Reviews

Αναζητώντας την Αλάσκα by John Green

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8bitreader's review against another edition

4.0

I honestly did not expect to like this as much as I did. While the first couple chapters had me wary with seemingly flat characters, I was astounded by how charming and interesting these characters would become. John Green does an excellent job of fleshing all of them out. I'm particularly impressed by his development for the protagonist Miles, whose constant inner monologue could have easily edged from pretentious to unbearably pretentious, especially in later sections of the books. The dialogue is usually witty and concise with very few exceptions. The storyline was also extremely engaging. Alaska's death was refreshingly shocking, an extremely well done character death, and the ending was surprisingly satisfying.

courtneycyzman's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

pinksreads's review against another edition

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5.0

Re-reading. 4.5 stars.

I won't say that my rating for this book is fair in a technical sense. This is a book about teenagers who do teenager-y things, and I can see where people have problems with that. If anything, the reactions to this book are a good example of how society criticizes teenagers for almost every decision they take, right from them trying to be themselves.

The re-read was interesting. I detested these characters way more than I did when I read this book for the first time. Miles Halter (Pudge) and Alaska Young are undeniably unlikeable in the way they perceive certain things.

Spoiler

Primarily, Alaska's sense of entitlement when it comes to other people's feelings and Miles' situation with Lara. But the book did its character-development job well when it showed Miles and Chip 'healing' after Alaska's death.

This book, in my opinion, is the perfect encapsulation of teenage angst and dealing with certain issues someone faces in their teens. It is a little pretentious, I will agree, but there's so much to look for, in this book that talks about identity, sense of self, toxic relationships, entitlement, emotional monopoly etc. Very vague, but it does come together fairly solidly.

Objectively speaking, this book would be a solid 3.5 stars for me. Nothing extraordinary, but it is a good debut, and it can stand for itself. However, due to the emotional links it has with a very specific memory in my life, and the way it makes me feel about life, it deserves the 5 I can give it.

kateburstein31's review against another edition

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3.0

At first, I found this book quite engaging and found myself looking forward to learning more about the characters. However, as the book progressed, I found the plot less captivating and essentially kept reading more out of a sense of obligation than interest. I feel the same messages could have been conveyed in fewer pages.