lizpatanders

For those of you who don’t know, I have a sappy side. A side that likes happy endings and sometimes cries over chick flicks. Being the sap that I am, picking up a book with the title The Lover’s Dictionary seemed like a no brainer to me. I have to admit, the writing in this book is gorgeous, but the plot isn’t what I was hoping for.Boy Meets Boy was my first and thus far only other David Levithan book. In addition to being a sweet high school romance, this novel showcases Levithan’s ability to create atmosphere and characters. The Lover’s Dictionary is actually written for adults, however, and is filled with lyrical prose. I’ve come to always expect quality from Leivthan, but given how different this is from Boy Meets Boy, I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was.The format of this book is quite literally like a dictionary, just without all of the words a regular dictionary would have. It’s quite an inventive idea, and I can see why it took off. There is a connecting plot throughout the novel, although the definitions almost read like vignettes. When I got to the end, I was expecting a different tone, and it felt as though Levithan suddenly decided to take a sharp turn in terms of tone and leave us hanging. It wasn’t awful, but I would have liked it better if either the tone was different or the definitions were actually vignettes and not part of one story.I just didn’t get this book. It had it’s beautiful moments, but I don’t understand why it ended the way it did. I wanted to adore The Lover’s Dictionary, but it turned out to be another title to add to list of books that’s good, not great.