Looking for Alaska
John Green
Summary
Looking for Alaska, is a novel about an awkward boy, Miles "Pudge" Halter, trying to find his "Great Perhaps". This journey takes him all the way to Culver Creek Prep School. As soon as he arrives, he learns that the people here are a little dangerous. His roommate, Chip "The Colonel", and friend, Alaska Young, are always getting in to trouble, whether they're caught smoking, drinking, or skipping school. However, Miles likes being part of the dangerous crowd and grows close with Alaska. But, when one event changes his life, he's forced to answer one big question. How will we get out of this labyrinth of suffering?
Setting
The majority of Looking for Alaska takes place at Culver Creek Prep School. The school is described as really bland and boring. The bedroom walls are while cinder blocks and the only place where there's cable is in a single room called the "TV Room". The building are arranged is what they call a "dorm circle". Everything is basically placed in a cricle so it's easily accessable. Although Culver Creek might not be very interesting, Miles and his friends always find a way to have fun.
Recommendation
I believe that the novel, Looking for Alaska, is great for many reasons. One reason is John Green is just an amazing author. All of his writing is good and he always knows how to set up his books in a unique way. Another reason I like this book is because of the word choice. Looking for Alaska, uses many challenging words that I've never seen before. This makes the book much more helpful than a novel like Legend, because it helps me expand my vocabulary. There are many reasons why this is an amazing book, but here are some of my favorite. However, I would only recommend this book to people that are a little more mature.
Comparison
Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns, both novels by John Green, have a few differences. The setting, situation the main character are in, and obviously, the whole plot. But the main character of both novels have so much in common. Margo and Alaska are both trouble makers. They get themselves into situations that can be a little dangerous. Margo demonstrates this when she comes up with her plan to get back at her used to be friends. Alaska is like this all the times she decided to smoke and drink even when she knew that she could be caught by, "The Eagle". They're also similar in the way they are described. Margo is said to be the prettiest girl in school, by Quentin, while Alaska is also seen as being very attractive by Miles. Not only are Margo and Alaska similar, so are Miles and Quentin. They are both sort of awkward and tend to stay in there little groups. Miles has his little clan of "The Colonel", Takumi, and Alaska, while Quentin has his group consisting of Ben and Radar. They also both fall head over heels in love for someone everyone thinks is "out of their league". Overall, I think that the characters of Looking for Alaska, and Paper Towns, are pretty similar. However, I think that the plots are almost nothing alike. I think the reason the characters are so similar is because there is the same author for both book. I love that the main characters are similar though because I fell in love with Miles and Alaska in Looking for Alaska, and now I'm falling in love with Margo and Quentin while reading Paper Towns.
About the Author
John Micheal Green was born on August 24, 1977 and is currently 37 years old. He was born in Indianapolis but later moved to Orland where he attended Lake Highland Preparatory School and later worked at a children's hospital. It was experiences like these that gave him inspiration for his books. His first novel, Looking for Alaska, was published in 2005 and his most recent novel, released in 2012, was titled, The Fault in Our Stars. Since then, John has moved back to Indianapolis where he lives with his wife, Sarah Urist Green, and two children, Henry and Alice.
Main Character
Miles "Pudge" Halter: Miles is described as sort of an awkward kid. He's tall, thin, and not good in social situations. However, this is not the way he seems when he's at Culver Creek. He loves his friends and is constantly with them. However, he doesn't always want to take part in their dangerous acts. He's very cautious and always does everything he can to avoid getting in trouble. He makes sure to put towels under the door when smoking, and knows not to drink too much. Miles is also very smart. He's in advanced classes, and always makes sure to keep his grade up. Overall, Miles is an extremely good kid. He rarely gets into trouble and even when he does, he always know how to get out of it.