Paper Towns by John Green

Quentin or “Q” as his friends call him has known the amazing and perfect Margo Roth Spiegelman since he was two and has had a bit of a crush on her most of that time.  She lives just next door and while they used to be good friends, now that they are in high school they aren’t exactly in the same circles.  Q thinks he knows everything there is to know about her, but does he really know her at all?  Just a month before high school graduation, Margo enlists Q’s help to pull a fabulous prank and then just disappears.  Q is desperate to find her and begins following the clues that Margo has left for him.  Will he be able to find her or is she gone forever?

Comments

[Dawn Foster]

I was looking forward to the release of this book last year since I loved Green's earlier novel, Looking for Alaska. However, I was very disappointed by Paper Towns; I may be in the minority on this, though!

Margo was not a likeable character, and Q's journey to 'find her' got boring. I just didn't feel very connected to the Paper Towns characters. Consequently, I didn't care if Margo was found or what would happen with her friendship w/Q!

[Lisa]

I agree that Looking for Alaska is the better of the two. But, I should say that Looking for Alaska is my absolute favorite book! I still liked Paper Towns. I found them quite similar in a lot of ways. I have talked to a few people who read Paper Towns first and liked it better than Alaska. I wonder if it depends on which one you read first? Any thoughts out there? Which is better, Looking for Alaska or Paper Towns?

[Amelia]

Personally, I got into John Green just this summer through Nerdfighters which someone introduced to me. I read Looking for Alaska first, and I really liked it, and it really made me feel something inside.

I agree with what was said above about how Paper Towns was boring and... unfeeling compared to Alaska. I don't think that was because of the order in which I read them, but the main characters. There was practically no build-up to the prank which led to everything else immediately. I felt that this caused no real insight to the characters.

But, I think John Green still has major talent and I hope he writes many more to come!$

[read paper towns online]

This is one great book that can be enjoyed by everyone, and not just teens. Another good one by the same author is The Abundance of Katherines. I read this one online.