English Podcast

In the book "Looking for Alaska," Miles, a new student at a boarding school, becomes close friends with the Colonel and Alaska. Alaska's sudden death leaves Miles and the Colonel determined to uncover the truth behind the accident. The book explores themes of death, grief, friendship, and personal growth. While some believe Alaska's death was a suicide, others think it was a terrible accident. The story also touches on how people cope with loss and the impact of friendships on our lives. Hello, and welcome back to this episode of Book Junkies. My name is Danielle Buecher, and with me, I have two of my friends, Avery Massman, and I'm Cameron Strope. And today, we will be talking about the book, Looking for Alaska. So, if you have not read it, please listen at your own risk, as this beginning, Cameron will do our introduction and summary of the book. Alright, so in the very beginning of the book, we're introduced to the main character, whose name is Miles. He is a new student at a boarding school, and he's kind of awkward and quiet, and he's never really had close friends. Anyways, he moves into his new school, and he meets his new roommate, who everyone calls the Colonel. They hit it off instantly, and the Colonel introduces Miles to this girl, who he is best friends with, and her name is Alaska. Miles is instantly just infatuated with this girl. She's beautiful, fun, lively, mysterious, and she loves pranks. Miles and Alaska become closer and closer friends throughout the book, and his crush on her grows every day. One night, he, Alaska, and the Colonel are getting drunk in their dorm room, and Alaska gets a phone call, and she runs to grab it. After just a few minutes, she runs back into the room hysterically, screaming that she forgot and that she messed it all up. The boys were really confused as to what was happening, but she was in too much of a rush to tell them anything. So anyways, it was against the rules to leave campus without getting permission from the principal first, but Alaska grabbed her car keys and she left. She was really drunk, but Miles and the Colonel let her go because this seemed very important. The next morning, Miles and the Colonel are told that Alaska had been in a terrible car accident. Most people think the crash was a suicide, but Miles and the Colonel are determined to figure out what actually happened, whether it was a suicide or an accident, and where she was going and why she freaked out before she left. The last half of the book is really just about Miles and the Colonel and how they take the news of the accident. It's a really realistic book that touches on how we as humans deal with grief and the normal human thoughts and emotions that follow traumatic moments in our lives. Okay, thank you, Karen, for the summary of the book. What do we all think about this book that we just read? I thought it was very good. I enjoyed how it kind of led up to the whole climax because in the book, for the title, it talks about like 128 days before and then it had a big page that said after and then it said like a week after, so it kind of told us when the climax of the story was. Yeah, so if you were paying attention, then you would like kind of know that you were getting closer and closer to the climax and that was, I don't know, it really kept me engaged into the book, too. And another thing I loved about this book is it just, it was, there was never any like dull moments. There was never any like boring like parts of the book. Every day, like on every page, something new happened and it was just really interesting to keep watching. I never got bored and I always just want to keep reading it. I agree. I feel like because it was kind of written as a teenage novel and we're all that age, it was really good because I kind of put myself in as one of the characters so I kind of understood their feelings and emotions because of how well the author wrote the book. Yeah, and I definitely like how Miles, the main character, like his character development. Because of Alaska, you know? Because Alaska was, because in the beginning, Miles was super quiet and kind of timid and Alaska was just fun-loving and she's very energetic and outgoing. She kind of, her and the colonel kind of took Miles under their wing and then they all kind of became friends and Miles definitely changed a lot from the beginning of the book. Dynamic character, as one might say. Now, on the other hand, though, I kind of thought the book started off really slow. I, I mean, I kind of wanted to stop reading it at that point just because it started like just him getting to visit the dorm, just him with the colonel, and then Alaska came in and she was kind of this wild child, as I would say. And then it kind of started getting a little interesting with like talking about their pranks, talking about Dr. Hyde, one of the main teachers in the book. So I kind of wanted to keep reading it, but it still started off a little too slow for me. So I kind of didn't like that part, but the ending was good. I know I was like really confused halfway through whenever Alaska died because she was like one of the main characters and the book is literally named after her. It's called Looking for Alaska. So I was like, okay, so what's the next hundred and some pages going to be about if Alaska's already dead? And I don't know, I was kind of confused, but the book really wrapped up nicely. Right. So with that being said, what do you guys think of Alaska's death? Do you guys believe it was a suicide or do you think it was just a terrible accident? I think it was just a terrible accident because in the book, they were kind of getting to the point where like they thought she was going to see her mom who died, I think like eight years earlier or something like that. And she forgot about it. So I think she was just on her way to the cemetery where she was buried, just trying to get there as fast as possible. And she was drunk, like she was over the legal limit. So I think she just crashed into the car, didn't see it, and it was just a terrible accident and she died from it. I don't know. I kind of think that it might have been a