Looking for Alaska - The Book That Changed my Life

I've never cried actual real tears while reading a book. Well -- that is until I read the book that changed my life. The moment I picked up a copy of Looking for Alaska in my English classroom after my teacher informed us it was a romance novel, I was intrigued. The only books I've ever enjoyed have been romance or at least contained an element of it. However, as I read the first page I was immediately disinterested, I can't say why but the plain idea of boarding school and sappy teen romance just seemed a bit bland for my picky taste. I then stewed over the book choices layed out for us, and realized that the book was the most interesting uninteresting choice, so I sucked it up and flipped to the next page.

It's hard for me to write a review on this novel without spoiling it, and even though I read the book knowing the climax, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. But don't worry, the first half of this review will be crafted without any risk of spoiling your reading experience.

If it wasn't for the characters, especially the one and only Alaska Young, this book wouldn't have had the same impact on so many readers. Alaska's manic pixie dream girl attitude at first seemed like a tireless trope, but as the novel progressed, her character gained something many of these free-spirited female characters lack: depth. Alaska teaches us that a feminist, quirky, rebellious girl can also be flawed. Instead of her sole purpose being to bring meaning into the meaningless life of the main character, Miles Halter, they bring meaning to each other, and not only that, but to the reader.

The pages are intertwined with metaphors and philosophical questions about death and the nuances of life. If we all live in our own labyrinth of suffering, is the only true way out death?

After I finished this book, I never looked at my friends, or even my boyfriend the same way. Each moment I spend with them, I think about our conversations, how each word I speak has its place in affecting the outcome of our lives, or even our deaths. I think about the barriers between life and death, and how in an instant, they can collapse. I think about how a YA romance novel has affected my mindset more than any other piece of media I've indulged in.

(As we move on, I must caution you: SPOILERS AHEAD!)

Maybe the book has affected me in this way because of my personal experiences of death, and maybe it won't impact other readers in the same way. I guess that's up to you to find out. But I can say for sure that the blunt descriptions of Alaska's death are the most realistic portrayal of loss I have ever seen in media. “Sometimes I liked it/sometimes I liked it that she was dead/I don’t know. It felt … pure.” (Green 191) Death isn't always sad, in fact, it is one of the most unique experiences a person can go through. The raw emotions we suffer after experiencing a death of someone close to us, or any tragedy, are described vividly through the pages of this book. And personally, I hope to capture people's hearts through writing the way this book has captured mine. This book brings alive the fact that hundreds of words made up of hundreds of letters strung together can form a feeling, and its one of the most beautiful things I've ever experienced.

So don't just take my word or anyone else's about this book, read it and come up with your own opinion if you desire, and I do hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

What is an “instant” death anyway? How long is an instant? Is it one second? Ten? The pain of those seconds must have been awful as her heart burst and her lungs collapsed and there was no air and no blood to her brain and only raw panic. What the hell is instant? Nothing is instant. Instant rice takes five minutes, instant pudding an hour. I doubt that an instant of blinding pain feels particularly instantaneous. (Green, 129)