Ratings514
Average rating3.5
Short Review: a coming of age novel. Quentin is about to graduate from high school. When an estranged friend disappears a day after they had driven around town committing a bunch of pranks, Quentin becomes obsessed with finding her. This is much less funny (although there is still some humor) than An Abundance of Katherines. As a more serious young adult book, it raises issues of suicide, abandonment, what it means to fit in, why some people thrive and others do not and the true meaning of friendship. I liked this, but it wasn't quite as good as an Abundance of Katherines. But I am glad I read it and will pick up more John Green in the future.
My full review is on my blog at Offsite Review: Family Ministries: A Comprehensive Review - looks like a great book if you are on a church staff or volunteer with family ministries
It is far too easy to stop identifying people as people and to turn them into something greater, but connection happens in that magical human space when we acknowledge not only our own flaws but the flaws in others, and instead of running away from that - choose to be radically accepting instead.
Really enjoyed this, I find it too easy to focus on the fact that Green creates similar characters - so what? That is what he gifted to me, and it is my job to find the nuance.
groovy.
DNF ~ 10%Meh. Can't be bothered to say anything. Go read my [b: An Abundance of Katherines 49750 An Abundance of Katherines John Green https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360206426l/49750.SY75.jpg 48658] review. :)
Just another one of John Green's successes- capturing brokeness in the most beautiful ways!
Loved the use of metaphors! Some parts were very boring and many of the characters we're two-dimensional, but the writing makes up for it.
“It is so hard to leave - until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world.”
Paper Towns, pg. 229
“Maybe it's more like you said before, all of us being cracked open [...] But there is all this time between when the cracks start to open up and when we finally fall apart.”
Paper Towns, pg. 302
This book is so clever at times. I stayed up way past my bedtime to race to the ending.
This was a cute read. I remember high school and feeling suffocated. Of course I wasn't a Margo Roth Spielgelman by any means lol. Life is tough enough already. Being a teen on the verge of having to become an adult (in the eyes of the world) is a scary thing.
Margo did frustrate me a bit as she is portrayed and reads like a spoiled child, however I felt where her character is coming from. She is very lucky to have people care enough about her to come looking, even though she left much to be desired as a friend herself. People didn't even know who she really was....because she didn't let them. Most people aren't interested in who you really are .. they are interested in the idea of who they think you are. But should that be why we let them think that way?
All it takes is to talk and listen in kind and maybe, just maybe, one wouldn't feel empty and alone when surrounded by people. That smile? Could be what makes someone's day. That hello? Could change the trajectory of that person's life. That ear? Maybe....that is what makes a person whole.
Quentin sdh menyukai tetangganya Margo sejak mereka kecil. Sebenanrnya gk bisa dibilang mereka besar bersama juga krn lingkaran pergulan yg berbeda. Jadi ingat sama Falling Into Place yg blm lama kubaca, Margo ini anak populer sedang Quentin bkn. Namun sbnrnya Margo bkn anak populer yg kejam juga, justru dia adalah pencegah banjir bandang antara anak populer & bukan.
Suatu hari Margo memutuskan untuk pergi dari rmh setelah semalaman mengajak Quentin untuk berpetualang membalas dendam kepada orang2 yg telah menyakitinya. Margo meninggalkan petunjuk2 untuk Quentin, tapi juga gk berharap supaya Quentin menyusulnya.
I expected another tragedy like TFioS. It wasn't that, but it was tragic in its own way. The story sets you up for this spectacular ending, and then it abruptly drops you miles from where you thought you were going.
I read this John Green novel soon after binging on Jennifer Niven's amazing young adult book All the Bright Places. They were similar in ways but Paper Towns just could not compare. Essentially, Paper Towns fluctuated between boring and annoying me. I loathed Margo - why was she such a big deal to everybody in the book? I mean, how self-absorbed can a person be? And Quentin? Annoying. The rest of the characters were utterly forgettable. I am going to see the movie when it opens and I'm hoping that I like it better than the novel.
Fast, funny, and enjoyable read. Loved all the characters but the McGuffin Margo; but I think that's the point.
There was a lot to love about this book: 1. someone who writes in lists, like me 2. scavenger hunt! 3. cool, strong, independent female character 4. urban exploration 5. all concepts of paper towns 6. the ending.
Q and his friends are absolutely adorable and so fun to read about. However, Margo's annoying way about her made those parts she was featured in a bit of a drag to read through.