suicide just because, I mean, she wasn't showing any like signs that would lead to us thinking that she was suicidal at all. But Alaska, just she had a lot of emotions and she would always like, she never was really one for thinking things through. So I think that she was like super upset with herself for not remembering the anniversary of her mom's death. And so I think whenever she was just driving there and she was very upset, she was very drunk and she might have just thought like, well, you know, I'm not going to see my mom. So I'm just going to, I don't know. I think that she knew that she was probably going to crash, but she just didn't care anyways. And she just let it happen. Right. So it was kind of like a last minute. Yeah. With that idea. Yeah. It wasn't unplanned. Nothing planned. Right. Now with that, we're going to talk about the main theme of it being death, one of them. What else do you guys think were some of the main themes of this book besides just death? I think besides death, I think like the way that people deal with death is definitely like a main topic of this book, because again, like I said, she died halfway through the book. So then there was still the entire like second half of the book that was all pretty much about how Miles and the Colonel and all their friends kind of dealt with her death and how emotionally challenging it was for all of them and how they kind of blamed themselves for her death and all of that. So I feel like it was definitely about death, but I feel like how we deal with the death was definitely like a big part of it. Yeah. Like how most of them tried to get closure in different ways, like investigating the death, pulling pranks, like to commemorate her death. In her honor. Yeah. And like the playground part of it too, like playing the playground in her honor. I think everybody had a different way of dealing with their death, which was portrayed in the book. Yeah. I agree. I feel like definitely death and closure were two of the main things, but I feel like friends was kind of the third thing that ties all this together because the only reason they were looking for closure and really sad about Alaska's death was because of how close they've gotten as a group of friends. Whereas like before, like at the beginning of the book, Miles came from a school where he didn't really have many friends. So for him to now get friends and like really feel that closeness with them, it was kind of hard to see one of them go and never talk to them again because he had just gotten those friends. Yeah. And like the way that the people you meet and how they can greatly impact your life, how Miles was so quiet and timid and shy in the beginning of the book. And then towards the end, he was kind of a mastermind in pulling a huge prank on the school. That just, yes, friends, but also just in general, just the people that you meet and how they can always have a huge role in your life. Right. Definitely helps with that whole dynamic character. So he was no longer just a static, boring character as he was in the beginning. And now we're just kind of rounded. Now for like a fun kind of question. In your guys' opinion, what do you think Alaska's last thoughts or like last words were going, like what she had going through her mind when she died? I think that's a very good question because throughout the book, Miles was known for liking people's last words. He really didn't care about how a person died, but rather like he wanted to know their last words. So instead of like a biography about the person, he was just like, oh, one of the president's last words was so and so. And that was just really fascinating to him. So I think it kind of bothered him that he didn't know Alaska's last words to kind of like try and remember her because as like the weeks went on, he said it himself that he just kind of forgot about Alaska and like just the memories kind of faded. So I don't know, maybe like his last words would have been or like Alaska's last words would have been I'm sorry or just about how much of a good friend Miles was to her. Yeah, I think that in Alaska's last moments of being alive, I think there is definitely a lot of tears shed, lots of cuss words thrown out everywhere. So I think her last words definitely had quite a bit of cuss words in there. Definitely. I think she's just angry like with herself, not with anyone else, not with the world, just with herself because of how she forgot about her mom. And her mom used to be like one of the most important people to her. And now she's off forgetting about her. And instead, she's getting drunk with her friends. And I feel like she just like is really upset with herself. So, yeah, I'm kind of thinking that she answered her own question of like, how do we escape the labyrinth? Because I know that was her main question. It was also like the ending main question of one of the classes that all the kids took together was like, how do we escape the labyrinth that we like consider the earth or something like that? So I think she kind of answered it herself when she died, though, like nobody else knew the answer because she did not live to tell them. I think that was kind of like her last thought going through her mind, like, oh, my gosh, I have to escape the labyrinth. I'm going to finally know the answer to this question that I have been looking for, like searching for like my entire life. So, yeah, I think so, too. I feel like it's tough. So like my answer to the labyrinth is definitely not death, which especially as Christians, we all have to kind of like consider that it's not the answer. Like God put us here on the earth for a reason. He wants us, you know, to make friends, have fun, ultimately like praise him and go back to him. No matter how hard life gets, I feel like death isn't the answer. And yeah, there is going to be times of struggle, but you got to find the way out of the labyrinth without like ending it all. Yeah. And the labyrinth is just like the cycle of life and how like sometimes they're happy, but a lot of times there's like suffering and there's pain and there's struggles because it's just it's the world and