Boy Meets Boy

Bibliographic Information: Levithan, D. (2003). Boy meets boy. New York: Knopf. ISBN: 978-0375832994

Plot Summary: In a small utopian town where all sexual orientations are accepted and embraced, Paul, a gay teen who was outed by his Kindergarten teacher, has mostly lived a comfortable and perfect life. His parents and older brother embrace his homosexuality, and even his school is a fantastical community where cheerleaders can ride motorcycles and the football quarterback can also be homecoming queen. Paul’s world is juxtaposed with his friend Tony. Tony lives in an adjacent town, and his parents are religious conservatives who believe they can stamp out his homosexuality. Paul and Tony’s mutual friend Joni, hang out at a bookstore concert one night, where Paul meets Noah, his new love interest. Paul finds out that they attend the same school, and soon they start to date each other. Everything is peachy until Paul’s ex, Kyle, comes back into the picture. Kyle broke up with Paul because he was unsure of his sexual identity, feeling bisexual and “on the fence” about who he was. When Kyle realizes his mistake, he confesses his true feelings for Paul, and Paul kisses him. Naturally, Noah finds out, and Paul must mend all of his mistakes, while helping his friend Tony fight depression, and Joni’s bad relationship choices to boot.

Critical Evaluation: This book breaks away from the usual LGBQT themes of struggling for acceptance in a hostile world of bullying and ridicule. Instead, Levithan provides LGBQT teens with a fictional safe haven, where the important things can shine: love, friendship, and finding your identity. Granted, his utopian vision is farfetched, and unfortunately a far cry from the true plight of most gay teens, but at the same time, Levithan is pushing forth an important question: what if? What if everyone was free to be himself or herself? What would such an accepting place look like? Underneath all the positive speculation though, lies just another formulaic teen love story, but with a gay twist: boy meets boy, boy loses boy, boy wins back boy. What keeps readers glued to the pages isn’t the predictability of the plot, however. Its Levithan’s grasp of language and pacing; never does the story fall flat, every scene is charged with drama, emotion, or reflections on coming-of-age. Overall, Boy Meets Boy is a breath of fresh air, in a world of YA lit that can often be depressing and bleak.

Reader’s Annotation: Paul meets Noah, a cool artist who wears blue suede shoes. They fall in love, but Paul’s past follows him like a shadow. The boys are unsure of how to trust each other, considering they’ve both been heartbroken before.  

Author Information: Gale’s Contemporary Authors Online states, “David Levithan has written numerous novels for teens and young adults, as well as novelizations of movies and television-show tie-ins. Several of his novels actually began as short stories written as Valentine's Day gifts for friends, a tradition he began many years ago; his novels Boy Meets Boy, The Realm of Possibility, and Are We There Yet? all got their start this way. Along with his work as a writer, Levithan works as editorial director and executive editor at Scholastic, where his responsibilities include editing the entire Push imprint. A line focusing on new voices and new authors in young adult literature, Push led to Levithan's editorship of the anthology You Are Here, This Is Now: The Best Young Writers and Artists in America: A Push Anthology, which was the first book-length work to feature his name on its cover. When asked by an interviewer on the Barnes & Noble Web site to give his advice for writers waiting to be discovered, Levithan commented: ‘Don't write to be published. Write because it's something you want (or have) to write.’”

Genre: Fiction

Subjects: LGBQT, homosexuality, friendship, love, relationships, high school

Curriculum Ties: N/A

Booktalking Ideas: Read from the passage where Paul and Noah meet in the book store.

Reading Level/Interest Age: 12+

Challenge Issues/Defense: Due to LGBTQ themes, this book may be challenged. If so, refer to:

1.     The San Francisco Public Library Collection Development Policy, Selection Criteria, and Teen Collection documents.

2.     The California Department of Education District Selection Policies, Reading Lists, and Resources for Recommended Literature: Pre-K-12.

3.     A hard copy of the ALA’s Library Bill of Rights.

4.     Mixed book reviews from School Library Journal, Kirkus, and Publisher’s Weekly.

5.     Book selection rationale.

6.     If necessary, The San Francisco Public Library’s Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials Form.

Reason for Selection: This is one of the sweetest LGBTQ books I have ever read and has won numerous awards and honors.