Tag young adult novels

Book of the Year: Looking for Alaska

Reg Spittle 3 Comments

A little late, isn’t it? You’re right, but I hope you’ll forgive me for focusing on the launch of my third book.

So, here it is, my review (published last March) of my favorite book that I read in 2024:

I glanced at this book’s title; I thought, “Perfect. A travel adventure book. To Alaska!”

But I was wrong. Looking for Alaska is indeed a journey, but the teen-aged protagonist travels through his eventful life in a new boarding school.

This is no ordinary coming-of-age story. Divided into two sections, before and after, John Green tells a tale filled with poignant happenings in the life of Miles “Pudge” Halter. One event is a defining, shocking moment where the “after” story begins. (No spoiler here.)

Obsessed with famous last words, Pudge falls into the world of the Great Perhaps with Alaska Young. She feeds his sense of humor, challenges his tendency to play it safe, and captures his heart. The entertaining story may move you to consider your own journey to self-discovery.

Looking for Alaska is one more in a series of young adult novels that have kept me away from my usual non-fiction leanings. I am drawn to YA books for stories that take me back to my own teen-aged years and my struggle to find myself. Like Pudge, I found a friend in high school who accepted me for who I was, giving me confidence that changed everything. I am thankful every day for that friendship.

Looking for Alaska was Green’s debut novel. He has written many more, including The Fault of Our Stars, selling a total of 50 million copies.

On Their Last Days, They Live Big and Love Big

Reg Spittle 1 Comment
Adam Silvera

“Live every day as if it were your last.”

Apple founder Steve Jobs recited those words to himself every morning when he looked in the mirror. He knew that if he did this every day, one day he would be right.

In a pair of Adam Silvera novels, three teen-agers get the dreaded call from Death-Cast, informing them they are Deckers and are about to die. Death-Cast is a service that offers subscribers the opportunity to learn on the given day that they are going to die within 24 hours.

In They Both Die in the End and its prequel, The First to Die in the End, Silvera knits passionate stories about how these young people spend their last days. They learn that what is important is how they live, not how they die.

I expect most of us have been asked if we would want to know when we are going to die. We all know there is no life without death, but how would it affect our lives if we knew our expiration date? The creator of Death-Cast finds there are unintended consequences of the service he hoped would enrich Deckers’ last hours.

There is also no love without loss. This is a central theme to both books and love binds the characters during intense times filled with tension, joy, discovery, and tragedy.

I am hesitant to say more, fearing I could spoil the enthralling experience ahead of readers of these books. You could say the titles of the books are spoilers in themselves, but I would say these stories survive the titles, even thrive because of them.

Adam Silvera published the prequel in October while I was reading They Both Die in the End, published in 2017. When I finished the “sequel,” I went right to the other book. I was glad I read them in that order.

These books are categorized as young-adult novels, but as with so many in this genre, I think they will appeal to older adults as well. These are the two of the most compelling books I have read in 2022. I look forward to reading more of Silvera’s books.