Review: Looking for Alaska by John Green
I finished Looking for Alaska about a week ago for the first in ten books that will be read and reviewed this month. Part of me was proud to call this the first of ten but part of me wished I had waited until later to read it. The book it self is as good to be expected for John’s Green first book. There were some plot failings along the way but over all the book was extremely compelling and definitely overshadowed almost any book I will read after it, which happened to be a Steampunk novel called Doomsday Vault. That I will get into on a later date.
For now I will stick to explaining why even though this book had its failings I am still dearly in love with it. At times some of the characters seemed a bit to forced or left behind, which was mostly the main character. There were whole sections that I forgot the main character was a kid named Miles or that even Miles was in the room. His voice weakened severely in parts. Some times it was because the character was getting a little thin and other times it was because the Colonel and Alaska were getting to much but over all the story did keep it self in a semi-check that allowed it to flow easily enough.
The story itself was never one I was interested in. Books that don’t revolve around someone/something trying to kill the main character or the main character trying to kill something/someone have never really interested me. I like the morbid side of the mind as well as the offbeat action scenes, snark comments in the face of certain death and ass kicking galore. Looking for Alaska had none of this (well there were snark comments but they’re teenagers, it’s expected) and yet I still devoured it.
I was reading it on break at work, while at the gym, and a few times while eating. Only on the pain of a pink slip, the extreme need for sleep and personal hygiene did I put the book down. There were no explosions, only one death and no wicked figure in the shadows plotting mass destruction. I was flabbergasted that this book had entranced me so but in less than three days with work and other personal obligation/responsibilities I had it finished and was craving more.
The other four John Green books have now muscled their way onto my Ten Books in April list. Be proud John Green you have a new minion in your legion of nerdfighters. Bravo.
Real life fiction has never and probably never will never be one of my favorite genres but John Green has at least converted me to his little section of the genre. So I shall pull up my section of Young Adult fiction, make a cup of tea and explore his worlds happily.
For the synopsis and a means to buy said book please click here for Amazon or here for Barnes and Noble or you could even walk/drive/frolic to the nearest book store and purchase said book and more.