Looking for Alaska

I grabbed this off my virtual to read pile feeling like the mild annoyance of a John Green story was pretty much what I wanted. I didn't check what the hell this one was about again, briefly confused it with Paper Towns, and was thus completely unprepared for a main character dying tragically!

What I dislike about this is all the guys..... I just hate reading John Green's characters being sexist all the time. Yeah I would agree that this is..... worked through..... in this story. But it's just draining. And I do dislike some fundamental principles of this story, too.

Still this is the John Green book I liked the most so far. (Although to be fair I read that one really really sad one before I found my appreciation for stories like that.) It's sad and painful, still the ~whimsical~ vibe that I think John Green goes for felt the most believable in this one. For once I wasn't annoyed by pretentious quotes, I think they fit in pretty well. And sure Alaska is pixie-dreamgirled by her friends, but I think this is actually subverted pretty well.

I did occasionally feel like I was too old or too exhausted for such a tragic "sometimes people die and it's not even just that" story, like, I don't have the energy to be devastated with all those characters. But I also stayed up late almost finishing a 1000 pieces puzzle while listening to this so I think I liked it. (Although I did start working on the puzzle to calm down, initially.)

Having never read John Green, I picked this up, probably on somebody's recommendation. This was 10 years ago, and I was not a young adult at the time. Inside the front cover was a post-it note. "This is the best young adult book ever written. Really."

Miles has transferred to a new preparatory school, and John Green uses this to introduce the reader to the wonderful characters, including the titular Alaska Young. As counterpoint to the social interactions, the class with the most focus is religious studies. There are no chapters, only sections, each labeled with a decreasing number of days "before" - so the reader knows something is coming - and later a number of days "after". I didn't read ahead to find out what, and suggest you don't either.

Character interactions with each other, with adults, and with their schoolwork really define the novel and breathe life into everything. The setting is richly described, especially days of dismal rain and the vibrant green afterwards. Alaska is a very strong female character, smart and quick to point out objectification of women.

There have been some controversies around the novel also, including frequent depictions of smoking, drinking, and one particular scene. That scene of physical intimacy with no emotional connection is an important counterpoint to a subsequent scene of emotional intimacy with no physical aspect. I could see some schools or parents kicking up a fuss, but it would be hard to pretend teens don't already know everything here.

This is my second read of this book but my first solid review. In doing a little research for this, I see that there is an eight episode TV adaptation released just a few months ago. I will probably watch it, but would strongly encourage everyone to read the book first. Really.