Episode · People I (Mostly) Admire · 2024-06-01
Books mentioned on John Green’s Reluctant Rocket Ship Ride (Update)
Author and YouTuber John Green thought his breakout bestseller wouldn’t be a commercial success, wrote 40,000 words for one sentence, and brought Steve to tears. SOURCE:John Green, best-selling author and YouTube creator.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Fault in Our Stars
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is a celebrated young adult novel that follows two teenagers facing terminal cancer who fall in love.
Discussed“He's the author of The Fault in Our Stars, which began as a novel for young adults and ended up a cultural phenomenon.”
Where to get it
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The Anthropocene Reviewed
The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green is a critically acclaimed collection of essays in which the author reviews different facets of the human-centered planet on a five-star scale.
Discussed“so I've secretly been a fan of John Green for a while but when I stumbled onto his latest book The anthropos scine reviewed I was shocked at discover that it was non-fiction actually meant for adults”
Where to get it
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Looking for Alaska
Looking for Alaska by John Green is a celebrated young adult coming-of-age novel that explores the intense emotions, friendships, and existential questions of teenagers attending a boarding school.
Discussed“can you take me back to your first book it's called Looking for Alaska”
Where to get it
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Paper Towns
Paper Towns by John Green is a young adult novel centered on themes of coming-of-age and mystery.
Discussed“I had to do it once I wrote a screenplay adaptation of my book Paper Towns and so I had to reread Paper Towns once in 2010 and it was excruciating”
Where to get it
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Turtles All the Way Down
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green is a compelling young adult novel that thoughtfully examines mental health, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder through a fictional narrative reflecting the author's personal experiences.
Discussed“You've been cranking out books every year, every other year, and then after The Fault in Our Stars, there was a five-year gap before your next book, Turtles All the Way Down.”
Where to get it
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All the King's Men
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren is a classic Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that chronicles the rise and fall of populist southern politician Willie Stark, exploring the corrupting nature of political power.
Discussed“there's that great Robert pen Warren line the end of man is knowledge”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (4) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“he's the author of The Fault in Our Stars which began as a novel for young adults and ended up a cultural phenomenon”
“so I guess you're welcome by your third book Paper Towns you were really established that popped out right onto the bestseller list”
“and then after the Fault in Our Stars there was a five-year gap before your next book Turtles all the way down”
“So, after I wrote The Fault in Our Stars, I spent over a year working on a desert island novel, a novel where six young people were stranded on a desert island.”