Looking for Alaska

published	December 28th 2006 by Puffin
binding	Paperback
isbn	0142402516 (isbn13: 9780142402511)
pages	256
literary awards	2006 Printz Award
description	Before. Miles Pudge Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has...more [close] Before. Miles Pudge Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the Great Perhaps even more (Franois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then. . . . After. Nothing is ever the same. [close]
date added	02-14-07 edit book

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Kris rated it:

04/26/08

bookshelves: bookblog

I've been getting in touch with my inner Young Adult this week, in preparation for yet another final rewrite on my own YA book. This has, for the most part, amounted to listening to Death Cab for Cutie and reading Looking for Alaska - a book that I have been actively avoiding. The story of this is long and somewhat personal, so feel free to skip this part if you just want to know if the book is good.

I first heard of Looking for Alaska in my thesis workshop, when a girl very snidely told me I...more I've been getting in touch with my inner Young Adult this week, in preparation for yet another final rewrite on my own YA book. This has, for the most part, amounted to listening to Death Cab for Cutie and reading Looking for Alaska - a book that I have been actively avoiding. The story of this is long and somewhat personal, so feel free to skip this part if you just want to know if the book is good.

I first heard of Looking for Alaska in my thesis workshop, when a girl very snidely told me I'd have to take out part of my own book because it sounded very similar to this book she'd heard about on NPR, which had not even come yet out at that point. Stubbornly I refused to cut the section (and even read it at my thesis reading) and when Alaska finally did come out, I flipped through just enough of it to decide my book was way better and then abandoned it. Sadly, Alaska has dogged me ever since. Agents and editors alike have told me that my book is too similar to it - which is apparently not a good thing - despite Alaska having won a number of awards and such. Anyway, sour grapes aside, I decided that if the comparisons are inevitable, I might as well know what I'm being held up against.

So what do the young adults of this world really want? Sex, apparently. And a stiff drink or twelve.

Looking for Alaska is about normal, skinny Miles Halter, quickly nicknamed Pudge, who gets into Culver Creek Boarding School and leaves in search of something more interesting. His quirky personality trait is that he memorizes the famous last words of various historical figures - a party trick that he uses to successfully get in with his roommate, who goes by "the Colonel" and the smoky little sexpot down the hall, Alaska Young. Wait, you might be saying, what's with all these funny nicknames? Well, Alaska turns out to be nearly the only name in the book that isn't a nickname - though we do find out that her parents decided to let her name herself at the age of 5. Even the Dean is referred to as The Eagle by the Culver Creekians. Try as I might I can't recall a lot of excessive nicknaming in my youth. I suppose there were a few guys I knew who pretty much went by their last names, when there were too many Adams or Brians in the bunch. I had one friend who referred to himself as the Emperor... but we didn't really call him that on a daily basis. Anyway, I digress.

The story is split into two parts - Before & After - and I won't give away the event that divides the two. All I will say is that the structure and the subject matter reminded me immensely of The Secret History by Donna Tartt (which incidentally was my main inspiration as well...) But just as I felt that the second half of History sags, Alaska does too. It's hard to talk about why without spoiling the twist, so I'll focus my energy on the Before section, which will give you the gist.

As I said earlier, Pudge loves Famous Last Words, (this is actually the facet that the snarky workshop girl told me was too close to my own book) and I expected to hate this quirk - but in fact it grew on me. The whole book grew on me - the romantic tension between him and Alaska is perfect, and there are an awful lot of incredibly poignant moments as Pudge grows accustomed to the school and it's strange rules and rhythms. Ultimately the book becomes a youthful meditation on life and death, which made me realize part of the joy of YA writing - just as in the Death Cab songs, the emotions can be laid much barer than in more serious literary works where things always seem to have to stay sort of ambiguous and sophisticated. Teenagers are supposed to be a little melodramatic, and that's sort of the joy of it. Badly done, you get Gossip Girl style antics, a lot of who-cheated-on-whom-with-whomever-else. But rightly done, you get something like the better parts of Looking for Alaska.

So what's leftover? A lot of ridiculous stuff. The Colonel and Alaska are more or less perpetually drunk (she buries wine bottles in the woods) and there's a good deal of cigarette smoking going on as well - for which they are occasionally punished. Fellatio is simulated on a tube of toothpaste (then performed in real life). Alaska's big hunky boyfriend from another school comes by frequently and everyone talks racily about how much sex they seem to have and just how much Alaska loves it. Worse than anything, when the characters are good and drunk (which is often) they will break out in absurd, spontaneous, freestyle rapping. In between all the genuine, poignant moments of the book, are a million moments where they're all so jaded and edgy and wacky you almost wish you could reach in and smack all their heads together. Maybe that's just me.

