Looking for Alaska in ENGL 596 / EDCI 551

Feb 04, 2015 Morgan rated it it was amazing

There may or may not be SPOILERS involved in this post. Because it is really hard to discuss this novel without including some SPOILERS. So read at your own risk. Again, SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS.

Looking for Alaska is an emotional journey. Before, everyone is more or less living, trying to figure out where they are situated in the world they occupy at Culver Creek. After, everyone is left reeling, trying to understand where they stand on the afterworld and the labryinth. Neither of these questi ...more

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Feb 01, 2015 Logan rated it liked it

John Green's debut novel follows teenage Miles Halter as he leaves for his freshman year at Culver Creek, a boarding school in Alabama, in search of his "Great Perhaps." Through the perspective of Miles -- later renamed 'Pudge' at Culver Creek -- we meet an array of characters at the boarding school, and follow them as they change throughout their year. The strength of Green's Looking for Alaska lies in its structure. Beginning with a chapter entitled "One Hundred Thirty-Six Days Before," the bo John Green's debut novel follows teenage Miles Halter as he leaves for his freshman year at Culver Creek, a boarding school in Alabama, in search of his "Great Perhaps." Through the perspective of Miles -- later renamed 'Pudge' at Culver Creek -- we meet an array of characters at the boarding school, and follow them as they change throughout their year. The strength of Green's Looking for Alaska lies in its structure. Beginning with a chapter entitled "One Hundred Thirty-Six Days Before," the book counts down for its first half before reaching "One Day Before"; after the novel's major event, the chapters begin counting up again, until reaching "One Hundred Thirty-Six Days After." Though the prose drags at times and the main character's point-of-view is nothing particularly groundbreaking, the physical structure of the novel adds a level of suspense as readers scramble to uncover the novel's focal event.

My read of Looking for Alaska was colored by my perceptions of the characters; Green's male characters dominate the text and act frequently on behalf of the female characters, while the women seem to stand as side characters or motivators for male action. This works interestingly, as it lies in opposition to the titular Alaska's desire to subvert the patriarchy in all its forms. Despite the occasional presence of women, and what Green likely considered to be strong women, Looking for Alaska is, at best, a novel about male friendship and masculine development, consistently sidelining its female characters throughout.

As a young adult novel, Looking for Alaska will work well to encourage consideration of difficult emotional events. Miles and his friends work throughout the novel to understand themselves in relation to the world around them, to develop their views of religion, the afterlife, and the metaphysical, and at times to deal with extreme grief. The novel offers a grounds for consideration about these difficult topics, and will work well as a springboard for discussion. Altogether, a book with a storyline worth reading, but a character list worth analyzing. ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Hannah Alexander rated it liked it

Looking for Alaska by John Green is an excellently written novel, but I could not help but get the feeling that I was often reading a contemporary Catcher in the Rye. With that being said, I felt like the book was a little bit predictable, but still very enjoyable to read. I very much appreciate the moral lessons and the coping side effect it contains for readers that may be dealing with a loss.

Like Holden Caulfield, Miles attends a boarding school and experiences all kinds of new elicit behavi Looking for Alaska by John Green is an excellently written novel, but I could not help but get the feeling that I was often reading a contemporary Catcher in the Rye. With that being said, I felt like the book was a little bit predictable, but still very enjoyable to read. I very much appreciate the moral lessons and the coping side effect it contains for readers that may be dealing with a loss.

Like Holden Caulfield, Miles attends a boarding school and experiences all kinds of new elicit behaviors. However, I do believe that Miles has a better “head on his shoulders” that Holden will ever have. Having the novel begin in such a way that mirrors Catcher in the Rye made me immediately imagine Miles has Holden instead of characterizing him from the clean slate that every character and person deserves. Even though that maybe “turned me off as a reader,” I can appreciate what this text could do in terms of scaffolding Catcher in the Rye for students in a secondary English class.

In terms of predictability, I did not know that the “before” event would be Alaska’s death, but as soon as her death had occurred I knew it would be connected to her childhood experience with her mother’s death. I think the reason I may have predicted the connection so easily was that Alaska’s experience with her mom, in terms of not calling 911, was very similar to the guilt I have surrounding my grandpa’s passing. I could relate to that experience being so significant because I know that mine haunts me to this day. Alaska provided a mirror that allowed me to see myself and therefore predict what was going to happen. I understand the irrationality that comes with losing and loved one and feeling responsible. Because I believe this text offers an accurate portrayal of how a person can react to the indirect involvement with death, I see the value that this text can have for readers.