there's just a lot of things going on all the time, all the time. So I feel like it's a good book, especially for teenagers who do struggle, because a lot of the times when people are in a struggle, they don't necessarily consider the aftereffects. Like Alaska wasn't thinking about her friends at the time. She was just thinking about how she messed up and how like she hurt her mom and just forgot her again. But once she died, all of her friends were very distraught and sad. So it's a good reminder to all of us that your lives affect other people and you got to kind of think about that before you make impulse decisions. Yeah, you can't just like get rid of all of your problems with death because that just puts more issues into the hands of the people that you actually care about. I think it's definitely a really good book for high schoolers or like kids from like 14, 18, something like that, so they can understand like kind of what's going through their mind because, you know, bad things happen in high school. High school is not always fun for certain people. So different people are going through different situations that most people probably don't know about. So I think it's a good book talking about like how friendships can make certain things go better. Like say you're dealing with the grief of the loss of a grandparent or something. It's better to talk it out with friends that you know, which is kind of portrayed in the book. Like Miles talked to Alaska about certain things at home when they were on their Thanksgiving break that they made up, kind of. I think it's a really good book for high schoolers and kids who are starting out mentally, trying to get out into the world when they're 18 and stuff like that. Yeah. I think this book also definitely like portrays how you never really know what's going on in someone else's life because it's just not your life. Like, for example, Alaska was just very talkative. She's very out there, but she kind of kept her personal life close to herself and she didn't really tell people about it. So like Miles and her were friends for a few months before he even found out that her mom had passed away years ago. And he didn't, and he still didn't even know why or any of that stuff. So I think it's just kind of, we never really know what's going on in other people's lives. So that also kind of ties with the mental health and suicide and all of that. That's discussed in the book. Let's talk about Miles' point of view from this book. I mean, he was kind of not like the main character in the beginning. Like, I think the colonel kind of overtook his spot. But then as the book progressed, it was more like him and Alaska were the main characters and like their point of view from the story, how things were in their high school that they were in. But then at the end of the book, I think it went back to more of the colonel's point of view because it was talking more about like his feelings with Alaska's death. It talked more about how he had a bigger part in her life. And then Miles was kind of just like new. So I think, honestly, that the colonel had more point of view from this book. I think he was more of the main character. But I kind of want to know what you guys think. I did find that very interesting as well. Just because, I mean, the book is called Looking for Alaska. So you would think Alaska is definitely the main character, if not one of them. And so the fact that it wasn't really written in her point of view was kind of interesting to me. And I kind of wondered what it would be like if it was in her point of view. We would definitely like see more of her inner thoughts and kind of from that point of view. But at the same time, I think it is good that it was from Miles' point of view. Because, I mean, if it was from Alaska's, we wouldn't know what truly happened because she wouldn't be here to write the rest of the story. I think it would be a very different, very interesting book if it was from Alaska's point of view because she's such a complex character. She has so many thoughts going on and she's just very different than most other people. So she's kind of hard to read. She's kind of a tough cookie. So I think it would be really interesting if it was written from her point of view, especially in her final days, just to see what was kind of going on in her brain. But I definitely liked it from Miles' point of view because I feel like he was probably one of the most relatable characters on there because he was just like, he was a normal guy. He came from a normal place and he's just at this new school. He's kind of timid and shy, but he meets his friends. And I feel like that's just kind of something that any of us could kind of see ourselves going through and ourselves being in that situation. So I feel like it's probably a good thing that's written in his point of view. I agree. So adding on to that question, like this novel is just filled with so many wonderful characters. So who is your guys' favorite character and why? I honestly, I like Alaska. I mean, I don't really like compare with her. Like I'm not as outgoing as she is. But I think it was kind of fun, like to see all the kind of stupid things that she did, like the fun pranks. I kind of thought that was a really fun idea to add to the story and stuff like that. And I also really liked how she expressed herself no matter what. Like in Dr. Hyde's class, which is like the religion class, she never like stood down from an argument. She always said what she kind of wanted to say. She didn't like people putting on like their views onto her. So I think she was a really good character and she's definitely my favorite one of all of them. Honestly, I have to agree. I think Alaska, she's just so interesting and you don't really read about characters like her very often and you don't really meet very many people like her in real life. So I think it was really interesting to be able to read about her and her experiences and just the things she does and says. So just very interesting to read about. Also, Dr. Hyde, I love that guy. He's just like the old teacher. I don't know. I think he's funny. I don't know why. I