Oh, was this an excellently written novel by John Green! The more I read of his, the more I like him. This title was published in 2005, but it is as timely as ever, and it won the Printz Award in 2006. It is the story of 4 friends at a boarding school, 3 guys and 1 girl, named Alaska, and their various antics. The narrator, Pudge, is a character who never quite feels like he fits in- he has few friends, but he is a master of famous peoples’ last lines uttered before they die. His favorite last line is the one by poet Francois Rabelais, who said: “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” This is Pudge’s philosophy as he leaves his parents in Florida and sets out for Culver Creek Prep School in Alabama. His friendship that develops with Alaska, the Colonel (his roommate) and Takumi fuels the novel, and they definitely grow on you by the novel’s close. A surprise twist at the end leaves you with a puzzling question that the friends try to solve. Highly recommended, for grades 9 and up.
