Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

From the Goodreads.com:
   Will Grayson meets Will Grayson. One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two strangers are about to cross paths. From that moment on, their world will collide and lives intertwine.
   It's not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old - including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire - Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most awesome high school musical.

   I love this book. I wish I had read it sooner and will soon be pushing it on a few of my coworkers. It doesn't matter if you don't like musicals, you don't have to to appreciate Will Grayson, Will Grayson. John Green and David Levithan each wrote their own Will Grayson. I love the two alternating and  distinct writing styles, each matching each Will Grayson perfectly.
   Aside from the writing, I really enjoyed the story. I became quite attached to the characters, all of them. It isn't often you find a book in which you like each character you're introduced to. There are some pretty valuable life lessons contained in these 310 pages as you learn and grow with Will Grayson and Will Grayson. I sincerely hope someone makes this into a movie, a musical movie. I am worried they would not do it credit, but I'd love to see someone try.
   If you're a sucker for a coming-of-age novel (like me) you'll like this book. I also recommend this book to those who love John Green (of course) but also if you've enjoyed Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sanez.

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

From Goodreads.com
1987. There's only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that's her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn's company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June's world is turned upside down. But Finn's death brings a surprise acquaintance into June's life - someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and
even her own heart.
   At Finn's funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn's apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she's not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most.

   Tell the Wolves I'm Home is one of the most beautifully sad books I've read. When it starts, you know June's heart is going to be broken by her uncle's death. Oh, how I felt for June. It's hard when someone you love passes and everyone else sort of makes it seem like it's just another day, when you feel like you're the only one who misses your loved one and no one else seems to want to talk about it. June feels so alone when she gets the teapot and letter from Toby, who her family hates, and so begins their tenuous "clandestine" friendship. It's a tale of healing and those that help you along the way.
  This novel is about June's personal journey, but her older sister, Greta, is having her own crisis as well. The sisters' relationship is a big point in this book. They used to be best friends, now Greta is mean to June, she's the 'perfect' one; popular, talented, smart. June is...I don't want to say weird, but really she's in her own renaissance world, she spends her days dreaming of another time and has no friends. Their parents are accountants and this takes place during tax season, while they are present, their absence is what matters.
   This book is a tearjerker, I wanted to cry within the first few chapters, June's sense of loss is just so immense. I recommend Tell the Wolves I'm Home to fans of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

The Last Summer of the Death Warriors by Francisco X. Stork

From the Hardcover:
DEATH
It surrounds Pancho. His father, in an accident. His sister, murdered. His own plans to trace her killer. And D.Q. - a guy Pancho's age who's dying of cancer.
  That is, if he'll ever shut up.
LOVE
D.Q. is writing the Death Warrior Manifesto, a guide to living out his last days fully. He needs just one more thing: the love of the beautiful Marisol. But as Pancho tracks down his sister's murderer, he finds himself falling for Marisol as well...
FAITH
And choices that seemed right and straightforward become tender, tentative, real. While D.Q. faces his own crisis of doubt, Pancho is inexorably drawn to a decision: to revenge his sister and her death, or to embrace the way of the Death Warrior and choose life.

"What if everyone is given a task we're to work on and if possible complete while we're living on this earth? What if before we are born and assigned bodies, all our souls stand in a line in heaven, and as we get ready to come down, an angel gives us a little slip of paper that says what we have to do? Only the message is written in a language that we forget how to speak as soon as we get down here. But the message on that little piece of paper is still deep inside us, and our job is to remember, to recollect it, and then go about doing what it says."

This was a little slow to start, but once you get going it's magnificent. I didn't feel the characters in my soul, but I did feel the entire story. Who hasn't wondered at their purpose in life?
   Pancho is determined not to let D.Q. get to him, he doesn't want to care and he doesn't want anyone to think that he might. As he tracks his sister's killer he knows that he will end up in prison for it. He feels like he just needs to do this one thing before his life is forfeit.
   D.Q. is determined to live the rest of his life on his terms in spite of his mother's forceful will to cure his cancer. D.Q. has chosen Pancho to be with him while he goes through the treatments his mother has insisted he try. All the time D.Q. tries to show Pancho the ways of a Death Warrior, to make Pancho appreciate the life he has left.
   This book should be read by everyone. It's a story about learning how to really live and enjoy life regardless of your circumstances. I would particularly recommend it if you loved The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. I know that book is widely loved, but this book has some similar themes and it doesn't crush your soul. This is not a love story, it is a tale of a friendship.