Miles Halter is fascinated by famous peoples’ last words and his goal at boarding school is to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps” rather than live a safe, secluded, and boring life. The story starts at the beginning of Miles Halter’s first year at boarding school as a junior in high school. He instantly becomes friends with his roommate, Chip, who is known as The Colonel, who introduces him to Alaska Young, the girl that Miles immediately pines for even though she has a boyfriend. One of the main plot lines of the novel surrounds pranks. The two main groups of students are constantly trying to outdo one another, while at the same time following one of the principles between the student body to never "rat" on each other.
The story is broken into two sections: Before and After. The story is told in chronological order, and time counts down to the “event” that separates the two sections of the book.The story is a coming of age novel that explores the answer of something that may not be answerable: what happens when we die/what do we say in our last moments?
Challenge:
The before/after section creates a clear delineation between the rising and falling action in the book. The most difficult part of the novel is the concept of dealing with death and loss of a close friend.
Curriculum Connection & Themes:
Discussion questions from the author.
- Friendship;
- Loss & grief; death and dying;
- Searching for the meaning of life.
Lexile: 930L
Interest Level: High School +
Controversial Scenes/Content:
There is drinking, sex, cussing, and death. Nothing that was too offensive, but may just be part of teenagers lives at boarding school.
Rating: 3.5/5 (It was SO different than the other book I've read by John Green - The Fault in Our Stars. It was still good, but not even on the same level in my opinion.)
Awards: Winner, 2006 Michael L. Printz Award