator of the book. His play is the perfect device to make it obvious the book is about love and communication. Tiny's play is a way to directly say every message the book wishes to impart on us, interspersed with funny, gay rhymes.

The plot is very dramatic but not the-whole-world-is-going-to-end dramatic which can get a bit tiring. I guess that's a little bit to be expected from fantasy, so it was nice not worrying about the whole world ending. The more I think on it, Janes' character was convenient, but I loved her anyway. I loved the romantic love and friendship love lines, that one does not trump the other, that they are BOTH important. That you need friends even if your love life is going well.

To conclude, Will Grayson, Will Grayson is a fun read (by two amazing authors – read their other work !!) with a meaningful moral at its heart; that we need to tell our friends we love them. That we need to make time to do things that prioritise our friends. It feels equal parts silly and trying to be profound with a real heartfelt message. I recommend as a fun read! For even more fun, continue with Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story by David Levithan.

TL:DR

Fun and dramatic book about many types of love: gay, straight, platonic, romantic. Even though one character wishes to shut up and not care and the other is clinically depressed, this is a fun read to brighten up your day, in the best gayest way.