Best of John Green: The Master of Young Adult Fiction!

John Green rose to fame when his debut novel, Looking for Alaska won the 2006 Printz Prize. Apart from being a master storyteller, Green is also a famous vlogger on YouTube. With the publication of The Fault in Our Stars, Green was established as the undisputable king of Young Adult Fiction across the globe. What makes John Green different from all other authors who write in this genre is his ability to connect with his readers. John Green weaves stories that are raw, honest, and painfully beautiful. With his flawed characters that possess no heroic qualities or go around doing heroic deeds, he makes imperfection seem perfect for all of us. 

Best books by John Green have the power to transport you into an alternate reality altogether. Green uses lyrical prose to bring out all the emotions that his characters feel. His books are enough to make you fall head over heels in love with his writing and the world that he creates with it. 

We have compiled a list of best books by John Green to help you decide your next read: 

The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars is termed as one of the best books by John Green. It walks us through the life story of Hazel Grace Lancaster, a terminal case of thyroid cancer. After joining the cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel meets Augustus Waters, an utterly charming boy who turns her world upside. Augustus fills Hazel’s black and white life with a myriad of colors. Augustus’ witty remarks, crooked smile, and endearing heart will make you fall madly in love with his character. Hazel is the girl-next-door who will warm your heart and provide you with love as well as the peace that your heart longs for. 

As the story progresses, we see Augustus and Hazel develop an unbreakable bond of friendship, love, and more. John Green has weaved the story so fantastically that it will break your heart yet you will never get enough of this book. The characters are so raw, honest, and real, that you will find them utterly relatable. It is truly a gem and highly recommended, no matter your age. 

Looking for Alaska

Set in the backdrop of Culver Creek Boarding School, John Green introduces us to our protagonist, Pudge Halter who is obsessed with the last words of dead people and is constantly seeking a great perhaps. With a group of friends with great intellect, his life is seemingly ordinary until he meets the mysterious Alaska Young. Alaska is sexy, bold, damaged, and self-destructive. Alaska enters his Pudge’s life to intertwine it completely with her own leaving Pudge wondering if Alaska is the key to his Great Perhaps. 

The book is a masterpiece that makes for the best books by John Green that establishes him as the master of words that he is. Even in his debut novel, he manages to make his reader experience happiness, sadness, excitement, frustration, all at once. Classic John Green for you! If you want to go back to your teenage days and relive them once again, this book is a must-read. 

Paper Towns

Published in 2008, Paper Towns by John Green is yet another coming-of-Age story by this marvelous writer. Green manages to capture all the conflicts, emotions, dilemmas, and social anxiety that one has to face as a teenager. In this story, we follow the life of Quentin Jacobson “Q” who is secretly in love with his neighbor and childhood friend, Margo Roth Spiegelman. One night, she shows up on his window to take him on an adventure whose main motive is to seek revenge. On the other day, however, she miraculously disappears into thin air!

As the story progresses, we see Quetin on a quest to find Margo since she has deliberately left behind clues for him to follow! Will he ever find Margo? Will Margo remain a mystery forever? Exploring the theme of love, adolescence, freedom, and adventure, this is one of the best books by John Green that will leave you asking for more! No matter your age, this book deserves your time and attention to the amazing concept that these highlights. 

An Abundance of Katherines 

An Abundance of Katherines was originally published in 2006. The protagonist of our story is Cole Singleton, a nineteen-year-old boy who has a weird connection of dating girls only named Katherine. After dating 19 of them, he finally embarks on a journey i.e. a road trip to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability. He believes that once he can prove this theorem, his future is sorted. Cole thinks that all the questions he is seeking answers will be answered by this Theorem. Also, he is a child prodigy.

Revolving around the theme of self-introspection, self-discovery, and so on, it will remind you of the days when you felt completely lost and yet managed to find a way back. Along with his best friend Hasan, Cole decides to take this road trip that will change him forever. It is not a masterpiece but the story is well-written and thus, makes its way to the best books by John Green. If Young Adult Fiction is your favorite, this deserves a read.

Turtles All The Way Down

In John Green’s latest book titled, Turtles All the Way Down, Green examines the various mental health issues including anxiety, OCD, depression, etc., that are not talked about so openly in our society. Mental Health is treated as a taboo and people find it difficult to express themselves when they are suffering from any such condition. Furthermore, they receive less or no support from their near and dear ones. John Green is aware of the current scenario as well and thus, uses his writing to raise awareness about the same. Our central character is Aza Holmes who struggles daily to make peace with her thoughts.

Aza is extremely bright but prefers to stay quiet most of the time. Her day-to-day struggles with anxiety are portrayed so magnificently that you will perceive as if you are living her story. This book is quite different from all the other John Green books which make it stand out in our list of best books by John Green. All in all, it is a thoroughly compelling read! If you are someone who has experienced any mental illness in the past or know someone who does, please read this book and try to be as supportive as possible. 

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

For this book, John Green teamed up with David Levithan to create a fantastic story about two boys sharing the same name who meet each other accidentally on a cold wintry night. While both have nothing in common and are bonded together by the eccentric best friend, Tiny Cooper, they discover difficult friendships, complicated romance, and share their teenage life. Green’s Will Grayson is nerdy, quiet, and does not socialize at all. Davis’s Will is a loner with a difficult mother and he is depressed as well. We also have Tiny Cooper and jane as part of the other characters.

The blend of both John and David’s style is beautiful and the essence that they both provide from their writing is brilliant. The prose is funny, witty, sarcastic, and intelligent. It is a quick read and you can probably finish it in a day or two. Since the story is not very deep or layered, it does not require a lot of concentration and thus, it is an easy-breezy read. If you are looking for a book you would like to read on a travel vacation, this might be the right choice! 

Let It Snow

In this book, we see three best-selling authors of Young Adult Fiction coming together to weave magic. With Lauren Myracle and Maureen Johnson, John Green creates an unforgettable story of love, friendship, and beyond. The story takes place in the town of Gracetown wherein it is snowing like it has not happened for decades. The whole town is covered with a white blanket and the inhabitants are doing their work regardless. The three different stories of these authors are titled: The Jubliee Express, A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle, and The Patron Saint of Pigs. Green’s story stands out from the rest and outshines others! 

Three friends decide to race to The Waffle House, their favorite spot in town in Green’s story. What follows is a great story with amazing characters and subtle dialogues that will keep you hooked till the end. The writing style is funny yet subtle. Green never fails to impress his readers with his writings and it can be evident even in a novella. This is the reason it was a part of the best books by John Green. Read this book for John Green and his fabulous art of playing with words and greetings something that you can’t possibly imagine! 

If you enjoyed this blog post, you will also enjoy our review of “Best Travel Books”, here.