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A review by amethystarchild
Looking for Alaska by John Green
2.0
SPOILERS POSSIBLE
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“Looking for Alaska” is a winner of the ALA Michael L. Printz Award for Young Adult Literature. It is the story of a boy named Miles who transfers in his junior year to a boarding high school in Alabama. He has an interesting hobby, memorizing the last words of famous people, this hobby led him to search for “The Great Perhaps”, part of the last words of a dying French author. It is a call to find more in his life than he had been satisfied with before. At the school he makes friends with a strange group of people, all with weird quirks of their own. They nickname him "pudge" because he is so skinny, and he starts to grow into a new identity. They all have an effect on him, and cause him to change as a person. He learns to be braver, and more willing to challenge life. The greatest influence on him is an enigmatic girl named Alaska. Miles is an enraptured by her, and when she dies, his world is turned upside down. Miles and his friends search for the reason why she died, and have to deal with questions about the meaning of life, death and what comes next.
Content Warnings:
• Frequent VERY strong language
• Underage drinking, and smoking (A LOT. LIKE HOLY COW.)
• Sex is mentioned many times, frequent passionate kissing, characters watch/view porn briefly, characters perform oral sex
• Violence is Minimal
• Possible triggering subjects include: accidental death and suicide.
My reaction to the novel was initial distaste. I thought it was kind of stupid that such “smart” kids were destroying their bodies with smoking and regular alcohol consumption. I felt bad that Miles had to fall in with friends that were pressuring him to break rules, smoke, and drink. I didn’t feel that it was totally realistic that they’d be able to get away with as much as they did in the book. I had a begrudged fondness for the characters but they more often annoyed me. I felt the philosophical ideas were important, that more books should deal with life and death. I hope more books encourage teens to explore their personal spirituality and philosophy. If it weren’t for the messages and questions that the book brought up I probably would have shrugged the book off as a waste of my time. I didn’t agree with the book making unhealthy and addictive habits cool, but I feel that it perhaps does have some resonance with kids who are dealing with the same deep issues and lifestyles and for that reason I would say that I’m glad this book exists if it can help a teen approach philosophy in their own lives.
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“Looking for Alaska” is a winner of the ALA Michael L. Printz Award for Young Adult Literature. It is the story of a boy named Miles who transfers in his junior year to a boarding high school in Alabama. He has an interesting hobby, memorizing the last words of famous people, this hobby led him to search for “The Great Perhaps”, part of the last words of a dying French author. It is a call to find more in his life than he had been satisfied with before. At the school he makes friends with a strange group of people, all with weird quirks of their own. They nickname him "pudge" because he is so skinny, and he starts to grow into a new identity. They all have an effect on him, and cause him to change as a person. He learns to be braver, and more willing to challenge life. The greatest influence on him is an enigmatic girl named Alaska. Miles is an enraptured by her, and when she dies, his world is turned upside down. Miles and his friends search for the reason why she died, and have to deal with questions about the meaning of life, death and what comes next.
Content Warnings:
• Frequent VERY strong language
• Underage drinking, and smoking (A LOT. LIKE HOLY COW.)
• Sex is mentioned many times, frequent passionate kissing, characters watch/view porn briefly, characters perform oral sex
• Violence is Minimal
• Possible triggering subjects include: accidental death and suicide.
My reaction to the novel was initial distaste. I thought it was kind of stupid that such “smart” kids were destroying their bodies with smoking and regular alcohol consumption. I felt bad that Miles had to fall in with friends that were pressuring him to break rules, smoke, and drink. I didn’t feel that it was totally realistic that they’d be able to get away with as much as they did in the book. I had a begrudged fondness for the characters but they more often annoyed me. I felt the philosophical ideas were important, that more books should deal with life and death. I hope more books encourage teens to explore their personal spirituality and philosophy. If it weren’t for the messages and questions that the book brought up I probably would have shrugged the book off as a waste of my time. I didn’t agree with the book making unhealthy and addictive habits cool, but I feel that it perhaps does have some resonance with kids who are dealing with the same deep issues and lifestyles and for that reason I would say that I’m glad this book exists if it can help a teen approach philosophy in their own lives.