A friend of mine who actually went to boarding school observed to me the other day that none of the boarding school books she's ever read (including Alaska, which she did not like) give any realistic idea of the sheer volume of WORK that needs to be done. There's essentially no time leftover to get up to any trouble, she said. At any rate, Culver seems to be a somewhat less romanticised boarding school than the Exeters and Andovers of the world. It's in Alabama for one thing. Most of the rich kids head home on the weekends (leaving only our protagonists to get up to trouble). There's very little sense that any of them feel pressure to do well or accomplish anything extraordinary in life. The overriding question of the book is how one can escape the constant sufferings of life - not suffering like having to work hard or being humiliated or anything - think more like a teenager - it is the suffering of unrequited love, parents that just don't get it, the fear of getting expelled for one's various illicit pleasures, the embarrassment of puking on a girl... etc. Ultimately the book hinges on a more deeply serious moment - the sort that makes this philosophical question really important for them, and puts their previous, childish problems in perspective. However, as I said earlier, this moment comes halfway through, making the final half of the book one very tedious denouement.

Ultimately, the good in this book will stick in my mind far more than the bad. The character's absurdities and the shaky structure are both quickly forgotten upon putting the book down. I'm genuinely glad that I read it, and not only because now I have a better idea of what to avoid with my own book. Alaska is a great character, when she's not a little bit over the top. And maybe that's just what being a teenager is all about.

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Brooke rated it:

(review of isbn 0525475060)

12/08/07

Read in September, 2006

recommends it for: Mostly

*SPOILER ALERT* This review contains plot information that some people feel gives away too much of the book. To me, the story isn't about the event occurring as much as it is about how it is dealt with among the characters - it's not the "surprise ending" I'm giving away. Don't read this review if you don't want to know anything about what happens in the book, event wise. A warning seemed fair.

Alaska Young, though the aching reincarnate of every High School boy's wildest...more
*SPOILER ALERT* This review contains plot information that some people feel gives away too much of the book. To me, the story isn't about the event occurring as much as it is about how it is dealt with among the characters - it's not the "surprise ending" I'm giving away. Don't read this review if you don't want to know anything about what happens in the book, event wise. A warning seemed fair.

Alaska Young, though the aching reincarnate of every High School boy's wildest dreams, is surprisingly likable and missable when she commits suicide halfway through John Green's "Looking for Alaska." But maybe it was just an accident. That is what her surviving best friends, Pudge and the Colonel, want to find out. Pudge is actually the book's main character; however, It is Alaska's presence and her subsequent absence that preside over this book. Pudge is a gawky teenager obsessed with famous last words who goes to find his "great perhaps" just like Rebalais cried out on his deathbed. Pudge's "great beyond" turns out to be a boarding school in the south where he meets a group of brilliant rule breakers and drinkers. Pudge immediately becomes obsessed with Alaska, the licentious superstar of the group. Alaska already has a boyfriend and though at times seems interested, Pudge never quite understands what he meant to her. But don't mistake this for another romp through teenage angst and authority bashing. The book takes a turn towards the introspective, philisophical implications of death - and suicide in particular. Alaska's biggest life question was "How do I get out of this labyrinth". As Pudge and the Colonel come to understand the Labyrinth as life's neverending, never answer yeilding puzzle, they come to better understand Alaska. But more importantly for me, they come to the realization that even though the "labyrinth sucks," as Pudge puts it, " I choose the labyrinth." Living is hard, and surviving it is what makes us great. This book is witty, entertaining, thought provoking, and profoundly touching. ...less

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Anna rated it:

04/02/08

bookshelves: books-for-boys, fiction, would-recommend, young-adult

Read in April, 2008

recommended to Anna by: my sister
recommends it for: everyone

I decided to read Looking For Alaska mostly because I wanted to know what all the hype was about... I heard so much about young author John Green and how great his first prize-winning young adult novel was. Well, now I understand why so many people are excited about this beautifully written book.

This was one of the most descriptive stories I've read in a while in the sense that the author described a lot of details without ever being "boring." He talked about events, emoti...more I decided to read Looking For Alaska mostly because I wanted to know what all the hype was about... I heard so much about young author John Green and how great his first prize-winning young adult novel was. Well, now I understand why so many people are excited about this beautifully written book.