As to not go off on another tangent, I wanted to make it very clear that even though I thought this text was Catcher in the Rye 2.0, I still see all the value it can have for a reader. If anything, this book is nothing short of entertaining.
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Jan 28, 2015 Jacob Mroczkiewicz rated it really liked it

I actually preferred this novel to Green's The Fault in Our Stars, which seems to have claimed a larger readership(blame the movie). While the repeated scenes involving drinking and tobacco use may not necessarily fit into secondary instruction as a YA novel, I can certainly see why YA readers may enjoy this text. Little anecdote: a friend of mine from high school kept telling me to read this, but pretentious 17-year-old Jacob was reluctant to comply. He's a marine with an apparent sensitive sid I actually preferred this novel to Green's The Fault in Our Stars, which seems to have claimed a larger readership(blame the movie). While the repeated scenes involving drinking and tobacco use may not necessarily fit into secondary instruction as a YA novel, I can certainly see why YA readers may enjoy this text. Little anecdote: a friend of mine from high school kept telling me to read this, but pretentious 17-year-old Jacob was reluctant to comply. He's a marine with an apparent sensitive side. But I digress. In relation to the other two Green novels that I read, I felt that his depiction of suffering in LFA was a bit more genuine, perhaps easier to relate to, and something that -- sadly -- virtually every teen is confronted with during that confusing time.

The main trope isn't necessarily new or complex: kid in a new school trying to find his niche, make friends, get the girl, etc. But the manner that Green structured this particular trope between the time before and after the death of Alaska, along with the underlying commentary regarding Miles's inquisition of religion and suffering, how the two intersect, was done so in a way that spoke to me. The before-and-after structure along with the aforementioned underlying narrative brought about a prelapsarian aspect that I thought was exceptionally clever. To Miles, Alaska was the forbidden fruit, the knowledge of how to escape the labyrinth that he was never meant to have grasped. And because he tasted said fruit, he was cast from the garden and left to find his answers in a state of being that was devoid of the Eden-esque life he was previously living.

Although Green's style is admittedly simple (which I like, don't me wrong), he deals with some really heavy, complex topics. Suicide, the effects of it, what leads to it; parental discord, the missing parent, the death of a parent, the absence of another; social class, the disparity within a friendship between socioeconomic upbringing; the role that suffering plays in the journey of one's life; the struggle for identity. All in all, this text is first and foremost a novel dealing with the latter -- identity. Although all of these themes play a pivotal role in the novel's development, Miles's search for identity, for his Great Perhaps, is the engine that makes this novel work. Through his experience with friendship, love, and suffering, Miles obtains his Great Perhaps, and thus his identity as well. Although perhaps not in the classroom, this text offers a lot for the adolescent reader. ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Michelle Parsons rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya-lit

