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So, you want to see a sample?

I don't blame you, I'd like to see the goods before I bought the book, too.

So, here's an example of what you'll get from the first chapter ("Boy Meets Book") of Reading Rants: a guide to books that rock by Jennifer Hubert:

Green, John. 2005. Looking for Alaska. New York: Penguin Group. 221 p.

THE STORY: High school junior Miles Halter is a studious loner who enjoys reading biographies of famous literati and memorizing their last words. Having decided he’ll never be able to understand the “Great Perhaps” mentioned by dying poet Francois Rabelais unless he leaves the stagnant atmosphere of his small Florida town, Miles enrolls in dad’s Alabama alma mater, Culver Creek boarding school.

Miles is assigned to room with Chip “Colonel” Martin, who can recite the countries of the world in alphabetical order, and is best friends with the alluring Alaska Young. Alaska is a beautiful, brilliant, reckless scholarship student who is addicted to reading and staging elaborate practical jokes. At their first meeting, she flirtatiously promises Miles that if he helps her figure out the meaning behind Simon Bolivar’s last words, “How will I ever get out of this labyrinth?” she will help him get laid. Miles is immediately smitten, despite the fact that she has an older boyfriend.

Alaska, the Colonel, and Takumi, an easy going Japanese rapper, quickly initiate Miles into their close-knit clique. Soon they are studying pre-calc over French fries, having a quick cigarette in the smoking hole, or planning pranks under the nose of the dean of students, the formidable Mr. Starnes, a.k.a. “The Eagle.” The homework is hard and plentiful, but Miles is up to the challenge and is especially pleased with the intelligent content of his religion teacher, Dr. Hyde’s, lectures. He also begins to fall more in love with Alaska, and their relationship deepens when the two spend the Thanksgiving holiday alone on campus together, swilling cheap wine and gleefully breaking into the deserted rooms of other students.

Alaska reveals a secret that draws Miles even closer one weekend when the group is camping surreptitiously in the woods, after lying to the Eagle about their weekend destinations in order to plan a complicated prank. In a drinking game of “Best Day/Worst Day” Alaska tells the story of witnessing her mother’s collapse and death from an aneurysm when she was eight years old. Miles decides then and there that Bolivar’s labyrinth is human suffering. Only a few nights later, Alaska gets drunk and makes out with Miles, who thinks he has died and gone to heaven. But later that night, she receives a phone call, becomes very upset, and insists that Miles and the Colonel distract the Eagle so she can drive off campus. The boys set off firecrackers to mask the sound of Alaska’s car, then go back to sleep. They are awakened the next morning by the Eagle, who informs them Alaska died in a car accident.

In their extreme grief, Miles and the Colonel become obsessed with finding out why Alaska became so upset that night. They feel responsible for allowing her to drive while drunk. They discover that the phone call came from her boyfriend, who was reminding her of their eight-month anniversary, and also has no idea what made her so upset. It is Takumi who puts the pieces of the puzzle together when he reminds the others that the date Alaska died was also the anniversary of her mother’s death. They hypothesize that Alaska grew distraught over forgetting the date and rushed off to her mother’s grave.

Meanwhile, they have planned the prank to end all pranks in her honor when they hire a male stripper in place of an academic speaker for a school assembly. For a final exam, Dr. Hyde assigns the entire class to contemplate Alaska’s last essay, which paraphrased Bolivar’s quote: How will you ever get out of this labyrinth of suffering? The book ends with Miles’ answer, where he emphasizes his belief that Alaska still exists somewhere, outside the labyrinth.

THE MESSAGE: Love hurts. Change is inevitable. Open yourself to new people and experiences. Nobody ever gained anything worth having without taking a risk. Life is a package deal—you have to take the good with the bad, and learn what you can from both.

WHO'S IT FOR? 9th-12th grade. There is some strong language, lots of underage drinking and smoking, and a blow-by-blow (sorry, couldn’t resist) description of Miles’ first oral sex experience. Miles’ and Alaska’s contemplations of the labyrinth and the possibility of an afterlife will also be far better understood and appreciated by high school rather than middle school students.

WHY IT ROCKS:
• Voice: This autobiographical, first person story is spare and introspective. Green captures the giddiness and sincerity of Miles’ teenage milestones (first love, first smoke, first experience with death) with unadorned prose and realistic dialogue that honors and validates the difficulty of the adolescent journey.
• Plot: The unusual structure of Looking for Alaska heightens the tension of the inevitable climax, and emphasizes the role time plays in the healing process. The opening of each chapter starts with a countdown of days until Alaska’s death, then counts up again as Miles begins the long, slow journey back to himself.
• Pacing: The measured stillness of this smart, articulate book shouldn’t be confused with simplicity. It moves at a deliberate pace that allows the reader to experience Miles’ epiphanies as he does, with a slow, thoughtful recognition.
• Characterization: Miles is an every-teen, a sponge who goes out determined to soak up every experience he can out his new boarding school life. Though not every reader may be able to relate to Alaska’s vulnerable and extreme personality, most will be able to walk in Miles’ shoes.

HOOK IT UP WITH: Lovesick by Jake Coburn and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger.

READ MORE ABOUT IT:
Horn Book: 03/01/05
Kirkus Review, starred: 03/01/05
School Library Journal: 02/01/05
Publisher’s Weekly: 02/07/05
V.O.Y.A. (Voice of Youth Advocates): 04/01/05