Humorous, universal Coming-of-Age-Story

Looking for Alaska
von John Green

Bewertet mit 4 Sternen

John Green, of whom this was my first book, obviously excels in writing for young adults, in an age-appropriate language, dealing with serious topics like illness and death. Some of his books also made it into films, e.g. 'The Fault in our Stars' ('Das Schicksal ist ein mieser Verräter').

In 'Looking for Alaska' Miles switches from his normal school, where he is but invisible, to a private boarding school. There he is, luckily, quickly adopted into a mixed clique by his roommate and some of his friends, one of them the erratically cranky Alaska. The kids do what kids do - they test boundaries. Of school rules and personal tolerance (not only alcohol-wise). Then something happens, which changes how Miles sees the world. Even more than before he now searches for the 'Great Perhaps', a reason or sense of being. Is there a way for each of us to get out of the 'Labyrinth' of personal suffering?

A interesting stylistic device Green uses is the division of the book in two parts - Before/After. The chapters are, like a countdown, counting towards the central event and then measure the time passed after it happened. I like this, because each of us makes certain experiences in life which change our view of things and our values for ever. The light, humorous speech makes the book easy to read, nevertheless Green interlaces many moving sentences which are dead-on and hold some philosophical truths about (not only teenage) life.

I think the book is great for young adults, pupils, because it hits topics they probably have not dealt with in real life themselves. I would like to compare Green's style with Nick Hornby who also writes ironically humorous about growing up. What lets me personally tend rather to Hornby than Green then are the edgy, non-standard themes and characters I have not necessarily yet encountered myself, where Greens message is so universal each one us beyond 30 should surely have made it on their own already.