Will Grayson, Will Grayson
Encyclopedia
Will Grayson, Will Grayson is a novel by John Green and David Levithan
, published in April 2010 by Dutton Juvenile. The book's narrative is divided evenly between two boys named Will Grayson, with Green having written all of the chapters for one, and Levithan having written the chapters for the other, presented in an alternating chapter fashion. The novel debuted on the New York Times children's best-seller list after its release and remained there for three weeks.
and Green the surname
. The only plot they decided on together was the fact that the two characters would meet at some point in the novel and that their meeting would have a tremendous effect on their lives. After this decision, they separately wrote the first three chapters for their half and then shared them with each other. After sharing, they then "knew immediately it was going to work", as stated by Levithan.
The other will grayson, whose name is never capitalized, goes through his life without anything good to hold onto besides an online friendship with someone who goes by the name Isaac. Intent on meeting up with Isaac, will grayson sets up an encounter one night in Chicago but eventually finds out that Isaac was invented by his friend Maura. What ensues brings both characters together and changes both of their lives forever in ways they could never have guessed or imagined.
David Levithan
David Levithan is an American young-adult fiction editor and award-winning author. His first book, Boy Meets Boy, was published in 2003...
, published in April 2010 by Dutton Juvenile. The book's narrative is divided evenly between two boys named Will Grayson, with Green having written all of the chapters for one, and Levithan having written the chapters for the other, presented in an alternating chapter fashion. The novel debuted on the New York Times children's best-seller list after its release and remained there for three weeks.
Collaboration
In designing the plot for the book, the two authors decided to split it evenly in half. This also held true for the main characters' names, with Levithan choosing the given nameGiven name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
and Green the surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
. The only plot they decided on together was the fact that the two characters would meet at some point in the novel and that their meeting would have a tremendous effect on their lives. After this decision, they separately wrote the first three chapters for their half and then shared them with each other. After sharing, they then "knew immediately it was going to work", as stated by Levithan.
Plot summary
The novel follows two boys who both go by the name Will Grayson. The first Will, whose name is always correctly capitalized, is described as trying to live his life without being noticed. This is complicated by the fact that his best friend, Tiny Cooper, described as "the world's largest person who is really, really gay" and "the world's gayest person who is really, really large", is not the type to go around unnoticed. Tiny is also, throughout the novel, trying to create an autobiographical musical, which further draws attention to himself and everyone around him.The other will grayson, whose name is never capitalized, goes through his life without anything good to hold onto besides an online friendship with someone who goes by the name Isaac. Intent on meeting up with Isaac, will grayson sets up an encounter one night in Chicago but eventually finds out that Isaac was invented by his friend Maura. What ensues brings both characters together and changes both of their lives forever in ways they could never have guessed or imagined.
Main Characters
- Will Grayson: First protagonist of the story. His point-of-view is seen in the odd numbered chapters, and his name is always capitalized. He is obsessed with the band Neutral Milk HotelNeutral Milk HotelNeutral Milk Hotel was an American indie rock band formed by singer, guitarist and songwriter Jeff Mangum in the early 1990s. The band was noted for its experimental sound, obscure lyrics and eclectic instrumentation....
. - will grayson: Second protagonist of the story. His point-of-view is seen in the even numbered chapters, and his name is always lowercased. He is shown to be homosexual.
- Tiny Cooper: Friend of Will Grayson. He is described as being a large, flamboyant, homosexual, footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player who runs through love interests swiftly. He is the president of the GSA at school. - Jane Turner: Friend of Tiny and Will. She is also member of the GSA at school. She is the love interest of Will Grayson.
- Maura: A gothGoth subcultureThe goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in England during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
girl who is attracted to will grayson. She is one of the few people at his school with whom he interacts.
See also
- An Abundance of KatherinesAn Abundance of KatherinesAn Abundance of Katherines is a young adult novel by John Green. Released in 2006, it was a finalist for the Michael L. Printz Award.An appendix explaining some of the more complex equations Colin uses throughout the story was written by Daniel Biss, a close friend to Green.-Plot summary:Colin...
- Looking for AlaskaLooking for AlaskaLooking for Alaska is the first young adult novel by John Green, published in March 2005 by Dutton Juvenile. It won the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award from the American Library Association...
- Nick and Norah's Infinite PlaylistNick and Norah's Infinite PlaylistNick & Norah's Infinite Playlist is a 2008 romantic comedy film directed by Peter Sollett and starring Michael Cera and Kat Dennings. Written by Lorene Scafaria and based on the novel of the same name by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, the story tells of teenagers Nick and Norah , who meet when...
- Paper TownsPaper TownsPaper Towns is the third young adult novel by John Green, published in October 2008 by Dutton Books. It debuted at number 5 on the New York Times bestseller list for children's books and was awarded the 2009 Edgar Award for best Young Adult novel....