This was one of the most descriptive stories I've read in a while in the sense that the author described a lot of details without ever being "boring." He talked about events, emotions, thoughts, feelings, and everything just flowed so very smoothly. I never once came across a sentence that felt forced or unnatural, or too detailed or not detailed enough. Even when Green described something over several pages, it was always interesting and I found myself not skipping over anything, which is extremely rare for me. I am a fast reader and a good reader and, as a result, tend to skip over stuff I don't find that interesting. But I read every single word in Looking For Alaska.

John Green totally nailed voice in this book. I believe this novel was semi-autobiographical and I'm sure that helped but he was 100% successful in getting across the personality of Miles "Pudge" Halter, the narrator. I really felt like I knew the character and could totally understand what he was going through in the book.

I don't want to give too much away but the book deals with two totally different levels of conflict: typical coming-of-age issues and some not-so-typical problems like teen suicide (and depression). The suicide of Alaska Young serves as a defining moment in the book, when the Miles' question of "how do I get Alaska to love me?" instead becomes "how/why did Alaska die?" I think the shift in focus from the selfish to selfless was so thought-provoking yet so natural and conclusive yet inconclusive at the same time.

The book is a great read and I recommend it for almost anyone middle grades and above. I think everyone that reads it will appreciate the good writing and the deeper, thought-provoking questions that Green asks and sort of answers, to the best of his abilities. ...less

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Casey rated it:

06/16/08

bookshelves: 2008, children-or-young-adult

Before:
I bought this for my class forever ago, but I haven't had the chance to read it because I have a group of girls who devour my Printz winners. Anyway, they wouldn't let me have it. I threated, I cajoled, I pleaded. They wouldn't budge. They all finally finished it, though, so it's going to be my first book of the summer.

Oh, and by the way, I've become mildly obsessed with the author. John Green claims to be a nerd, but he's clearly very cool. And he thinks The Fountainhead is ...more Before:
I bought this for my class forever ago, but I haven't had the chance to read it because I have a group of girls who devour my Printz winners. Anyway, they wouldn't let me have it. I threated, I cajoled, I pleaded. They wouldn't budge. They all finally finished it, though, so it's going to be my first book of the summer.

Oh, and by the way, I've become mildly obsessed with the author. John Green claims to be a nerd, but he's clearly very cool. And he thinks The Fountainhead is a failure of a book, which makes him a-okay in my book. Emily, I think you'd enjoy his blog: www.sparksflyup.com.

After:
I enjoyed this book a whole bunch. I loved the Colonel, and Pudge, the narrator, was wonderful. There's a blurb on the book that says something like, "The spirit of Holden Caulfield lives on," but I don't think this is exactly right, as Holden Caulfield was full of shit and Pudge delivered pretty straightforward narration. I will say I had one complaint: I didn't find Alaska all that alluring. In fact, I thought she was a major pain. I think John Green did a decent job of admitting that Alaska was in fact a pain, but I think he also wanted readers to see what Pudge saw in her. I just didn't.

I am also, by the way, now a little concerned that I should not offer this book to my middle schoolers. It's a little racy. It has a blow job scene. And while I happen to love blow job scenes in general and though I certainly don't think my middle schoolers are naive, I'm a little afraid it will lead to angry parents. I try to avoid angry parents when I can. I am considering a permission slip that says something like, "Please be advised that your child wants to read this book, and it has a blow job scene." Or maybe simply "some mature content." Yeah, mature content. That way, I can cover my ass. Covering my ass is key. Also key, though, is getting kids to see that the majority of literature is actually about sex, which makes them want to read. So, I guess the book stays....less

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Carrie rated it:

07/18/07

bookshelves: youngadult

Read in January, 2006

In Looking For Alaska, John Green tells the story of Miles, a smart, skinny teen who decides to go to the same boarding school his father attended in the hopes of finding a different life. The reader gets a glimpse of what Miles’ home life is like at the beginning of the novel when his mother throws a going-away party for him, and only two people show up. Once at boarding school, Miles quickly befriends his roommate, nicknamed The Colonel. The Colonel introduces him to the rest of his inner ci...more

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Jennifer rated it:

05/06/08

bookshelves: gold-star-award, personal-read, trt-reviews

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com

Miles Halter is the type of high-schooler who always faded into the background at his public school in Florida. He had few friends, by choice as much as by fate, and wanted only to study his passion--memorizing the last words of people who had died. After reading the dying words of poet Francois Rabelais, "I go to seek a Great Perhaps", Miles is convinced that there's more to life than what he's so far experienced.

