Paper Towns and Clues

       Young adults are fascinated by mysteries that they can help solve. They are constantly bombarded by what they cannot control or impact. Bucher and Hinton explain, “a good mystery encourages reasoning and problem solving, as well as questioning and examining evidence, fact, and motives” (Bucher and Hinton 165). The authors continue by explaining that mystery books include texts that discuss disappearing people. Paper Towns, by John Green, is an excellent example of this genre. Paper Towns is a compelling story about Quentin, also called Q, and Margo. After several experiences, including a series of pranks conducted by Q and Margo, Margo disappears. Q is concerned that Margo hasn’t just run away; he thinks she may have committed suicide. Through a series of clues Margo left for him, Q finally finds Margo in New York, hundreds of miles away from their hometown in Florida. Paper Towns is a sitting-on-the-edge-of-your-seat book that kept me reading late into the night. While Green’s text would not be classified as “scholarly,” the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) emphasizes critical thinking and problem solving skills, each of which are used while reading Paper Towns.

            The characters in Paper Towns are forced to problem solve and think critically and, thus, require readers to do so as well. Early in the text, Margo convinces Q to commit a series of late-night pranks. After the pair nearly complete Margo’s plan, they arrive at an office building. Margo, who has developed a friendship with the security guard, is able to gain access to the top floor of the building. As Q and Margo view Orlando from that height, Q remarks that the city is beautiful. Margo scoffs and states, “It’s a paper town” (Green 37). Readers who are not acquainted with the term must wonder what she is talking about. Later, “paper towns” becomes a clue that Q uses to discover where Margo disappeared. As Q learns what “paper towns” are, so do the readers. This phrase begins to take on deeper meaning and students must think critically about what “paper towns” and other dual-meanings in the text point to.

            Q and readers must continue to employ their critical thinking skills when Margo disappears. Margo’s family believes she has simply run away and the police are convinced they are right. Q, however, is not convinced. Q begins to lead his own investigation. Margo leaves clues for Q in her copy of Leaves of Grass. In fact, from the poem itself, Q discovers that “she actually left me something else inside my door jam” (112). Q had to dismantle his door to find the clue she left him. Margo leaves several clues that readers must mull over with Q. Ultimately, Margo leaves a clue on an online database Q’s friend Radar created for their school. The program, called Omnictionary, worked like a wiki page for students to post to. On one entry for Agloe, New York (a fictitious town or paper town) indicates “fyi, whoever Edits this—the Population of agloe Will actually be One until may 29^th at Noon”  (165). Q immediately knows this clue is from Margo because he remembers that she doesn’t believe in the standard capitalization rules. There was not much to go find Margo in Agloe before she left, so Q and several friends left immediately to drive there. The text transitions from “where is Margo” to “will he find her in time”. The suspense keeps readers dissecting the clues until the very end.

            Paper Towns by John Green in an excellent example of young adult mystery fiction while fulfilling two requirements of the CCSS. The text requires readers to think critically and problem solve along with Q to discover what happened to Margo. By discovering the clues and figuring them out along with Q, readers are lead to continue reading. The text is an engaging book that requires readers to find hidden meanings in the very title of the book itself. The layers of meaning that Margo leaves for Q, and readers, are intriguing for even reluctant readers. This text will not only engage readers at all reading levels, but will also fulfill the critical thinking and problem solving standards set out by the CCSS. John Green writes an engaging story about high school students, disappearances, and mystery that captivates young audiences regardless of gender.  

Works Cited

Bucher, Katherine and Kaavonia Hinton. Young Adult Literature: Exploration,

Evaluation, and Appreciation. 3^rd ed. Boston: Pearson, 2014. Print.

Green, John. Paper Towns. New York: Dutton Books, 2008. Ebook.