A review by lilm5kitty
Paper Towns by John Green
5.0
Ok, so its been a while since I posted a review - and its not that I havent read any fantastic books, I have - its just that I havent felt like I have had anything to say about them as such. If I am going to gush about a book, or review it, I want it to be because I took something from it.
To say I took something from Paper Towns, is an understatment, it gave me more than I took, and even now, when I have put it down I find myself flicking back to certain quotes that have just stuck with me.
I'm not a John Green fan girl - This is the second novel that I have read by him [Read TFioS last year - Cried, a lot, enjoyed it, would read it again, but it wouldnt make my top 50]
After this book however, I could honestly see myself picking up more of his works, just to see if they are so many worlds apart from each other.
Anyway, back on point.
Paper Towns is written from an eighteen year old Quention Jacobsons POV - and its interesting to see the wolrd through his eyes. He is well written, and easy to connect with. Despite the cultural differences [Im not American], relating his world view, idealisms, etc to your own experiences of the final months of school is very easy to do.
The metaphors that play around are subtle, almost to the point that it isnt until you stop looking at them, that you really see their meaning. WHich in essence is the centralised theme.
We are who we are, we view others as characteristics of ourselves, imposed on to them. Like a mirror to our own personalities - We look for similarities in other, but we dont nessercarily see someone for who they really are to themselves, because all the time you are looking at them, they are mirroring from you, and its not until cracks appear, that you can see behind and inside.
The book felt a lot like that - I would be reading on the bus, or at my desk, and laugh at some inane little thing - Something that would make me remember a similar experience. I'd put the book down, and then the brain would click something into place, and something under written in that section, or mentioned in passing would buzz into my thoughts and suddenly there are all these strings that are pulling together and I can some new angle, or meaning to it.
This actually kept me up last night - I had read the first 1/2 the book, and then re read maybe a 1/3 of it just to re interpret sections with my new view point. Havent done that with a book since Catcher in the Rye [Which still ranks as a top 10]
I reckon that every character, at one point or another, is a representation of ourselves.
We've all been Radar - Embarrased by his parents
We've all been Ben - Self obsessed, shallow, simple, but a good person
We've all been Quentin - Someone who has loved the idea of someone, but not really known said person. Someone who is a watcher, who has a routine, but finds the notion of breaking free just a little too much
Finally we are all Margo Roth Spiegelman in our own ways. We are all paper people, who long to be something a little bit more, perhaps taking those steps, perhaps filling our own little black notebooks.
Whom ever we are, whom ever we choose to be - We should be proud of our cracks, let the world see into them, and take the time to look into others. If only to ensure that we dont miss someone floating away, their strings all cut, just grass on a grave
To say I took something from Paper Towns, is an understatment, it gave me more than I took, and even now, when I have put it down I find myself flicking back to certain quotes that have just stuck with me.
I'm not a John Green fan girl - This is the second novel that I have read by him [Read TFioS last year - Cried, a lot, enjoyed it, would read it again, but it wouldnt make my top 50]
After this book however, I could honestly see myself picking up more of his works, just to see if they are so many worlds apart from each other.
Anyway, back on point.
Paper Towns is written from an eighteen year old Quention Jacobsons POV - and its interesting to see the wolrd through his eyes. He is well written, and easy to connect with. Despite the cultural differences [Im not American], relating his world view, idealisms, etc to your own experiences of the final months of school is very easy to do.
The metaphors that play around are subtle, almost to the point that it isnt until you stop looking at them, that you really see their meaning. WHich in essence is the centralised theme.
We are who we are, we view others as characteristics of ourselves, imposed on to them. Like a mirror to our own personalities - We look for similarities in other, but we dont nessercarily see someone for who they really are to themselves, because all the time you are looking at them, they are mirroring from you, and its not until cracks appear, that you can see behind and inside.
The book felt a lot like that - I would be reading on the bus, or at my desk, and laugh at some inane little thing - Something that would make me remember a similar experience. I'd put the book down, and then the brain would click something into place, and something under written in that section, or mentioned in passing would buzz into my thoughts and suddenly there are all these strings that are pulling together and I can some new angle, or meaning to it.
This actually kept me up last night - I had read the first 1/2 the book, and then re read maybe a 1/3 of it just to re interpret sections with my new view point. Havent done that with a book since Catcher in the Rye [Which still ranks as a top 10]
I reckon that every character, at one point or another, is a representation of ourselves.
We've all been Radar - Embarrased by his parents
We've all been Ben - Self obsessed, shallow, simple, but a good person
We've all been Quentin - Someone who has loved the idea of someone, but not really known said person. Someone who is a watcher, who has a routine, but finds the notion of breaking free just a little too much
Finally we are all Margo Roth Spiegelman in our own ways. We are all paper people, who long to be something a little bit more, perhaps taking those steps, perhaps filling our own little black notebooks.
Whom ever we are, whom ever we choose to be - We should be proud of our cracks, let the world see into them, and take the time to look into others. If only to ensure that we dont miss someone floating away, their strings all cut, just grass on a grave