just think he's funny. I definitely agree with you too. I mean, Alaska definitely made the story, made it interesting. You know, we were always on our toes with her, like trying to figure out what she was all about. But I am with you, Cameron, on Dr. Hyde. He was definitely a wise guy and kind of knew the answer to everything or at least, you know, got the kids thinking about what life should be like. One of his favorite things was always just to tell his kids to be present, which I think speaks a lot from the situation that happened. So what do you guys think about his little quote? Yeah, I think Dr. Hyde, he's just very... He's kind of like a big teddy bear. But on the outside, he's like a big grizzly bear because none of his students really liked him that much. But I think once you got to know him or people got to know him in the story, I think they would describe him as like a little big teddy bear. And so when I think he told them to be present and all that stuff, he was actually trying to care for them and telling them, like, because he's older and experienced, he's like, you need to be present in every single moment. Like, don't wish time away. Don't wish for it to be like, let's say you're on Monday. Don't wish for Friday to come because you're going to miss everything in between. You're going to miss all the moments with your friends, with your family. So, like, just be present and be present in, like, everything you do in life. And Dr. Hyde, he was so big on being present. And I kind of thought that was kind of because he was so old and he had his health conditions and he could barely walk because he only had one lung. So he would, like, walk 10 steps and then he'd be, like, dying out of breath. So I mean, I feel like I thought that he was going to die before Alaska did. I feel like that was kind of really interesting that he outlived Alaska. So I think his be present thing is just kind of, it definitely went along with a bunch of the themes of the book. I definitely agree. And as far as, like, the being present, do you think that it was necessary for Alaska to die or should she have been present the entire time? I definitely think it was necessary for her to die because after she died, Miles and the colonel, they were kind of, they kind of helped lift each other up through that process. And without her dying, they probably wouldn't have become as close as they were. And, like, obviously, yeah, it's sad that Alaska had to die for that to happen, but I do think it was quite necessary for them to learn to, yeah, be present, have good friendships, commemorate friends and stuff like that. So I definitely think, yeah, that it was important for them. I think the whole reason why Alaska would have been a character in the book was because she was going to die and then the whole second half of the book would be about grief and how we deal with that and all of those things. Like, if she hadn't died, the book kind of would have been pointless in my opinion. It would have just been a story with no real, nothing to take away from it. There would be no themes, there would be nothing. So I think it was definitely important. I found it kind of interesting how Miles wrote that teenagers are invincible. And then, like, because all of us teenagers think that. We think, oh, nothing bad is going to happen to us or, you know, we're smart. Like, we're not going to do anything bad or whatnot. But what do you guys think on Miles' quote about how teenagers are invincible? Do you guys think that's true? I definitely think that Alaska thought she was invincible in, like, her last day, like, when she was fully drunk that she couldn't, like, really speak honestly. And I think she thought she was invincible. I think she thought she could get to, like, her mother's grave or wherever she was going safely, but obviously she didn't because, you know, we're not invisible, we're not immortal. Like, they portray in the comics and stuff. But, yeah, I think teenagers do think that they're invisible and they do stupid things and stupid things go wrong. Obviously mistakes are made, so, yeah. I think it's part of Alaska's whole, like, personality, just the fact that she's kind of... she kind of acts invincible. She acts like there's no tomorrow and she just does whatever she wants to do and she just acts like there's no tomorrow because that's just who she is. Which, you know, can be a good thing, like, live life to the fullest. But, again, we're going to make stupid decisions, so... Probably shouldn't drive drunk down the highway. No. In conclusion, like, to sum this all up, what do you guys, like, do you guys recommend the book? Do you not recommend the book? Like, do you think it's good for high schoolers, not high schoolers? What do you guys think about it? I would definitely recommend this book to other people because it's, like, it's only 200 pages or so... 200, 300 pages or so, and so it's a quick, easy read, but I feel like you get a lot from it. I feel like there's a lot of major themes that are going on and I think it's definitely a good read especially for young people. I definitely agree with you, Cameron. I think it is a good book, especially for teenagers because it kind of puts in perspective that, you know, teenagers aren't invincible, you know. You need to make friends because that's kind of what's going to help you get through life and you need to talk to them and kind of be open with them so they know what's going on and can help you. And it just kind of puts it all in perspective as to us teenagers and kind of, you know... Yeah. I also like how it portrays, like, kind of, like, the dark stuff, like the death and, like, the fun stuff, too. Like, when teenagers do, like, the pranks, I obviously think that was a really good addition to it. So, yeah, I definitely recommend it, especially in high school. Those are kids going into high school and seeing, like, a different high school experience. Not to get drunk, don't do that, but I think it's a really good book and I highly recommend it. Yeah. Well, thanks for listening to this episode of... The Stronkees. The Stronkees, yeah. Hope to see you next week. Thank you.