Book Review: "Paper Towns" by John Green

After doing a podcast (which will be posted on December 22nd! -Justin) on the subject of Paper Towns, which I had not yet read though my friends insisted it was one of the best they've read in a while, I decided I should give it a try. In the beginning, it was a fast-paced, adventurous novel, with obvious foreshadowing suggesting a seperation between characters. The characters (or at least one of them) seemed to be a spontaneous whirlwind of fairly illegal excitement that seems slightly irrational.

The main character, Quentin, is surprised that the mysterious, amazing Margo chooses him to come with her on her night of mischief, revenge, and fun. He's not quite so surprised that she does not show for the next few days- it's not the first time she's gone off on some trip and came back with stories about running off to Mississippi, or the circus, etc. Only later, when a detective and her parents come to question Quentin, is the phrase "runaway" actually used. However, it becomes clear that Margo hasn't the happy lifestyle at home that she longs for, so of course it isn't the first time she's gone off on her own to get away from it. And it's also not the first time she's left vague clues as to her whereabouts. However, it is the first time she's left them for Quentin.The middle of the story is made up of Quentin's obsessive hunt for Margo. Becoming more and more worried, Quentin considers whether Margo's clues meant to lead him to her- or to her body. When he finally finds evidence of where she has gone, he is looking at a 19 hour drive, not accounting for traffic, to get to a fictional place in less than 21 hours. His best friends, Radar and Ben, plus Ben's girlfriend and Margo's best friend Lacey, insist, last-minute, on skipping their own graduation to come with Quentin. The next part of the story is made up of the four highly caffeinated teenagers on an extremely rushed road trip. This would be the hilarious part; however, I refuse to spoil the jokes for you, since some of them were indeed spoiled for me, which made them much less funny.

All in all, I don't think I have anything bad to say about the book, except that the middle was a downer. If you plow through it, you get right to the end, which is quite an upper. This book has many deep insights about people and personalities, particularly of teens. It's not a typical novel by any means, however it is what a typical teen novel should be.

Thanks to Beth S. for the Review!

Also...
CHECK BACK HERE IN SIX DAYS (DECEMBER 22) FOR EPISODE 2 OF THE TEEN PODCAST!