Looking for Alaska, Entry 1

The book I chose to read for my summer reading project that was from the Printz Award Winner list was, Looking for Alaska by John Green. One of the main characters of this book is, Miles “Pudge” Halter. Miles never really seemed to fit in to his hometown. He is a nerdy and unsocial kind of kid that does not have a lot of friends. But later in the book he meets a new group of friends that sort of change his life and becomes a new type of guy.

Another main character of the book Looking for Alaska is, Alaska Young. Alaska is a beautiful girl that Miles, or “Pudge” as they call him, falls in love with. Chip “The Colonel” Martin and Takumi Harihoto are also characters of the book that have fallen in love or have a crush on Alaska as well. Chip and Takumi are friends of Miles.

Miles grew up in Florida and that is where his home is and where he lives. But Miles can’t wait to leave Florida and attend Culver Creek Preparatory School which is located in Birmingham, Alabama. The setting takes place in these places throughout the book.

One of the conflicts of Looking for Alaska would be when Miles and his friends get involved with drugs and alcohol, and even sex. This would be a character vs. nature conflict. One other main conflict throughout the book would be Miles trying to find his new identity. This would be a character vs. self conflict.

One question that I had while reading this book was, will miles truly find a new identity throughout the book and go out of his comfort zone, or will he stay the same person he has always been? I predict that miles will take a look at himself and want a new identity, and I predict he will find one.