Paper Towns by John Green : a mini-review.

                             

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Paper Towns is the third of John Green's books that I have read.  I started with the now hugely popular and well-known, The Fault In Our Stars, and then Looking For Alaska.  Green seems to have found his niche in young adult fiction; fiction that pulls on your heart strings and allows you to reflect on everything that is good, bad, easy and difficult about life.  I like this: Green doesn't talk down to his readers, he takes you on a sometimes painful or sad story, but you have time to figure the complex messages out for yourself instead of having it handed to you on a plate.   

Paper Towns is no different: the main protagonist Q goes on a literal and metaphorical journey as he is trying to figure out Margo. Q is forced to recognise his own flaws after he has called out other peoples', something that we are all guilty of at times, thinking our own beliefs are right and dismissing anyone who disagrees, or is careless or disrespectful of our opinion.  A highlight of Paper Towns is the diversity of the characters; we are introduced to a small group of friends in an American high school and Green portrays the complexity of each individual character, contrasting them, showing off their strengths and their weaknesses.  Green has no time for two dimensional cardboard characters, he also doesn't care if a character is particularly likable or not, and for me, he deserves great commendation for this. 

The main themes are, at times, quite brooding and sullen (suicide, disappearances) but don't let that put you off.  The text is witty, well-written and smart with some hilariously inappropriate moments and jokes (a group of teenage boys graduating from high school - what do you expect?) which perfectly balance out the sombre moments or ideas.  The novel is also a coming-of-age story, the characters finish high school, are going to college and Q sums up the feelings of 'doing something for the last time' perfectly; how hard it can be to end a certain chapter of your life.  The road trip the characters take is also a kind of rite of passage: they all have their own role on the trip and they are searching for something, hoping it will change, but of course, it's not always that easy.  

One particular theme that I liked a lot in Paper Towns was the idea that we create an idea of who people are.  Green argues that we tend to create this perfect idea of those we admire, look up to,or love. We think they do not go through the same pain and suffering that we do or we romanticise them.  Margo states that people love the idea of the 'paper girl', someone who is malleable, fold-able or unreal, yet these paper people can be broken and feel lost too, and sometimes the real them can get lost among what other people think they are.  In a world of idolising celebrities, this concept is really interesting.  

Green's talent for producing real, thought provoking stories for young adult (and older!) readers is a million miles away from the frothy romance of Twilight-esque books (nothing wrong if you like them, I have read and enjoyed them...). We encounter real life problems and situations that hurt us but restore our faith in humanity at the same time. Paper Towns is a wonderfully enjoyable book that charters the sometimes troubling waters of young love and growing up, with complex characters and the overriding message of how people are not always who we think they are. 

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