AN HOUR WITH DAVID LEVITHAN - AWRF

 This talented young man who is both a senior publishing executive with Scholastic in NYC and a highly rated YA author (published by Knopf in the US and Text in Aust/NZ) has been the surprise of the Festival for me. I attended all three of his sessions, each very different from one other, but in each case he was a stand-out perfomer.

In his first session as part of the schools programme prior to the Festival proper he wowed an audience of 1500 teenagers, in his second outing he combined wonderfully with Granta editor John Freeman to talk about publishing in the US and the audience went away well informed on the subject, and then today he was ably chaired by US-based NZ writer Paula Morris, talking about his double life and editor and author.

Answering fully the thoughtful questions put to him Levithan then read, (acted might be a more accurate word, he was brilliant), from his new book Will Grayson Will Grayson. He even sang the words of one of the main characters, Tiny  Cooper who is writing a musical about his own life.

All too soon the hour was up and soon there was a long line outside of both young and old readers buying his books and getting them signed.
You have made a great contribution to this Festival David, I hope you will be back sometime.
Bon voyage.