Ari Reviews: Every Day

Buying this book instead of a paperback version of John Green's

The Fault in Our Stars proved to be quite a good choice. Though

about P525.00 (around $13-14) of my savings were spent, I can

definitely assure you that this book was worth the cash.

So, I introduce to you David Levithan's Every Day.

Spoilers may lie ahead, click the read more to move on.

Started: 1.26.13
Finished: 1.27.13

I remember reading Levithan's work for the first time while reading Will Grayson, Will Grayson, in which he collaborated with John Green (known for The Fault in Our Stars as well as many others). His style was quite different from Green's, which was refreshing at the time because I spent almost all of my time reading Green's work, from one book to another. Also, this is not the first time I've encountered this book. I recall a clubmate of mine with the book on her desk, and she told me that it was quite nice so far. 

Going away from the topic for a bit, my family and I went to Shangrila Mall yesterday to kill some time before heading out to dinner. One of the last stops was Powerbooks, where I had begged my parents to let me go to with my brother. I soon raced there with him, and had a problem: Which book would I buy? There was a paperback copy of Green's The Fault in Our Stars which I really wanted because it was considerably cheaper than the hardback, and then there was Levithan's Every Day which spiked up my interest ever since my clubmate showed it. After thinking, I took out my wallet and purchased the latter. 

I started reading the book in the car, continued to the restaurant, read it here at home, and continued the day after, which is today. I read and read until I finished, wherein I felt some kind of empty feeling, as I do when I finish books that left some kind of impact on me. It took a bit to absorb the story, and I was left with a want to reread the book. But that shall be done hopefully much later.

Every Day tells the story of a persona named A (this made me giggle a bit upon finding out) who, each day, wakes up in another person's body. The reason for this isn't explained, and all history about it is that he's been doing it ever since he was a child. One day, he wakes up in the body of a boy, and soon finds himself falling in love with the guy's girlfriend. At that, it's like he forgets the rules he made for himself, and the days after that experience, he goes and sees the girl again - that is, in someone else's body.

A's gender, race, and appearance is left unexplained, giving the readers a chance to imagine for themselves on what A really looks like. In my imagination, he is your regular, sixteen-year-old brunette-haired male. Throughout the book, he and Rhiannon, the girl he falls in love with, try and try to figure how their relationship shall go. Mistakes are made and lives are experienced. A sees her as each day passes, and even experiences a day as Rhiannon herself.

A found himself in numerous bodies, varied kinds of people – even one who had the body of Beyonce. But even though the bodies were different and the memories weren’t the same, it was Rhiannon that plagued his mind from start until end. Every Day gave me the bittersweet feeling that the film (500) Days of Summer gave me, though it was a love story, and a brilliant one at that.

I was so font of A, and I was cheering him on throughout his discoveries and mistakes throughout. I laughed, frowned, scolded, and even nearly yelled at him as he went on, and the ending made me think a bit and wonder, what if?

You would find yourself hoping A would get what he really wanted, and that was Rhiannon. But as the end drew to a close, the bitter feeling left was probably for the better. I honestly though there was a way for them to be together, if Rhiannon would just cope with the idea of A being someone else every single day. But that was not the case.

If that happened, what wouldn’t matter was the fact that he had a different appearance, but that he would leave everyday, come back, and then leave again, soon coming back as someone else. A would have to somewhat twist the life and schedule of the body he was “renting” with the risk of possibly getting the person into trouble, as proven in Nathan’s case. With those difficulties and trials in mind, they would never had made it, and it was already determined from the beginning.

A broke all his rules just to be with her, and one of them was to not get attached. But he fell in love and grew attached, he had the desire to see her and be with her even if it meant risking the body of the original owner.

Like Rhiannon stated in the book, “You’re just the guest.” A is merely a guest in the body he has come to take for a day. He can’t seem to see it, but she can, strangely enough.

“When you love someone, they become your reason.” A’s reason was Rhiannon. The reason for the story was Rhiannon, who he loved, and in the story ended because of that reason.

Every Day has given me things to think about: When do you truly love someone? When do you truly know someone? And what is the line between love and obsession? That last one may be a bit uncalled for, but that is what I want to know. Levithan gave a wonderful story with many questions left behind to us readers, and unlike all those sappy love stories with a good ending and the boy and girl happy and well, this story explains a love quite unreachable and better left untouched.