Wide Awake

WIDE AWAKE by David Levithan
Category: Contemporary
Age Recommendation: Grades 9+
Release Date: 9/12/06
Publisher: Knopf
Reviewed by: Christian C.
Rating: 4 Stars

Decades from today, the results of the election are out, and for the first time in the history of the United States, a gay, Jewish
president, Abraham Stein, has been elected. After the Greater Depression, the War to End All Wars, the Reign of Fear, and
the Jesus Revolution, the moment has arrived. Seventeen-year-old Duncan, who has spent the last few months working with
his boyfriend, Jimmy, as a volunteer at the campaign headquarters, can finally stand up for the Pledge of Allegiance because
at last the words “with liberty and justice for all” make sense.

But soon everything will take a 180-degree turn. The governor of Kansas, a member of the opposition party, demands a
recount. Stein is determined to fight back, and asks all the people who have elected him to go to Kansas and show their
support. Everyone at the election headquarters decides to board their bus that night and join this pilgrimage to Kansas.

Duncan, always insecure, always wondering about what Jimmy will think and what will happen to their relationship, knows
that going to Kansas is the right thing to do. It’s the once in a lifetime opportunity to help write history, and he decides to
board the bus despite his parents’ disapproval.

However, the trip proves to be more challenging than he thought. Duncan and Jimmy’s relationship seems strained. Their
friend Keisha finds out that her girlfriend, Mira, was having an affair with another girl in the group. And when the group
arrives in Topeka, Kansas, they have to endure the insults and vicious attacks of the Decents (the supporters of the
opposition party). They camp out in the center of town, along with more than half a million other people, with not much food,
only a few accommodations, and no quick resolution in sight. Will it be worth it? Will justice prevail?

When I pick up a book by David Levithan, certain things are a given. First, I know it’s going to be well written. From a little
poem, to a presidential speech, to a sex scene, Levithan proves once again with WIDE AWAKE that he’s a talented writer
and has a great deal of imagination. This entertaining novel, full of interesting characters, is a combination of a fun parody of
good versus evil, and a love story.