A review by lawbooks600
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Representation: Minor Asian characters
Score: Six out of ten.

Turtles All the Way Down. What a unique title. Unfortunately, this one didn't meet my expectations, and it wasn't as good as John Green's The Fault in Our Stars. I wanted to read this one for a while after enjoying the other one, but I put it off for a few months before I saw it and picked it up. When I closed the final page, I thought it was okay.

It starts with Aza Holmes trying to find where Russell Picket, a billionaire, is with her friend Daisy in the opening pages. That isn't the central storyline, though, the central storyline is where Aza starts a relationship with Russell's son, Davis. There isn't a lot of plot beside that, and there are some filler pages which could've been removed for a tighter reading experience. Turtles All the Way Down is less than 300 pages but it feels longer than that, more like 400, because the pacing is tedious to read. I get that Green tried to execute a slow burn, but it only works with well-written characters, and, unfortunately, it didn't work here. The dialogue is contrived as people speak like philosophers and not people. I thought we were over this. Apparently not.

The characters are likable but I found it hard to connect or relate with them, and Green briefly touches upon the subject of loss when Aza talks about her father, who is now deceased, but he doesn't deeply explore it. That seems like a missed opportunity there to add another subplot. The narrative sends two messages as I read through it, the first is you can't always get what you want when Aza tries but does not succeed in finding the billionaire. The climax is bittersweet as the relationship builds toward the concluding pages but the payoff isn't there as Aza and Davis aren't together in the end, leading to the second message, life goes on. Wait. I saw that in other books I've read from other authors, so it's not that original. Also, where are the support systems? Aza does self-harm but gets away with it, and no one supported her, even with her OCD.
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