Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan
CW: Discussion of Death, Discussion of Suicide, Discussion of Homophobia, Discussion of Transphobia, Underage Drug Use, Drug Use, Violence, Racism, Homophobia, Unhelpful Cops, Serious Injury, Discussion of AIDS (both physically and socially), Swearing, Slurs, Described Hook-Up, Negative Body Image Thoughts, Fainting, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Mob Mentality
5/5
When I put Two Boys Kissing on my TBR list way back in 2020, I never expected the book to be as intense as it is. I think I put it off so long because I thought it would be kind of boring. I was way off! I have never read a David Levithan book before, which is surprising considering that he is Jewish and gay. I have seen some of the movie adaptions of his books, but I had no basis for what his writing would be like. I was blown away by this book. I am so glad that I finally read it.
Two Boys Kissing centers around two gay teen boys that are trying to set the record for longest kiss. They have to remain standing and their lips have to remain touching. These boys, their family and friends, and the town they're in go through a lot during the time it takes them to kiss. Told in Greek-chorus style by the ghosts of the queer people who died from AIDS, we get a glimpse of some pivotal days in the characters' lives. We experience some heartwarming and some devastating moments. As the ghosts are talking to us, we are a part of the story.
As I mentioned above, I didn't expect Two Boys Kissing to be so intense. This really is the fault of the blurb, so I hope I have provided a more transparent one here. This is the kind of book to make the audience cry while trying to uplift the readers. As the collective of ghosts telling the story have intentions, preferences, and a personality, the story is told in an order that makes sense. It's told with a steady pace and poetically. However, it does not shy away from the hard stuff. Pain and suffering are explored thoroughly. One character is dealing with a violent father and an enveloping depression. Another is throwing himself into helping his friends kiss after he was attacked. A third is dealing with his emotions towards his bullies. The book covers topics like suicide, AIDS, transphobia, homophobia, systematic oppression, and more. I had to take breaks while reading, and it's okay if you do too. Always read with self care in mind.
Although the record for longest kiss has since been broken by a man/woman couple, Levithan was inspired by real events. There were two college boys that broke the record at a longer time than the two in this novel. It had never been broken/set by a same-gender pair before. Levithan wanted to write a multigenerational story for a queer audience. Anyone can read the story, but it's a conversation between the queer people of the past and the queer people of the future about the queer people of the present (or 2012, when the book was being written). I'm writing this a decade later, but it's still so important to have gay and queer representation. Some things have changed for the better, but there are new bad things too. Unfortunately, it's clear that it's not completely safe yet for the queer community to just exist. We must continue the work to make it safer for future generations. As Two Boys Kissing shows, representation can go a long way.
The next time you have the emotional energy to read a heavy book, consider Levithan's Two Boys Kissing. It's well written and has aged beautifully in the 10 years since it was published. Read carefully, but please give it a go!
Commenti