YA Fiction Annotation:
Title: Looking for Alaska
Author: John Green
Genre: Young adult fiction
Publication date: 2005
Number of pages: 221
Geographical setting: Florida and Alabama
Time period: Modern day (2005)
Plot summary: Loner teen Miles Halter moves from Florida and leaves his parents behind to attend Culver Creek Preparatory School in Alabama, where his dad also went to school. Miles is not an unpopular kid but prefers to be on his own with his odd hobbies like memorizing famous people's last words. When he arrives at his new school, he discovers that Alabama heat is not the same as Florida heat and the kids who attend this school are not like the ones he left behind. He quickly befriends his roommate Chip, who everyone calls the Colonel, and in turn befriends Chip's friends, Alaska and Takumi. The group of friends get up to what you would expect teens in 2005 at a prep school in rural Alabama to get up to: Smoking, drinking, pranks, rivalries, mutual hate of administration, etc. Things are going as planned and are fairly normal until an event shatters the world of Miles (affectionately called Pudge by his new friend group, but because he is very skinny) and his friends and the rest of the novel follows their emotions and different ways of dealing with what has happened to them. Without giving too much away, there is a devastating event that necessitates the book being split into two sections: Before and after.
Subject headings: Young adult fiction, grieving, suicide, southern United States, teens, tweens.
Appeal: This novel appeals to fans of YA fiction since it follows the classic trope of a teen finding his way at a new school, dealing with bullies and making friends. What sets it apart from other novels of the genre is its down to earth writing and heartfelt plot.
Three relevant fiction works and authors:
Paper Towns by John Green
This is the same author as Looking for Alaska but it is not the same story. The relation to Alaska is its writing style and its genre. Like Alaska, Paper Towns follows a group on teen friends on a sort of road trip adventure to find a classmate before something happens to her or she happens to herself.
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
Another by John Green, but with good reason, he is one of the frontrunners of YA fiction and he deserves the position. This tale focuses on two teens in particular rather than a whole group. It also deals with first loves the way Alaska does but also loss and parental issues the way that Alaska does. Added in are mental issues and how they make teens feel and how they deal with them in a very tasteful way.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky
Considered a classic of the genre, Perks is like Alaska in that it has teens dealing with typical teen things: school, friends, the opposite sex. The main characters of the two novels parallel one another in that they are both teenage boys looking to figure out their worlds while each being of a loner type.
Three relevant nonfiction works and authors:
Project Semicolon by Amy Bleuel and Wesley Chapman
This book consists of essays and advice for teens by teens struggling, dealing, or living with a mental illness. There are themes of mental instability throughout Alaska (without giving too much away again) and teens may be able to relate to the characters by realizing they feel the same way. Project Semicolon can be a helpful resource for those teens or even parents of those teens.
Weird is Normal by Jenny Lee Wheeler
This book on grief for teens was written by an actively grieving teen. In Alaska, many of the characters are grieving at different points in the story and for different people. Grief is a difficult thing to navigate for anyone but it can be especially hard for a young person. This book is important because it doesn't talk down to teens, but instead echoes their feelings and offers advice on how to process them.
Famous Last Words compiled by Ray Robinson
A big part of Alaska is Miles' affinity for memorizing famous last words. Often he will only have heard of a famous author or movie star because he remembers their last words. After Alaska, you will find yourself wondering what the last words of your favorite authors or celebs were and this book is a good place to start.
