I've finished up Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan and the only problem that I have is that it's entirely unrealistic.  I think there was a lot of potential for this book to be really magnificent.  The writing was really superb and the characters were interesting but the world that they were placed in was entirely fictional.  The main character, Paul, has known since kindergarten that he was gay when a teacher wrote in a report "Paul is definitely gay."  Let's think about this for a sec, people.  Would a teacher ever write something like that?  Umm NO.  Also, would a child of that age a) know what the words on the page were and/or b) understand what they meant?  Umm NO.  These are just a few of the utterly fantastic (I mean this like extraordinary) scenarios from this book.  It was a light read that read as an entirely fictitious work when I thought it was going to be fraught with a lot more meaning and vulnerability.  Meh.

Going a little ways from my usual style I'm going to list the next 3 books that I'm going to read because they're interrelated.  I'm writing a report on Neil Gaiman and themes which occur in his YA works.  Alright, it's just one theme and I have no idea what that theme is at present.  BUT that's why I'm reading these 3 books.  The first is hopefully going to give me further insight into his life: Neil Gaiman on his work and career.  By a glance at the pages within, it appears to be an interview told through several chapters. The next is M is for Magic and is a book of eleven short stories about both realistic and fantastic events.  The third book is The Graveyard Book and has been recommended to me by several friends.  It's the story of a young orphan who grows up in a graveyard among ghosts and witches.  The other book that I'm using for my  paper is Stardust which I read a few months ago.  Did I mention that my oral presentation is Tuesday and the paper is due Thursday?  I'd better get cracking!!

Will wonders never cease!

The First Part Last was a change from what I imagine is the typical "teenage pregnancy" novel.  The book is told from the point-of-view of the father. It goes back and forth between the past (when they discovered they were having a baby) to the present (the baby has been born). There's a twist to the story that I thought I had figured out but then surprised me at the end. I enjoyed it because it was well-written and defied what I felt was the "formula" for the usual teen fiction. I think it's well worth giving a whirl.

Next on the list is Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan. I was intrigued by this book as soon as I saw it on my reading list. As a library student, we are taught that it is vitally important to stock the shelves so that every member of the public can fulfill their information needs. Young adults are at that point in their lives where they are questioning the very definition of themselves. Who are their friends? What do they like? Are they weird? A book which explores a budding homosexual romance between two boys is a perfect example of how to insure that this information is properly fulfilled. I'm interested to see how this particular book deals with this sensitive issue.