Every other book that is published these days has some kind of overly dramatic, picturesque love story. We all know what I'm talking about. I mean, we have the creepy, overly obsessive relationship in Twilight, in which it is deemed perfectly normal to sneak into someone's room and watch them while they sleep. Then there's 50 Shades of Grey, a rated X knock off of Twilight with equally obsessive characters. Even the Hunger Games, which focuses on a dystopian society, somehow weaves in a dramatic love triangle to keep all of the 13 year old's attention. As a society, we almost always seem to portray this idealized version of love in our books, movies and television shows. The guy comes in, sweeps the girl off her feet, and often they live happily ever after. I blame movies like Cinderella and Snow White for giving me false expectations for my adult years; I mean, I'm 17 and I have yet to live with seven tiny men. However, sometimes I come across a book that looks at love in such a dramatically different way that I can't help but rethink everything I have been taught about the subject. David Levithan has a beautiful way of looking at the realistic, painful sides of love, as well as the light-hearted, beautiful moments.
The Lover's Dictionary does just this. This book is not written in a conventional way; each page begins with a different word, followed by the type of speech. This word is then followed by a memory of the tumultuous relationship described in the story. Often these memories are not in order of how they happened, and therefore the job of discovering the meaning behind the story is placed in the hands of the reader.
This type of style is perfect for the story that he tried to convey. The little glimpses of the end of the relationship, cushioned by happy memories, makes for a beautiful read. Without giving too much away, the story is essentially a compilation of the thoughts and memories of the man in the relationship, who remains unnamed. He catalogues the ups and downs of his relationship with the woman he loves, and the reader soon pieces together that their relationship is far from perfect; we get glimpses of her alcohol problems, and her infidelity. One of the most interesting things about this book is that even during the happiest times, when he seems overwhelmingly in love with his girlfriend, we also see that they relationship has its imperfections. For instance, he constantly brings up the fact that she never puts the cap back on the toothpaste, and often complains of the way she treats him when she drinks too much. Because Levithan drops us hints in the first few pages of the book that the relationship will end badly, the reader is able to pick up on these small grievances throughout the book, more so than if he had told the story in order.
I really loved this book. I read it in one sitting, and have since reread it three or four times. As an avid reader, I can honestly say that I have read a ton of books, but this one has quickly become one of my favorites. As a teenage girl growing up in a world of idealized, glamorized love, this book really helped me to understand that love is far from what is shown in the media. It is imperfect, frustrating, beautiful, and sometimes painful, but from what I have seen, it is always worth it.
“Trying to write about love is ultimately like trying to have a dictionary represent life. No matter how many words there are, there will never be enough.” - David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary
