Book Review: Looking for Alaska

We all read books that make an impact on our lives. We take away bits of everything we have read. Years later we may not remember the context of a book, but you remember how that book made us feel. Today I will be reviewing "Looking for Alaska" by John Green. Although not profound overall, the impact it has left on me will last a lifetime.

Reading through this was for a challenge. A book set in your hometown (Well as close as I could get)
I wasn't understanding the point of teenagers finding friends together in a boarding school in order to pull off pranks. Reading through I was slightly disappointed, John Green is an author I love thanks to "The Fault in Our Stars". It took the last few pages to wrap everything up nicely.

The book addresses the before and the after, which refer to before the accident and after the accident. My focus is on the after part. The before didn't really leave a lasting impression on me. The after deals with the loss. Searching for answers of why, figuring out those last moments, and dealing with the event itself. As a teen it is hard to put those things into perspective.

I was very young when I lost my grandfather. I dealt with the guilt, pain, and the loss. It was hard and I always blamed myself. The following is a quote and the piece of the book that will stay with me:

"...I forgave him, and that she forgave us, and that we had to forgive to survive in the labyrinth. There were so many of us who would have to live with things done and things left undone that day. Things that did not go right, things that seemed okay at the time because we could not see the consequences that result from our smallest actions. Be we can't know better until knowing better is useless."

I didn't know that day, as I walked out the day, that in a few hours everything would change. I had no idea that not telling him I loved him as I left for school would matter. It was the first time I had not told him as I left. I could not have fathomed the impact of leaving out of anger that day as I slammed the door on our arguement. So for me, this book has taught me that forgiveness is the key to getting out of the labyrinth.

What I would like for you to take away from this blog post is that you never know the value of the moment until it is over. Moments are fleeting, life is fleeting. Live each moment to the fullest and the best of your ability. Feel each emotion, but never forget to forgive. As someone who is quick to apologize, I cannot put into words the relief and the power that forgiveness can have in your life.

If you would like to see my Goodreads review of this book, you can find that link here.