Paper Towns

Paper Towns, by John Green, 305 pages

Quentin has always had a crush on his neighbor, Margo- even though they drifted apart into different social circles in high school, the crush on the girl he knew as a child remained.  Margo is a bit of a legend to everyone in school- a daring risk-taker who sneaks into theme parks and turns down famous bassists, and a popular girl with the looks and the cool friends.  So when she shows up at Quentin's window one night to pull him into a night of mischief and adventure, he can't turn her down.  And at the end of the night he feels like she just taught him how to live.  So when Margo stays missing, Quentin is convinced that she has led him into a sort of scavenger hunt to find her.  The rest of the book is Quentin reading Whitman's Leaves of Grass, realizing how good his friends are, and trying to live life like Margo taught him.  Oh, and then realizing that he never really knew Margo, and we can never truly know another person.  This was interesting, and contained quite a bit for discussion regarding YA literature, John Green, and identity. 

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Will Grayson, Will Grayson
by John Green & David Levithan, 310 pages

This book's been on my 'too read' list since it came out. After Tiger recently reviewed it, I decided I needed to finally read it. I rarely read young adult novels, but I do enjoy them in general.
The overall story was entertaining and the message being conveyed came through loud and clear. However, I had a couple issues with this book.
1. I really thought the authors tried to cram too many types of characters into one book. Gay, goth, terribly depressed, super fat kid, etc. Maybe it's just me, but I felt they could have spent less effort on that and more on just developing a couple more intricately. 
2. Although the above details were mentioned, there wasn't much to really give you a feel for how the characters looked. Everyone might not care about this, but I like to have a little something to give me a picture in my head of the characters. For some reason, I pictured nothing.
There are so many books out there now for teens that deal with being gay. I don't know if this is because so many teens are coming out or if it was just a niche that needed to be filled, but I think it's a good thing. When I was in high school, there were kids who were gay, but they did not come out until they left high school and the town, for good. I grew up in a very rural area though, so I know this was a factor. I wonder, however, if it might have been a little different if books such as these were accessible for those teens to read and relate to.
Anyway, though I thought a few things could be improved upon, I did still enjoy reading this, and it was a quick read, as teen novels tend to be.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson, John Green & Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson. John Green & David Levithan, 2010. 310 pages

     This book got me from the first page, as good teen fiction should always do. I  thought it was hilarious, and I am a tough critic.  The character of Tiny Cooper could quite possibly be one of the most entertaining fictional gay men I have ever felt like I've known.  He also reminds me of a few people I grew up with, which made him more plausible as a character for me, at least. Especially my friend who used to pretend he was Stevie Nicks by wrapping himself in a sheet and twirling around. Tiny Cooper made this book. Ok, I'm done.

      That aside, I recommend this book to everyone. It is funny, charming, awkward in the way the adolescence can be, and very well written. I loved that it was set in this area of the country, and I love that both Green and Levithan present the reader with dimensional LGBTQ characters.  These characters do not struggle with their sexual orientation as much as trying to deal with interpersonal relationships like everyone else at this age struggle to do. I did have the idea from the cover and book jacket description that there would be more of a science fiction angle, but was not disappointed to find out that this was not so.

Paper Towns

Paper Towns by John Green, 305 pages

Q is a nerdy guy, friends with two other nerdy guys, and all of them are just weeks away from their high school graduation. Q is also in love with his next door neighbor, the beautiful and popular Margo Roth Spiegelman (yes, you should use all three names when referring to her), though he never talks to her. It seems like that's the way Q will end his high school career until one night when Margo knocks on his window and takes him on a whirlwind tour of Orlando, meting out revenge on those who have wronged her. Will things change for them at school? Will Q actually get to talk to Margo in public now? Who knows, because by the time Q gets to school, Margo has disappeared, running away from home for another adventure.

This could be a generic boy-with-a-crush-on-a-hot-girl story, but John Green in his complete awesomeness (more on that in a bit) makes it a much deeper story, delving into the nature of identity, the connections between people, and whether or not you can ever really know someone. It's not always believable, but that doesn't make the characters and their emotions any less relatable. Also, because of this book, I'm now obsessed with the very real notion of paper towns, which I will not describe here as I don't want to spoil this book for anyone.

So back to John Green and his awesomeness. This is not his best book (I'd give that crown to An Abundance of Katherines, or if you catch me on a weepier day, The Fault in Our Stars), but he's an incredible writer, so you should read this anyway. And heck, since he's such an awesome person, go check out anything he's ever done, including his rapid-fire videos for Mental Floss and his back-and-forth vlog conversations with his brother Hank (who's also pretty cool).