Book Review: Wide Awake

Book: Wide Awake

Author: David Levithan (a GoodReads author)

Source: Browsing the YA section at the local library

GoodReads Summary: In the not-too-impossible-to-imagine future, a gay Jewish man has been elected president of the United States. Until the governor of one state decides that some election results in his state are invalid, awarding crucial votes to the other candidate, and his fellow party member.  Thus is the inspiration for couple Jimmy and Duncan to lend their support to their candidate by deciding to take part in the rallies and protests.  Along the way comes an exploration of their relationship, their politics, and their country, and sometimes as they learn, it's more than about the journey than it is about reaching the destination.

Only David Levithan could so masterfully and creatively weave together a plot that's both parts political action and reaction, as well as a touching and insightfully-drawn teen love story.

My Thoughts: I have to admit that throughout the course of reading this book I wasn't really that intrguied by it.  I didn't feel the compelling urge to want to continue reading the book and see what happens.  I often felt that it was drawn out too much in certain areas.  That being put aside, I found it difficult to read this book for the fact that the way it's written in a way that it's in the "future" but yet has a lot of similarities that our country currently has and yet still be quite different.  I thought that the thought David Levithan put into the political commentary part was brilliant; I could definitely tell he did his research about Kansas when I caught something that only native Kansans would have picked up on dealing with a group of people that are bull headed behind their beliefs.  In the end I enjoyed that the book gets across the fact that we are all apart of history in whatever we do.

Favorite Quote: "I was a part of history. We are all a part of history."

Rating: 2/5