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quiltyscientist's review against another edition
4.0
I still love this book. I know I bawled my eyes out the first time I read this. It wasn’t as hard hitting this time. But I knew it was coming, so I’m sure it had something to do with it. I love all the last words that were shared with us. I’m not as fascinated as Pudge or even John Green himself, but there were some true gems.
les_reads_too_much's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
nikki52010's review against another edition
3.0
Sigh. 2 1/2 stars? 3 stars? I'm not even really sure.
I'm going to hide as I write this. Don't want anyone coming after me.
I think I bought into all the hype with the book. I let it build up and maybe I expected to much out of it. For me, I couldn't connect with the characters. At all. I'm not sure if it was the writing style that caused that. Each 'chapter' lead down to the event, and the after counted the days as they dealt with the aftermath.
One hundred days before.
Eighty-seven days before.
Forty days before.
No.
How can I connect with a character(s) when I only get a little clip of their daily life. A little glimpse of their friendships forming.
I didn't cry. (I knew what was going to happen.)
I think in the end, this book is just to young for me. I am very picky about my YA books that I choose to read for this particular reason. I have one more John Green book I own, and I hope I get a better experience with that one.
I'm going to hide as I write this. Don't want anyone coming after me.
I think I bought into all the hype with the book. I let it build up and maybe I expected to much out of it. For me, I couldn't connect with the characters. At all. I'm not sure if it was the writing style that caused that. Each 'chapter' lead down to the event, and the after counted the days as they dealt with the aftermath.
One hundred days before.
Eighty-seven days before.
Forty days before.
No.
How can I connect with a character(s) when I only get a little clip of their daily life. A little glimpse of their friendships forming.
I didn't cry. (I knew what was going to happen.)
I think in the end, this book is just to young for me. I am very picky about my YA books that I choose to read for this particular reason. I have one more John Green book I own, and I hope I get a better experience with that one.
honeybeeznutz's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
lindsayaunderwood's review against another edition
3.0
Love the idea of someone who loves last words. Pudge and Alaska forever!
sng2098's review against another edition
3.0
Sorry it's taken me soo long to post this, i just haven't had the time.
Looking for Alaska by John Green gets a 3/5.
"Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave "the Great Perhaps" even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then . . . After. Nothing is ever the same. "
from goodreads.com
The characters in this book were, to me, not very developed. All the people seemed kinda whiny and Alaska Young didn't seem like the strong character she was meant to be. I really couldn't stand "The Colonel" who seemed like everything was the end of the world. Pudge's character seemed to be really whiny, and he didn't really go through a transition fase of being at home then being there. (Who would really wanna spend their school year at boarding school?)
The plot was okay, I didn't expect the twist that happened to happen. I did like the setting, although they did whine to much about the weather.
Looking for Alaska gets a *** / 5.
Looking for Alaska by John Green gets a 3/5.
"Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave "the Great Perhaps" even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then . . . After. Nothing is ever the same. "
from goodreads.com
The characters in this book were, to me, not very developed. All the people seemed kinda whiny and Alaska Young didn't seem like the strong character she was meant to be. I really couldn't stand "The Colonel" who seemed like everything was the end of the world. Pudge's character seemed to be really whiny, and he didn't really go through a transition fase of being at home then being there. (Who would really wanna spend their school year at boarding school?)
The plot was okay, I didn't expect the twist that happened to happen. I did like the setting, although they did whine to much about the weather.
Looking for Alaska gets a *** / 5.
michellechien930's review against another edition
5.0
Wow, just wow. Tears were streaming from my face as I finished reading this book. I don't know, John Green has never been my thing. I read Paper Towns (which I absolutely loathed) and The Fault in Our Stars (which was ok, but not a tearjerker for me), but this is the one and only John Green book I actually loved with a slow-burning passion. It started off in the typical way of angsty teens at a boarding school, but then developed into a provocative discovery into what meaning life truly had. I thought the title of the book "Looking for Alaska" encapsulated actually "looking" for a missing girl (which was the main plot in Paper Towns, which did I mention, I hated), but it was actually about a different kind of search. A search for answers, if you please. The writing was a bit smart-alecky, especially bits about Alaska always shouting her displeasure of the patriarchal paradigm, but it didn't ruin the ultimate reading experience for me. Reading this book felt similar to reading Murakami's Norwegian Wood, which I loved so so much. There was just this way of description and fleshed out characters that was really refreshing. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year, and my favorite John Green book by a huge notch.
bellaapeterss's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Love this book. Had adventure, romance and heartbreak. Has a lot of contemplative aspects that made me question things. The characters are diverse and challenged. The ending is reflective that leaves you with no direct conclusion. I often think of this ending and what I believe to have happened.
latasharm's review against another edition
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book hit way harder for me when I myself was a teen. As an adult I think John Green is a very niche writer that almost has an obsession with death. The characters are very two dimensional but I’m unsure if that’s due to poor writing or the fact that they’re just kind of shallow teenage characters. I don’t know they feel more like caricatures than actual real people. I do love some of the points made in this book and the overall arching theme of persevering through the pain because life is worth the suffering.
elviswho125's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0