An Abundance of Reading

Title: An Abundance of Katherines
Author: John Green
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Quote: “I just want to do something that matters. Or be something that matters. I just want to matter.”
Would recommend to: someone who understands the importance of second chances.

I have never been a particularly huge fan of John Green’s novels. I don’t hate them, (obviously not, because I’ve read like three of his books) but I have never before reveled in their magic like others.

But, now I have.

(http://www.npr.org/books/titles/157814205/an-abundance-of-katherines)

After reading “The Fault in Our Stars” and “Papertowns”, I had given up. I felt like nothing really happened (specifically in “Papertowns”); it was very anti-climactic to me. The stories went full circle without any semblance of character development or plot dynamic. Then, I gave his books another try. I picked up “An Abundance of Katherines” at my local Target book section and could not put it down  I finished the book in two days between classes, homework and deadlines.

I think the reason I really liked this book was that it was different. It had a unique structure with footnotes, graphic demonstrations and mini-stories about the different Katherines the main character, Colin, had dated in the past scattered throughout the novel. I found this to be refreshing; I liked the spunk it gave the novel.

I also like how this story developed. At the end of the novel, Colin doesn’t fall back into his usually tendencies. He understands his struggles with love, acceptance and change, and he tries desperately to become a better person. He goes through drastic character development with apparent change in himself and in his relationships with other people.

The quirky and fast-paced nature of this book held my attention, but the changing dynamic make me want to read it again.

I would suggest this book to anyone who has been disappointed by an author’s novels, any author, because if you find the right book by them, it may change your outlook on their writing style. Never judge an author by one book; there could be a better one hidden in the stack.

SPOILER ALERT: Colin ends up with someone with a different name than Katherine, but that shouldn’t really be a spoiler.

Happy reading,
Kimberly