Monday, August 6, 2012

Young Love, Sweet Love (Book Review: How They Met, And Other Stories, David Levithan)

I do not know why I do not read more short story collections, since I love short stories. There's something intimate in them, and they almost always make you think. I have this vision in my mind that I can write short stories, though I have never tried. I loved "How They Met, and other stories," a collection by David Levithan, who is known for his YA novels. These are mostly stories of young people falling in love, realizing they are in or out of love, and waking up to heartbreak. Most of them are first loves, or on and around that time in their lives.  They are  also mostly gay, though there are some straight ones thrown in. Some of my favorite ones: "Princes," about a young ballet dancer who falls in love with another ballet dancer, and his story is interwoven as his younger brother prepares for his bar mitzvah. There's "Romantic Inclination," wherein a girl realizes the one she is pining for is gay. I kind of liked "Breaking And Entering," about a young man who refuses to let go of his love. These stories reminded me of young love, when we were foolish to believe idealized notions of love. They were wistful, innocent, and sweet reminders of the way we were. 

BC-62

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