Have you ever had this perception of someone you meet only to find out later that it was completely wrong? Everyone experiences this. I had a friend in college who always acted like a jerk. He would be short with others and rude to those who knew him best. I figured he was just one of those mean individuals. But by getting to know him, I found out that he has two chronic diseases that cause him constant pain and discomfort. The more I got to know him, the more I saw a frustrated young man who was struggling to deal with a problem that had completely derailed his life.

Paper Towns by John Green is a story of perceptions – how we see each other and how we see ourselves. Q has been watching his neighbor, Margo Roth Spiegelman, since they were kids and found a suicide victim in the park. A month from graduation, she asks Q to go on a late-night escapade filled with pranks that end in them breaking into Sea World Orlando.

The next day, Margo Roth Spiegelman disappears.

Q finds clues about Margo’s whereabouts everywhere. From a poster in her bedroom window to a map tacked up on the wall in an abandoned shopping plaza, it becomes evident that Margo has been planning this trip for a while. On the day of graduation, Q convinces a group of friends to go after her and try to bring her home if it’s not too late.

As Q and his friends are trying to figure out the clues that Margo has left behind, they realize that each of them has a different perception of her. Q has put her on a pedestal for as long he can remember. Other people saw her as selfish and mean. Still others saw her as adventurous or contemplative, a bore or a liar. It seems the more Q talks to those who have interacted with Margo over the past year, the more he realizes that he never really knew her at all. The most surprising perception comes from Margo in how she perceives herself in relation to those around her.

This was a great book. It was full of the misadventures of teenagers that we love so much in Young Adult fiction. It was also a great mystery. Clues built on top of clues make this impossible puzzle that only Q can figure out. It’s also a thinker and makes you reflect on what you think of others and what you think of yourself. Do you suppose you’ve missed part of the picture? I give it 5 stars and recommend it to anyone who loves a good teenage mystery. I’m becoming a big fan of John Green.

What books have you read recently that made you think?