Of the three John Green novels that I have read, I am torn between this and The Fault in Our Stars for best writing, and between this and An Abundance of Katherines for my favorite story.
I both loved and hated this novel. I loved it for all of the right reasons, I think; the characters were crazy and wild and intelligent and funny and very real in the sense of their vibrancy through Pudge's eyes. The social issues inherent in a boarding school with students ranging across the socioeconomic scal Of the three John Green novels that I have read, I am torn between this and The Fault in Our Stars for best writing, and between this and An Abundance of Katherines for my favorite story.
I both loved and hated this novel. I loved it for all of the right reasons, I think; the characters were crazy and wild and intelligent and funny and very real in the sense of their vibrancy through Pudge's eyes. The social issues inherent in a boarding school with students ranging across the socioeconomic scale were presented well, as was the social rule that united all the students against the faculty (don't rat on another student). (view spoiler) The examination of spiritual matters throughout was, at risk of sounding like an angsty emo-teen, deep and satisfying. Pudge's obsession with last words allowed a lens for the experiences described in the novel; the author got to explore things that he might otherwise have left alone, and the reader got to see through that lens into the actions of the characters.
However, I also feel I hated Looking for Alaska for all the right reasons. For one thing, the ubiquity of alcohol and smoking and sex were foreign to me, even in my relatively unsupervised portions of high school (and college). While this may make me appear simply as a sad, lonely, teacher's pet, I feel that I cannot have been alone in my inability to imagine a high-school life that was drunk half the time or more. In addition, I felt that, in many ways, the characters are one-dimensional.
Pudge is a willing follower always looking for clues and entries into the lives of others. A good boy who leaves behind essentially nothing and happens to hook up with the right crowd to get him involved in everything. Another skinny white boy who is a nerd, much like Collin in An Abundance of Katherines, he is smart enough to make the reading intelligently humorous. The best friend, the Colonel, is a funny troublemaker from a disadvantaged socio-economic background, the combination of class clown, ringleader, and scholarship student working for the American dream. Takumi and Lara are quiet support characters who are both from other countries; Takumi is a student from Japan, while Lara's family immigrated from Romania. Pudge, predictably, keeps forgetting what country Lara is from, presumably because she is just a pretty girl from another country, the identity of which hardly matters to him. Sara is a thoroughly unpleasant character all the time. And Alaska is always impulsive, no matter what. Her existence is there merely to give Pudge a mystery, a "Great Perhaps," and her own interiority is one we never actually explore, because it doesn't, in the end, actually matter. It only mattered that she was something for Pudge to look for, not that she ever found herself or that she ever became definite.
But, darn it, this book made me think because it made me angry. And I am grateful for that stimulus, even as I disliked it. ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Lauren H. rated it really liked it

Looking for Alaska is my favorite John Green book of the books that I have read so far. Alaska’s feminist character was a breath of fresh air in contrast to the many patriarchy-embracing stock-characters females we see in quite a few novels today. I really related to Alaska’s willingness to not just defy gender roles, but to openly proclaim that she is, in fact, breaking those social codes. I also was drawn in by the structure of the book. The first half (the countdown), embodies the lives and a Looking for Alaska is my favorite John Green book of the books that I have read so far. Alaska’s feminist character was a breath of fresh air in contrast to the many patriarchy-embracing stock-characters females we see in quite a few novels today. I really related to Alaska’s willingness to not just defy gender roles, but to openly proclaim that she is, in fact, breaking those social codes. I also was drawn in by the structure of the book. The first half (the countdown), embodies the lives and actions of the characters, while the second half of the book looks much more introspectively at the characters and their ability to deal with loss.

The book’s strength is that it understands that adolescents can do expected “teenage things” (by this, I mean smoking, drinking, and having sex) while still being intricate, interesting, and generally “good” people. This book embraces the “edginess” of adolescent life without glorifying or condemning it, and I think that makes this book much more relatable to many people. Green could have chosen to condemn the students' actions or to make the characters “ideal” teenagers; instead, he shows that the teenage life is one where identity is still malleable, first impressions aren’t always correct, and where people can be imperfect while still making positive and impactful differences in the lives of others.

However, one of the shortfalls that I personally found with in the book was its portrayal of feminism as almost one-size-fits all. Granted, as I mentioned earlier, I appreciated having a feminist character, and Alaska’s character drew me into the book; however, I still find that she embodies a very stereotypical version of feminism. Alaska's feminisms seems to be not necessarily about giving women choices on how they want to act, but instead, Alaska’s feminism works namely through constantly operating in contrast to societal expectations. Although she is certainly a feminist (and I think her actions are bold, intriguing, and very powerful), I feel that her character also limits the picture of what a feminist might/can be.

All in all, I enjoyed this book, and I’m actually surprised that other Green books seem to be more popular than Looking for Alaska.
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Jan 31, 2015 Mykala rated it really liked it