So Miles sets off to spend h...more Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com

Miles Halter is the type of high-schooler who always faded into the background at his public school in Florida. He had few friends, by choice as much as by fate, and wanted only to study his passion--memorizing the last words of people who had died. After reading the dying words of poet Francois Rabelais, "I go to seek a Great Perhaps", Miles is convinced that there's more to life than what he's so far experienced.

So Miles sets off to spend his junior and senior years at Culver Creek, a private boarding school in Alabama. There he gains his first nickname "Pudge" (a misnomer, by far, since Miles is quite skinny); meets his first love, Alaska Young; has his first sexual encounter with a Romanian girl named Lara; and gains two great male friends, Chip "The Colonel" Martin and Takumi Hikohito. He also experiences the joys and sickness of getting drunk, the strangeness of smoking cigarettes, and the unadulterated pleasure of playing pranks.

Pudge's new group of friends have their own quirks--The Colonel memorizes countries, capitals, and populations; Alaska collects books for her Life's Library that she hasn't yet read; Takumi relishes being The Fox. They all work together to irritate their teachers, avoid confrontation with The Eagle, the school's dean, and pull off pranks against the rich Weekday Warriors that are the popular clique at Culver Creek.

But LOOKING FOR ALASKA is mostly the story of growing up, of falling in love, of dealing with loss, and getting through life as best that you can. With wonderful dialogue, fascinating prose, and characters that are so real you'll think you know them personally, this is a book well worth reading. Not just is it the story of a group of teenagers looking to find their way out of the labryinth of loss, or just the story of finding our Great Perhpas, LOOKING FOR ALASKA is about living the best life that can be led.

I loved this story, and highly recommend it. Once you do, you'll realize it's no surprise that it won the Teen's Top 10 Awards--in fact, it probably deserves more. ...less

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Tasha rated it:

05/20/08

Read in April, 2008

Miles Halter is tired of his loner life and boring school in Florida. The only thing he finds comfort in is reading famous people’s biographies and learning their last words. In fact he is fascinated with last words. When he comes across Francois Rabelais’ biography and learns about the “Great Perhaps.” He decides that he wants to embark on his on “Great Perhaps” journey and chooses to go to boarding school. When he arrives at Culver Creek boarding school he soon finds a friend in hi...more

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Andrew rated it:

08/14/07

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: maybe

I'm glad I finish it but it took some effort. I didn't like any of the characters (though in the end I identified in part with the "colonel" who the author/narrator gives only grudging respect). This novel is cleary semi-autobiographical and I'm not such a fan of the prep school atmosphere. No I didn't like a Seperate Piece, and fuck the Holden Caufield "phonies," in this and that novel. I'd heard the author on the radio before and looked forward to reading this book but it t...more

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Kate rated it:

06/18/07

bookshelves: a-little-romance, award-winners, coming-of-age, grief, i-laughed-i-cried, outsiders, rural-reads, strong-women, ya-fic

Read in June, 2007

I wanted to love this book, but I only liked it. Having read John Green's latest novel, An Abundance of Katherines, last month, his first book was a bit of a letdown, especially considering that Alaska won the Printz Award. (Katherines came in second for the Printz this year.)

At the same time, Alaska is a glimpse of John Green's future genius. I mean, for God's sake, he was 27 when he wrote this novel, and he won the Printz. I hate that/love that. The characters ...more

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Trin rated it:

09/27/07

bookshelves: childrens, fiction

Read in September, 2007

I really dig John Green’s writing, even when I’m not so keen on his subjects; I need to read another Tragic Dead Teenager novel like I need to go hang out at my old high school. But I read this anyway because I had liked Green’s An Abundance of Katherines so much. I didn’t like this as much, but it was still really good. Green writes fantastic dialogue and great characters, both witty and real. He somehow manages to make...more

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Laura rated it:

11/14/07

Read in November, 2007

I first picked up Looking for Alaska because I liked the cover but also because the author, John Green, sounded interesting. When I first started reading the book and began following the typical storyline of a loser kid going to boarding school, I was disappointed. However, once I got into it I couldn't put the book down. The characters were somewhat stereotypical, but also had unique personality quirks that made them fun to read about. For example, the narrator Miles' hobby is m...more

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Krissa rated it:

08/17/07

bookshelves: young-adult

One thing this book has, and that's funny. I like funny in a young-adultish coming-of-age thing (lots of hyphnens) because really, teenagers take themselves and everything around them too seriously and even as an adult writing for a teen, you STILL have to take everything too seriously because hey, that's your market.