Title: Looking for Alaska
Author: John Green
Genre: Young adult fiction
Publication date: 2005
Number of pages: 221
Geographical setting: Florida and Alabama
Time period: Modern day (2005)
Plot summary: Loner teen Miles Halter moves from Florida and leaves his parents behind to attend Culver Creek Preparatory School in Alabama, where his dad also went to school. Miles is not an unpopular kid but prefers to be on his own with his odd hobbies like memorizing famous people's last words. When he arrives at his new school, he discovers that Alabama heat is not the same as Florida heat and the kids who attend this school are not like the ones he left behind. He quickly befriends his roommate Chip, who everyone calls the Colonel, and in turn befriends Chip's friends, Alaska and Takumi. The group of friends get up to what you would expect teens in 2005 at a prep school in rural Alabama to get up to: Smoking, drinking, pranks, rivalries, mutual hate of administration, etc. Things are going as planned and are fairly normal until an event shatters the world of Miles (affectionately called Pudge by his new friend group, but because he is very skinny) and his friends and the rest of the novel follows their emotions and different ways of dealing with what has happened to them. Without giving too much away, there is a devastating event that necessitates the book being split into two sections: Before and after.
Subject headings: Young adult fiction, grieving, suicide, southern United States, teens, tweens.
Appeal: This novel appeals to fans of YA fiction since it follows the classic trope of a teen finding his way at a new school, dealing with bullies and making friends. What sets it apart from other novels of the genre is its down to earth writing and heartfelt plot.
Three relevant fiction works and authors:
Paper Towns by John Green
This is the same author as Looking for Alaska but it is not the same story. The relation to Alaska is its writing style and its genre. Like Alaska, Paper Towns follows a group on teen friends on a sort of road trip adventure to find a classmate before something happens to her or she happens to herself.
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
Another by John Green, but with good reason, he is one of the frontrunners of YA fiction and he deserves the position. This tale focuses on two teens in particular rather than a whole group. It also deals with first loves the way Alaska does but also loss and parental issues the way that Alaska does. Added in are mental issues and how they make teens feel and how they deal with them in a very tasteful way.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky
Considered a classic of the genre, Perks is like Alaska in that it has teens dealing with typical teen things: school, friends, the opposite sex. The main characters of the two novels parallel one another in that they are both teenage boys looking to figure out their worlds while each being of a loner type.
Three relevant nonfiction works and authors:
Project Semicolon by Amy Bleuel and Wesley Chapman
This book consists of essays and advice for teens by teens struggling, dealing, or living with a mental illness. There are themes of mental instability throughout Alaska (without giving too much away again) and teens may be able to relate to the characters by realizing they feel the same way. Project Semicolon can be a helpful resource for those teens or even parents of those teens.
Weird is Normal by Jenny Lee Wheeler
This book on grief for teens was written by an actively grieving teen. In Alaska, many of the characters are grieving at different points in the story and for different people. Grief is a difficult thing to navigate for anyone but it can be especially hard for a young person. This book is important because it doesn't talk down to teens, but instead echoes their feelings and offers advice on how to process them.
Famous Last Words compiled by Ray Robinson
A big part of Alaska is Miles' affinity for memorizing famous last words. Often he will only have heard of a famous author or movie star because he remembers their last words. After Alaska, you will find yourself wondering what the last words of your favorite authors or celebs were and this book is a good place to start.
Great annotation! I've heard so much about John Green and his novels. I do believe my kids have read some of his works and seen those movie adaptations, but I never really got into them. However, this novel sounds really interesting and I might be tempted to give it a try.
ReplyDeleteGreat annotation! I enjoy his books, but haven't had a chance to read this one yet. Have you watched and compared it to the tv series?
ReplyDeleteI have not seen the TV series yet. I only found out about it while writing this annotation and searching Google images for a picture of the book cover!
DeleteI read this book years ago so I only remember basics but I loved that you included the famous last words in your recommendations. It's a terrific book and now I want to read it again so I remember more than the fact that I loved it and the big plot points. :)
DeleteI believe this was the first John Green book I read. I've read most of his books, I'm not exactly sure which one is my favorite, but probably Paper Towns. I still have yet to read Turtles All the Way Down even though it's sitting on my bookshelf. Should probably get around to that sometime. I'm also curious to see what the TV show is like since most of his other books have always been turned into movies, so I'm wondering what the difference will be with the TV show treatment and if fans will respond to that better or not.
DeleteYour annotation makes me want to revisit this book! I'm curious how the tv show will be. Great job on your summary and stellar read-alikes. Full points!
ReplyDelete