I watch the Vlogbrothers on YouTube, so I'd heard a lot about Looking For Alaska, but still knew very few details. All I knew going in was that it would be about a nerdy boy falling in love with a Manic Pixie Dream Girl named Alaska.That's it. And while my general stance is along the lines of "it's the journey, not the end, that counts," I actually feel that not knowing is important with this novel. Not knowing let it whack me. I generally like to think of myself as a nice person, and I want you to be whacked too. 
 So here's my attempt at a totally spoiler-free review: 
 Miles Halter is friendless and bored, so he goes in search of the Great Perhaps in the form of a boarding school. There, his life is changed when he starts making friends, takes up smoking, and meets Alaska. 
 I dislike the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope, and I found Alaska to be generally an unpleasant person. Miles and the Colonel also made a lot of very insensitive mistakes that hurt the people around them. But it captured so well my experience of being that age - the total lack of social graces, the exhibition of self-destruction, the "I'm crazier than you are" pissing contests... Have I ever mentioned how embarrassed I am of my teenage years? 
 But despite the unlikeable characters, Green really did capture the experience of being a teen, and he used that backdrop to explore some pretty interesting stuff (which I won't discuss any further because... well... see above). And while I certainly wouldn't want any of these kids in my real life, it was a riot to read about their adventures and mishaps, and their little witticisms. 
 Nothing I have said about Looking For Alaska has been a flaw. The ending - the epiphany, if you can call it that - was a little weak, but that's really it. That's the only flaw. I loved reading this book so much that I had trouble putting it down, even when my services as a parent were required. I couldn't recommend it enough!