Looking for Alaska by John Green grabbed my attention right away as I opened the book to find a short excerpt from the novel titled The Prank. This excerpt stayed in my mind as I turned to the first chapter and up until I read that actual scene in the book.
This story follows the life of Miles (Pudge) as he heads to boarding school to start a new phase in his life. It follows his growth as an individual, which is influenced greatly by the friends he meets, and looks at the complex issues life pr Looking for Alaska by John Green grabbed my attention right away as I opened the book to find a short excerpt from the novel titled The Prank. This excerpt stayed in my mind as I turned to the first chapter and up until I read that actual scene in the book.
This story follows the life of Miles (Pudge) as he heads to boarding school to start a new phase in his life. It follows his growth as an individual, which is influenced greatly by the friends he meets, and looks at the complex issues life presents. The events that unfold in this story change Pudge forever and play over in your mind long after you’ve turned the last page.
Like in several other John Green books I’ve read the main character has a distinct interest and skill that in this book presents itself as the memorization of people’s last words. I find this successful in the development of Pudge and I like how this skill plays a part in his interaction with other characters. I find it interesting that the book is broken into two main parts titled Before and After. Within each part there are chapters but one runs right into the next and it reads almost like diary entries. I did realize that as I got closer to the After part of the book I became nervous about what was going to happen and it definitely kept me intrigued. At times it was hard for me to have a grasp on the timeline that was unfolding as the story progressed. Pudge does notice the change in seasons as time is passing but there are few mentions of months or dates besides the major holidays. I do think that this time lapse might resonate with how a younger audience feels about the passage of time during this part of their life.
The young adult audience can relate to Pudge as he tries to create an identity for himself separate from his parents and independent of his past. The questions and situations that come up in this book invoke internal reflection and present the audience with some of the most difficult aspects of life. Within these circumstances we get to see various sides of the characters, which fuels the complexity of creating your own unique identity. There are fights filled with anger and resentment, signs of loyalty, sadness, selfishness, acts of pure reckless abandonment, and moments of true happiness. These characters are each unique in their own way and I think that a wide range of readers can connect with them on some level. This story offers readers a slice of life that’s not perfect but it’s one that feels real rather than fiction.

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Jan 24, 2015 Jung Han rated it liked it

This wonderful novel is a story of teenagers who continually question who they are, where they are, and for what they live.
For most of the story, the author reveals that the characters are wandering in a maze, searching for the hidden exit. In other words, the teenagers are seeking for their identities in the world. Alaska, who is portrayed as unstable, moody, and self-destructive as to say “I smoke to die.” throws in a question, “How will I ever get out of this labyrinth?” Miles Halter, who mo
This wonderful novel is a story of teenagers who continually question who they are, where they are, and for what they live.
For most of the story, the author reveals that the characters are wandering in a maze, searching for the hidden exit. In other words, the teenagers are seeking for their identities in the world. Alaska, who is portrayed as unstable, moody, and self-destructive as to say “I smoke to die.” throws in a question, “How will I ever get out of this labyrinth?” Miles Halter, who moved in to the boarding school, became attracted to this complicated girl, who is both pure-minded and dark at the same time. Alaska serves as a catalyst for Mile’s long journey of self-discovery. She says to Miles, “You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you’ll escape it one day, and how awesome it will be, and imagining that future keeps you going, but you never do it. You just use the future to escape the present.”(p.54) Like Alaska, people attempt to escape the present without trying to find their way out of the labyrinth that surrounds them.
This novel has done a wonderful job describing how teenagers react to death and after it, how they feel at absence of a loved one, and how they endeavor to escape complicated situations that are like a labyrinth. Teenagers are in a maze where they struggle to seek for their true identity and role in their world. They are also scared of losses, failures and absences of beloved ones. Additionally, they often believe that they are alone without anyone who shares a common thinking process and feelings.
I strongly disliked many of the lascivious scenes and curse words in this teenage novel; even though sometimes it is necessary for storytelling to a certain extent, this book contained an excessive amount of violence and inflammation. Except those mass multiple of explicit scenes, I found this novel helpful for understanding a teenager’s angst and wandering. In order to help them to find a solution to their problems, we need to understand for what they feel fear and which way they wish to choose to escape from the chaos.
John Green’s “Looking for Alaska” (2005) provides an insightful thought about teenagers who are in a stormy period of puberty and questioning their identities and life purposes.
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Jan 23, 2015 Jawaria rated it liked it

Looking for Alaska ... I initially gave this a two star rating but felt compelled to go back and change it to three stars after some reflection. The bigger questions that this novel raises are definitely intriguing. Perhaps, I felt they could have been handled with more maturity in the characters. But that would be me as the maturer adult reader and incorrect for a young adult novel and how many a teenager responds. I greatly disliked the explicit sexual content, curse words and inappropriate la Looking for Alaska ... I initially gave this a two star rating but felt compelled to go back and change it to three stars after some reflection. The bigger questions that this novel raises are definitely intriguing. Perhaps, I felt they could have been handled with more maturity in the characters. But that would be me as the maturer adult reader and incorrect for a young adult novel and how many a teenager responds. I greatly disliked the explicit sexual content, curse words and inappropriate language. Not so much to censure, but rather I felt that it took away from the essence of the story. Then again, I never read 'unclean' language/books/movies when I was a teenager myself - maybe that's what made it a stronger 'shock'. John Green has this trend along all three books that I read, perhaps it's a tool for portraying the depth of struggles and character experiences, and relative to similar teenagers. Then, this author certainly has his own style.

