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Before Francois Rabelias died, he said: “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.”
Seeking this “Great Perhaps” is a common desire in every teen. They want the adventure, excitement, and mystery to find exactly what they are meant to do.
That is what John Green’s 15-year-old character, Miles Halter, seeks in the novel, “Looking for Alaska.” The desire to find excitement is what prompted Miles to transfer from his public high school to Culver Creek Boarding School.
Little did Miles know that by transferring to Culver Creek, his years would become anything but predictable.
With new rebellious and intellectual friends come underage drinking, smoking, cursing, pranks, exploration of sex, and deep philosophical chats for Miles.
Miles’s voice is the vehicle of the novel, guiding you through his high school year. His passiveness and insecurities with girls and friends remind you of the emotionally grungy times that can come during teenage years.
The Colonel, Miles’s rowdy roommate, dislikes the rich, except for his wealthy girlfriend, mostly because he does not have much himself. He will memorize information in the Atlas, like capitals of different countries, when bored or in a poignant state.
Takumi and Lara are supporting characters that add their own zest to the clique. Takumi is a Japanese, gifted rapper and Lara is a cute, soft-spoken Romanian.
Alaska Young becomes an integral part of Miles’s new life by entrancing him with her sexy, smart, wild and self-destructive nature. Miles desires to be with her romantically, even though she is almost impossible to decode.
Alaska is a ticking time bomb who has the magnetic force to attract everything around her. She dwells on cheap wine and on Simon Bolivar’s last words, “How will I get out of this labyrinth?” which hints to a secret that tortures her psychically.
Alaska is the reason the novel has a countdown and is divided into two contrasting sections: the “Before” and “After.” The first section leads to a pivotal incident, in which the direction of the story changes.
The countdown of days toward the big event is enticing. Readers are constantly reminded that a surprise is crawling within the bushes waiting to pounce into sight.
In the first half of the novel, relationships are established and the reader can become familiar with the Culver Creek lifestyle of staying clear of the swan with a burning bite, fried burritos for dinner and basketball.
Describing the “After” portion and the actual startling episode would give away the novel, but know that it does not disappoint in shock value. In this section, the characters deal with the aftermath created by the emotional event and the mystery behind it.
Has a prank gone wrong? Does a war between the rich and the less wealthy become exposed? Will cheating be found out? The reader will not know until he gets there.
“Looking for Alaska” is a unique story that cleverly merges youthful rebellion with scholarly dedication and romance with mystery. It also deals with countless emotions and hard-hitting issues about a group of kids stirring up trouble to the point that their carelessness leads them to a disaster.
John Green does a wonderful job using his stylistic language to attract the reader while keeping the soulful integrity of the teenage characters intact. Green has a talent for evoking characters on a page by using dialogue to display each character’s true nature. Because of the realism, the reader becomes an observant, hovering entity in the alternate reality created.
Excerpt: “Looking for Alaska” (page 85)
“Forty-nine days before: Two days later -- Monday, the first real day of vacation – I spent the morning working on my religion final and went to Alaska’s room in the afternoon. She was reading in bed.
‘Auden,’ she announced. ‘What were his last words?’
‘Don’t know. Never heard of him’
‘Never heard of him? You poor, illiterate boy. Here read this line.’ I walked over and looked down at her index finger. ‘You shall love your crooked neighbor/ With your crooked heart,’ I read aloud. ‘Yeah. That’s pretty good,’ I said.
‘Pretty good? Sure, and bufriedos are good. Sex is pretty fun. The sun is pretty hot. Jesus, it says so much about love and brokenness – its perfect.’
‘Mm-hmm.” I nodded unenthusiastically.
‘You’re hopeless. Wanna go porn hunting?’
‘Huh?’
“We can’t love our neighbors till we know how crooked their hearts are.’”
“Looking for Alaska”
• Readability: 4.5 stars -- “Looking for Alaska” gets four point five stars because even though the “Before” portion of the book is well set up, the “after” seems to drag.
• 90 percent Overall Rating: The style and dialogue displays the story and the character’s realism while still keeping depth.
• Though the book has a large teenage fan base, it does not exclude adult readers because it’s filled with unrelenting life issues that make readers stop and think about what it means to truly live.
Column: JENNIFER PRUNA, Columnist
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