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Reviewed by:
  • Every Day
  • Claire Gross
Levithan, David . Every Day. Knopf, 2012. [336p]. Library ed. ISBN 978-0-375-97111-2 $19.99 Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-307-93188-7 $16.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 9-12.

The narrator of Levithan's innovative, ambitious new novel, known only as A, wakes up in a new body every day, one that's always around the same age as A, always within a couple hours' radius of where the last host was. A has a strict noninterference policy with these borrowed lives and has forged a unique perception of human consciousness and connection as part of this rootless existence. When borrowing Justin, though, A falls for Justin's sweet, troubled girlfriend, Rhiannon, and starts taking risks to court her, including telling her about A's existence. As Rhiannon struggles to adjust to the possibility of falling in love with someone who is only consciousness, unattached to race or gender or any other external characteristic, A is pursued by a former host who, piecing together the clues A was careless enough to leave, starts a public witch hunt for what he believes is a devil bent on possession. At the same time, A begins to suspect that there may be others out there who lead the same strange existence—but how to find them? This unconventional romance considers some fascinating and unexpected questions about the nature of identity, consciousness, love, and gender. The philosophically dense underpinnings don't overwhelm the story, though, which features the sweet, smart, sad, hopeful teens Levithan fans will expect. Readers will identify with A's profound longing for connection ("I want to get back to yesterday. All I get is tomorrow"), but they'll also be intrigued by the butterfly effect A's presence may have on numerous other teens who make brief but memorable appearances. Speculative fiction fans will appreciate the in-depth consideration of the wild premise, while readers who enjoyed McLaughlin's Cycler (BCCB 7/08), Brooklyn, Burning (BCCB 11/11), and other gender-bending tales will find this a rewarding treatment of some similar themes.

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