Book Review

Paper Towns

II. ABSTRACT

The novel Paper Towns starts with a prologue set nine years before the events of the
novel. Quentin Jacobsen and Margo Roth Spiegelman discover a dead man in a neighboring park
when they are nine years old. This is a formative encounter for Quentin and Margo, and it
establishes a hazily suggested but long-lasting link between them.

The majority of Paper Towns takes place in suburban Orlando, and the primary
protagonists are all seniors on the verge of graduation. Margo, a now-popular girl who hasn’t
seen Quentin since they were nine, pops up at his window one night in Part One. For unclear
reasons, she wants him to be her chauffeur. Margo has sought Quentin’s assistance in carrying
out an eleven-part plan to wreak revenge on her friends who have betrayed her. Margo and
Quentin invent ingenious ways to get into their pals’ homes and automobiles, inflicting havoc on
them. Their night of pranks and vengeance culminates in a raid on Sea World.

Part Two follows the protagonists through their last weeks of high school. Margo
vanishes after Margo and Quentin’s excursion. She has, however, left Quentin some clues, and
Quentin is determined to piece them together to figure out where she has gone. Margo’s copy of
Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, in which she has highlighted key portions, is the clue that
Quentin is fixated on. Quentin enlists the support of his best friends, Ben and Radar, as well as
Margo's friend Lacey, to find Margo. Margo is tracked down by a detective, but he is neither
helpful nor optimistic that she will be located.

Quentin and his pals are led to an ancient, abandoned mini mall where Margo has passed
the time thanks to her cryptic clues. Margo’s camp-out in the mini mall has maps and other signs
that indicate she has been planning her way there. It’s hard to say where Margo was intending on
going. Margo’s fixation with “paper cities”, or pseudovisions (suburban projects that were
abandoned before they could be completed) begins to pique Quentin’s interest. All in all,
Quentin makes quick journeys to all the pseudovisions he can discover in Central Florida in the
hopes of finding her, but he is unsuccessful.

Quentin, who hangs out with the band nerds, is able to bring order to the anarchy that is
the high school social hierarchy during his quest for Margo and has won some respect from the
popular crowd. Because Margo is the center of Quentin’s existence, he is more consumed with
locating her than his buddies, Radar and Ben are more concerned with school, their girlfriends,
and prom. Quentin, who has no desire to attend prom, intends to spend the night in the
abandoned mini mall in Margo's hideaway on prom night. He nods off there, only to be
awakened to be the designated driver for his buddies’ after-prom party. Quentin looks around the
celebration as the onlooker.
 Quentin keeps searching, going through the motions of school and final exams while
thinking about Margo. Quentin finds on the morning of graduation that Margo left a hint on a
Radar-run website that she is in the “paper town” of Agloe, New York, and that she would only
be there until May 29th at noon. Quentin will have only twenty-four hours to get there. Quentin,
Radar, Ben, and Lacey forego graduation and race to Agloe in the minivan Quentin’s parents
gave him as a graduation present.

Part Three details Quentin’s epic road trip from Central Florida to upstate New York,
which he meticulously records hour by hour. The road journey is chaotic, and they even have a
little accident, but it is a great opportunity for the four friends to bond. Margo is chilly and
unsympathetic to them when they arrive in Agloe. Lacey, Ben, and Radar become enraged and
go, but Quentin remains and converses with Margo, who opens up to him. She explains why she
feels compelled to distance herself from Orlando and her history, and she invites Quentin to
accompany her to New York City. They exchange kisses. Quentin, on the other hand, refuses to
stay in Margo’s real and symbolic paper town, while Margo refuses to return to the emotional
shackles that have bound her throughout her life.

I11 – V. ABSTRACT – CONCLUSION

John Green is an American novelist who focuses on young adult fiction. He’s had a lot of
success in the last few years, and he’s got the trophies and championships to show for it. His
debut novel, Looking for Alaska, and his most recent book, The Fault in Our Stars, are two of his
most successful works. In 2006, the Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult
Literature was given to Looking for Alaska. The Fault in Our Stars debuted at number one on
The New York Times Bestseller List in early 2012 and was recently adapted into a film that
debuted at number one at the box office. To cap it off, he was named one of Time’s 100 Most
Influential People in 2014. Aside from his literary accomplishments, he founded the “Project for
Awesome” charity, founded the “Vidcon” event, and runs a successful Youtube channel with his
brother, Hank Green.

Paper Towns is John’s third novel, and it revolves around a youngster named Quentin
Jacobsen, who has always been smitten by his next-door neighbor, the intriguing Margo Roth
Spiegelman. Since they were childhood buddies, Quentin, sometimes known as “Q”, has had a
crush on Margo. However, they lost contact after discovering the body of a guy who had
committed himself in a park. Years later, when Margo climbs through Q’s window and recruits
him as an accomplice in her meticulously planned vengeance against her unfaithful fiancé, he is
taken aback but decides to assist.

Quentin is eager to speak with his new buddy Margo after a night of hijinks, but she is
nowhere to be found. Q is skeptical that she departed without a plan and believes she must have
left some sort of hint. As a result, when he breaks into Margo’s room, he discovers clues. Clues
that offer Quentin optimism that he’ll be the one to solve Margo Roth Spiegelman’s mystery.
 Trying to comprehend Margo and how she operates is something Quentin struggles with
throughout the whole novel. Margo mesmerizes him when she approaches him at his bedroom
window in the middle of the night. Following Q and Margo’s evening adventure and Margo’s
disappearance, Q discovers that he knows nothing about the girl he’s lusted after since boyhood.
Margo Roth Spieglman, the most popular, gorgeous, mysterious girl in school, is all he knows,
but no one else does. Margo is a riddle in and of herself. However, when Q uncovers all of the
hidden clues she leaves behind, he learns more about her, leading him to doubt himself.

