John Green is my spirit animal… there I said it! I have a serious love for this man and his books, crash course videos and the general hilarity with which he makes vlogs with his brother Hank and leads the nerd fighters. “Looking for Alaska” is the second novel that I have read in less than a month by John Green and I’m planning on reading “A Abundance of Katherines” pretty soon here… it may even show up on the #NerdProblems Book Club List.
But back to the review at hand… “Looking for Alaska.” I picked this book solely because it was written by one of my favourite authors, I didn’t read the back to see what it was about, I didn’t google book reviews and I certainly didn’t mind delving into a story without knowing what to expect. At first I assumed the story would take place in Alaska, I was the wrongest I’ve ever been. “Looking for Alaska” is in fact about a boy from Florida, Miles Halter or “Pudge,” who is obsessed with famous last words and goes in search of the Great Perhaps. This search begins with him leaving Florida for what he hopes to be the great adventure of attending Culver Creek boarding school. There he meets a host of characters, including Alaska Young, a beautiful, mysterious and sometimes moody friend of his roommate the Colonel. Pudge finds himself with more friends than he has ever had, smoking and drinking in the woods and experiencing life like he has never before. That is before it all comes crashing down and he is forced to grapple with some serious meta-questions.
The beautiful part of this book is how real the experiences of Pudge are to most peoples adolescent years. Pudge grows to love Alaska for what she represents to him and I feel Alaska even grows to love Pudge, despite having a boyfriend at another school. “Looking for Alaska” is part love story, part coming of age story (especially with all the pranks, bets and discussion of feelings) and part tragedy. Though you probably won’t be crying yourself to sleep like I did with “The Fault in Our Stars,” you will be moved by the characters feelings of love, loss and forgiveness. I refuse to give any spoilers away so I will say this… by the end of the novel you will be questioning what you know about immortality and what it means to ultimately forgive.
Vague enough for you? Perfect! Go read the book!!
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