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Everyday

Book: Everyday by David Levithan 

Synposis: Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl. There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere. It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day. [via Amazon]

Book Notes:

It was the overall concept of the book that made me want to read this. I've read Levitan books before, and I always had such profound experiences with his writing, that I was sure this book would not let me down.

More than just a love story between A and Rhiannon, the book beautifully dissected the essence of love. The multiple characters that A's spirit or perhaps soul, inhabited allowed us to experience different identities. Each of his temporary bodies allowed us to get a glimpse into several relationships, and challenged the concept of love.

Years back, during one of the lowest points in my life, my therapist was trying to explain to me the concept of love. She kept telling me to remove all the physical labels and just take love for what it was. She kept trying to emphasize the experience. It was the connection between two people that mattered.

And that was the basic challenge of the book. Putting all physical attributes aside, can we all really love at its purest essence.

It was a challenge with me. Personally it took me months or maybe even years to fully grasp that what I shared with my ex was real despite everything that happened. But I also can't help but feel all the judgement of the world. It is more difficult when the world shares their opinion, because no matter how you try to convince yourself that it doesnt matter, it does.

So can love really conquer all? Or are we simply limited by our physical attributes, that transcending to the metaphysical is perhaps impossible. Perhaps we can only get a glimpse of the what is really real, but since we are limited by our five senses, it can never be something permanent. 

More than just a series of stories that are intertwined together, Everyday brings up challenging, philosophical questions. A fascinating piece of fiction that leaves the reader more curious. It wasn't just about a love story. It was about this profound emotion that so few of us truly understand and grasp. 


Book Quotes:

"If there is one thing I've learned, it's this: We all want everything to be ok. We don't even wish much for fantastic or marvelous or outstanding. We will happily settle for okay, because most of the time, okay is enough."

"Simple and complicated are the most true things are."

"A pop song that's as substantial as a balloon, but lifts us in the same way when we sing it."

"There is a part of childhood that is childish, and a part that is sacred."

"Happiness is so rarely a part of my vocabulary, because for me it's so fleeting."

"What is it about the moment you fall in love? How can such a small measure of time contain such enormity?"

"It's one thing to fall in love. It's another to feel someone else falling in love with you, and to feel a responsibility towards that love."

"The universe nods along to the songs."

"Kindness connects to who you are, while niceness connects to how you want to be seen."

"...we like to focus on the 2 percent that's different, and most of the conflict in the world comes from that."

"I am learning that a life isn't real unless someone else knows its reality. And I want my life to be real."

"Falling in love with someone doesn't mean you know any better how they feel. It only means you know how you feel."

"This is the trap of having something to live for: Everything else seems lifeless."

"In my experience, desire is desire, love is love. I have never fallen in love with a gender. I have fallen for individuals. I know this is hard for people to do, but I don't understand why it's so hard when its so obvious."

"And once again I think about how people use the devil as an alias for the things they fear. The cause and effect is backward. The devil doesn't make anyone do anything. People just do things and blame the devil afterwards."

"If your beauty is unquestioned, so many other things can go unquestioned as well."

"This is what love does: It makes you want to rewrite the world. It makes you want to choose the characters, build the scenery, guide the plot. The person you love sits across from you, and you want to do everything in your power to make it possible, endlessly possible. And when it's just the two of you alone in a room, you can pretend that this is how it is, this is how it should be."

"Because when something happens, she's the person I want to tell.The most basic indicator of love."

"But how can I make her look past the blur, if I'm a body she'll never really see, in a life she'll never really be able to hold."

"Every person is a possibility. The hopeless romantics feel it most acutely, but even for others, the only way to keep going is to see every person as a possibility."

"The past and future are what's complicated. Its the present that is simple."


Rating: 4/5


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