At first I was a bit troubled by all the pranks and habits of the teenagers. I couldn't grasp where the story was going. Issues such as revenge and punishing oneself were introduced. Along with the constant reminder that no-one should ever 'rat out' on anyone else on campus, even the 'enemies'. Yet, Alaska betrays this for her own reasons and gets away with it, while Pudge is almost drowned. Through the ups and downs you then figure out the journey of friendship, of connecting and affecting lives other than one's own. Alaska, by fate or by choice, bursts away from her own labyrinth of suffering and confused emotions. Meanwhile Alaska's friends are left frantic in their own labyrinth, questioning their own role in their friend's existence ('before' and after'). The existence which Miles parallels with energy and an eternal living, and behind indestructible, is very powerful. It empowers youth to weather through their varied struggles and know that in their actions they impact many more than just themselves. I loved the new angle Green put into the ever-common notion of teenagers and invincibility. To be resilient in the face of tough times, many of which are beyond one's control. To forgive oneself for the many 'mistakes' we make throughout our lives. It's not the end of the world, and everything is not your fault! I feel we continue to explore such feelings even as adults, perhaps with some more maturity, acceptance and practicality, less dramatized. On deeper insight, this novel delves into very real experiences of the mind and heart, and philosophically explores basic questions of life and living it.

I really enjoyed the 'last words' aspect of the book, and I feel it helped put a lot in perspective. Last words and the religion class' question of search, and answers of suffering and labyrinths - all made sense but also foreshadowed what may be coming in the story. Alaska's story and her mother's death explained her 'invincible' and impulsive nature. What she didn't do during her mother's fatal seizure became the definition of her past paralysis under fear. Thus, she worked on negating that paralysis, defying natural states and became fearless, all in a twisted attempt to find answers and recompense for that 'wrong'. Once 'guilt' has been punished one can try to find solace. But what of the guilt that isn't guilt? We more often than not punish ourselves for fate out of our control. My favourite pages were 18-19, 32, 82, 120-121, and 222 - that I felt explained these perceptions.

I feel this novel aimed to be accessible to teenagers. In its prose and themes. It may seem magnified with death and possible suicide issues, but the core message I took, was regardless of what kind of 'suffering' it is, one must navigate and find a way out of the great labyrinth. Life is but a great perhaps, an unknown labyrinth. ...more

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Jan 29, 2015 Nancy C rated it liked it

Looking for Alaska, like John Green’s other two books assigned for class, is about a boy, Miles Halter, who is trying to find his identity and a couple of friends. This is seems to be the key theme for John Green novels.
Miles moves to Alabama to attend boarding school—looking for a fresh start, or more like a real start, since it appears he didn’t have any friends at his original school. At Culver Creek, Miles makes his first new friend, Chip or the Colonel—who in turn gives Miles the name “Pudg ...more

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Jul 19, 2014 Michelle rated it liked it

Shelves: owned-books

I read Looking for Alaska for the first time almost two years ago now. I adored it then, and I think that I somehow managed to enjoy it even more upon this recent second read through. It is my favorite of Mr. Green's novels (one of my favorite novels period, truthfully). The characters are memorable and witty, and it tackles some major life experiences that many young adults are either already ready facing or will be in the near future, particularly the idea of leaving the safety of home to find ...more

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Jan 07, 2014 Matthew Troxel rated it really liked it

Raw emotion is Green's speciality and Looking for Alaska, his debut novel, shows off his talent. A lost teenager goes off to a boarding school, hoping to find adventure. Well he finds it and the manic pixie Alaska, a self destructive girl who brings him as much pain as she brings him infatuation. Together with their friends they leave a mark across their boarding school. You know from the beginning, as soon you see that part 1 is labeled "Before", you know something bad is right around the corne ...more

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