“An Abundance of Katherines” Portrays Hilarious Friendships Between Teenagers

“That’s who you really like. The people you can think out loud in front of.”

I really should have read this sooner, because John Green didn’t fail to deliver another excellent depiction of the carefree and incredibly complex life of teenagers.

This time the quirky and hilarious narrative follows Colin, who has just been dumped for the nineteenth time. Colin can’t seem to help falling in love with girls named Katherine, but it always ends the same way for him: with his heart broken.

I loved Colin’s nerdy, selfish, insecure, and intelligent character—the way he spouted a million useless facts when he was nervous and his hilarious and crazy conversations with his best friend, Hassan.

One thing I find consistent in John Green’s books is his amazing ability to realistically capture the behavior of teenagers. He shows it all under a bright spotlight—their harsh honesty, wild hopes and fears, and the dumb inside jokes they share. I loved the mixture of philosophy and humor. While always being completely honest, the story never failed to make me bust a gut laughing.

If you’re looking for a plot-driven novel, you won’t find it here. The strength in this story—and I think in all of John Green’s books—lies in the characters. I love how his characters are so well developed, how they feel like flawed, awesome, and real people.

Just because the plot was wonderfully scattered doesn’t mean it was boring for even a second, though. I found it so exciting to read about Colin and Hassan jumping in a car and driving off on a spontaneous road trip. I enjoyed the drama concerning Lindsey and the unraveling of her character.

But mostly I loved how Colin—awkward, antisocial, lovable Colin—gradually grew to know himself under all the anagrams and breakups in his life. I think this book justified the “coming of age” genre.

If I could only describe John Green’s writing in a couple words, I think they would be: funny and raw. If you haven’t ever picked up one of his books, I highly suggest you do. They live up to the hype.

“There’s some people in this world who you can just love and love and love no matter what.”