professornana (professornana) wrote,
professornana
professornana
  • Mood: touched

Looking for Alaska

I began to read this book as my flight to NYC took off. Then, I was distracted when the in-flight movie turned out to be FINDING NEVERLAND. I closed the book and opted for the movie. Now that I have finished reading LOOKING FOR ALASKA, I am beginning to believe that this was an incredibly serendipitous sequence of events. LOOKING FOR ALASKA is one of those books that sucks you in even when you realize early on in the reading that the book will deal with the death of one of its main characters (note: this is not a spoiler; it is obvious from the get-go of this novel). The writing is fresh and honest (and there will be the inevitable objections to the book for this reason) and that honesty makes the examination of the value of a life all the more poignant.

I think the parallels between FINDING NEVERLAND and LOOKING FOR ALASKA might make for some terrific discussion among readers, too. ALASKA is one of the finest debut novels I have read. It is quirky, funny, sad, maddening--all the things that make Alaska Young tick. Find the book. Read it. Pass it on to kids.
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