Why I chose David Levithan:

In fall  of 2003, I had just finished graduate school and was working at The Children’s Book Shop in Brookline, Massachusetts (far and away my favorite job ever). I was a big fan of LGBTQ YA books, just as I am now, so whenever a new title would come in, I’d snap it up. I read Boy Meets Boy, then (probably) proceeded to make my coworkers crazy as I read passages out loud to them. I adored this book that was set in an extremely gay-friendly town. The protagonist, Paul, doesnʼt have to come to terms with being gay; he just is. He says, “Iʼve always known I was gay, but it wasnʼt confirmed until I was in kindergarten. It was my teacher who said so. It was right there on my kindergarten report card: PAUL IS DEFINITELY GAY AND HAS A VERY GOOD SENSE OF SELF.” Paul is neither lonely nor alone. Multiple love interests make Paulʼs life more complex, not to mention the colorful friends in his life (like Infinite Darlene—once Daryl—the star quarterback and schoolʼs most popular drag queen). I’ve read everything Levithan has written, but Boy Meets Boy remains my absolute favorite of his books.