So Green is great at the funny. Not the witty funny, or urbane funny, but the stumbling awkward funny that works for his wonderful narrator. It sounds very like it's Green himse...more

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Lindsey rated it:

02/01/08

bookshelves: teen

Read in January, 2008

recommends it for: high school boys/girls

Miles Halter is bored and friendless in Florida, and he is ready for an adventure. He has always heard his father talk about his crazy days at Culver Creek Boarding School, and Miles decides its time he pursue his own “Great Perhaps”. There he meets Alaska Young, who is the hottest girl Miles has ever seen but also wild and unpredictable. It isn’t long before Miles has friends, adventures, and a huge crush on Alaska Young. For once everything seems to be going right. But this is all b...more

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Brandy rated it:

(review of isbn 1423324455)

10/29/07

bookshelves: 2007reads, audiobooks, bildungsroman, teen

Read in October, 2007

The back jacket copy of the book quotes KL Going, who describes this as "a powerful novel--one that plunges headlong into the labyrinth of life, love, and the mysteries of being human." I can't really say it better than that, though my attempts would surely sound a little less eloquent. Looking for Alaska is a stronger novel--certainly on an emotional level, and possibly on the writing as well--than his follow-up, An Abundance of Katherines, but that would explain why t...more

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Pam rated it:

02/04/08

bookshelves: fiction

Read in February, 2008

02/04/08
TITLE/AUTHOR: LOOKING FOR ALASKA by John Green
RATING: 5/A
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: YA Fiction/2005/221 pgs
SERIES/STAND ALONE: Stand Alone
TIME/PLACE: Present/ Culver Creek Boarding School, near Birmingham, AL
CHARACTERS: Miles "Pudge" Halter/student
FIRST LINES: The week before I left my family & Florida & the rest of my minor life to go to boarding school in Alabama, my mother insisted on throwing me a going-away party.

COMMENTS: 01/28/08 rec via b...more

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Lee rated it:

(review of isbn 0525475060)

07/13/07

I didn't even know that young adult (or "y.a.", as the kids call it) literature existed until my friend from college, John Green, wrote this terrific book.

"Alaska" follows four very different kids at a boarding school in Alabama: rich kid hating "The Colonel", Japanese hip hop obsessed Takumi, main character and all around good guy Miles "Pudge" Halter and beautiful, angry, damaged Alaska. Yes, Alaska. Stay with me.

The story is familiar ("A S...more

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Marcy rated it:

07/07/08

bookshelves: myalltimefaves

Read in July, 2008

recommended to Marcy by: Ande
recommends it for: Absolutely Everyone

I will preface this by saying that I was completely unprepared for this book. I read it primarily for three reasons. #1. Because of the controversy surrounding it's being taught in certain school districts. Bring on the banned books. #2. When learning of the banning of the book, I stumbled across John's youtube channel and blogs, and he is amazing. Amazing and witty and hilarious and sarcastic in the way that so many try for, and so very few accomplish. His description of the "Awkward, emba...more

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Kricket rated it:

08/27/07

bookshelves: 2007, favorite-teen-reads, printz, southern-us, teen-fiction, trauma

Read in August, 2007

I've heard some complaints about this not being funny, but I don't think it's fair to compare this one to Green's other amazing book, An Abundance of Katherines. There's much discussion of death in this book, and this should not be surprising- one of the first things we find out about the narrator is that he studies and memorizes the last words of famous historical figures. Incidentally, some of these are very funny.

Looking for Alaska takes place at a boarding school in Alabama. I thought th...more

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Chelsea rated it:

05/30/07

bookshelves: ya

Read in May, 2007

At first, I was a little disappointed with this book, because it stuck to the typical YA formula of profanity and booze that just... does *not* make me comfortable. Halfway into the book, at the beginning of Miles' short relationship with Lara, I was lamenting the fact that such a talented writer would resort to such cheap ideas. And then...

Once I hit the 'After' section of the book, I didn't stop. It absolutely floored me. I was not expecting that to happen at all. I cried. I cried, and th...more

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Caryn rated it: