David Levithan

by Sarah

David Levithan is a successful author of young adult novels and one adult novel, as well as a publisher of others’ work through Scholastic. At 41 years of age, he has released a total of 18 books, including both solo books and books he’s written with others. His characters differ in many ways, from a character named A who wakes up in a different body every day (and has since birth) to quarterback/drag queen Infinite Darlene, all the way to Will Grayson, a boy who, by chance, meets someone with the same name as him, and nothing is ever the same again.

He mainly writes about teens that have dealt with all sorts of things, whether that is depression, sexuality, making mistakes, or just life in general. He gives them such depth and development that it’s as if they’re sitting across from you, sipping tea, telling you their story and either laughing or crying, depending on how their story went. While I haven’t had the pleasure of having read all of his books quite yet (planning on doing so soon), I’ve yet to have the problem of his writing keeping my interest. If anything, I had the problem of finding time to read, due to wanting to finish it all in one sitting.

Levithan has had the honor of working on books with other talented authors, such as John Green in Will Grayson, Will Grayson; Rachel Cohn in Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Naomi & Ely’s No Kiss List, and Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares; and Andrea Cremer in Invisibility. Each of these books alters points of view among the characters, depending on whose turn it is to write.

He, refreshingly, doesn’t seem to be overtaken by fame, either. He tells yalsa.ala.org about his accomplishments, saying, “It was really thrilling to have my first book published. But, truth be told, the first time one of my stories was accepted to the high school literary magazine was pretty thrilling, too. All variations of the same theme. But honestly? It’s all those moments with my friends. Dancing in parks or goofing around at a multiplex or crowding into someone’s house for a deadline meeting for the newspaper – those fuel my writing more than anything academic.”

David Levithan is just one of those authors that has become blessed with the gift of writing beautifully or humorously and can do both all within the same book without confusing or troubling the reader. I suggest that you explore the words that have come from him as soon as you can; you won’t regret it.