Paper Towns offers it all: humor, intrigue, romance, and themes that will appeal to a wide
range of young adults. John Green is recognized for penning tales about an adolescent guy who
fantasizes about an unreachable, enigmatic female who changes their lives in some way. But he
develops such intriguing, outgoing people, and his writing style is so well-thought-out, smart,
and even lyrical at points, that it doesn’t seem like a cheesy love tale. John Green excels at using
words; he understands just how to phrase things in order to make everything as credible as
possible.

The talks and concepts his characters communicate in the book make perfect sense to the
mentality of teenagers, which is why his writings are so successful. It is understood and enjoyed
by teenagers and young adults. But don’t let that mislead you, I’m confident that practically any
adult would appreciate any of John Green’s books. Because it is a novel about a group of high
school seniors, there isn’t much of a filter, and some of the things the characters say and believe
might not be what all parents want their kids reading about.

Overall, John Green is a gifted writer, and the acclaim for his works is well-deserved.
You shouldn’t miss out on reading at least one of them because you will not be disappointed.
VI. LITERATURE CITED

Dutton Penguin, 2008

https://scienceleadership.org/blog/book_review--paper_towns

Wikipedia, 2015
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_Towns_(film)

Michael Cart, Booklist Starred Review, 2015

https://www.johngreenbooks.com/paper-towns
Movie Review

Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon (Us, At The End of the Year)

I. ABSTRACT

Five years after their breakup in Ang Kwento Nating Dalawa, ambitious director Sam
(Nicco Manalo) and writer Isa (Emmanuelle Vera) star in Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon. Both
Sam and Isa have moved in with their new partners: Sam with his loving co-teacher Anna (Anna
Luna) and Isa with his loyal old flame/childhood pal Frank (Alex Medina). Sam and Isa, ex-
lovers who have become excellent friends, try to establish their own identities in the context of
their various personal relationships. They encounter more sorrow and confusion as they come to
grips with their feelings for one other and everyone else around them.

Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon’s narrative is unpredictable, and it takes a much more in-
depth look at Sam and Isa’s background without falling into the trap of cliché tale scenarios. Past
scars are revisited as you ride a rollercoaster of emotions that includes joy, sadness, and a great
deal of regret. It makes you think about the endless “what ifs” in life and encourages you to take
action. The execution is flawless, yet it shines brightest in its quieter moments, as seen by the
characters’ silences. Its slower portions may put you to sleep, but the reward is undeniably
emotional.

Make no mistake, there are no major narrative twists in this picture, which tries to be a
grounded love tale about ordinary people, imperfect folks with good intentions. It also helps that
filmmaker Abrogena peppers the scene with elements that are both calm and genuine and
emotional, moments that reflect modern love. Manalo and Vera have a passionate relationship
that gets you straight in the feels once again. Luna and Medina, two newbies, add lovely accents
to an already lovely image.

The bright and outstanding cinematography is there and frequently employed once again.
In fact, the crew performed a greater job than before. The soundtrack is a fantastic and well-
balanced instrument for delivering the necessary emotional beats. The songs are well-chosen,
with a brilliant and entertaining cast: December Avenue's primary theme song, “Huling Sandali”
was composed expressly for the film. The lyrics reflect Sam and Isa’s emotional journey,
bringing another dimension of emotion to their final reunion.

To say the least, Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon blew me away, and I nearly adore it.
This film has gone above and beyond what viewers anticipated to see and experience, from its
plot to its cinematography. In El Hogar, there’s a much-awaited scene between Sam and Isa. In
terms of plot, the four-year break between the first film and this sequel was really beneficial.
You’ll see how these characters have evolved throughout time. Whatever we learned four years
ago will be nicely transferred onscreen. This film remains faithful to its portrayal of humans
winning and losing love, as well as how couples continue to strive to figure out life and
themselves. It represents our everyday lives, our behaviors, and how we influence others around
us. Fans will appreciate this as a suitable conclusion to a previously unresolved love story.

I11 – V. ABSTRACT – CONCLUSION

Ang Kwento Nating Dalawa by Nestor Abrogena features the simplest of plots. The film,
which is primarily a series of dialogues between Sam (Nicco Manalo) and his pupil Isa
(Emmanuelle Vera) set at railway stations and school hallways, depends on restraint and delicacy
to obscure the moral difficulties that plague the romance depicted. As soon as the backdrop of
the film’s protagonists’ personal connection is exposed, the evident attractions of the picture
become tougher to take, bringing to the fore a discussion on the difficulties that lurk underneath
the simple joys of loving and being loved.

On the other hand, Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon extends the plot without necessarily
complicating it. It begins with one of the oldest tricks in the book, with Sam sending his
girlfriend nice messages at school before moving to Isa getting her boyfriend’s text messages at
work. Abrogena teases a happy conclusion for Ang Kwento Nating Dalawa’s secret lovers, then
reveals that Sam and Isa have split up and are probably happy in their own relationships. Isa is
getting set to depart for San Francisco with her lover, while Sam is head over heels in love with
his co-teacher.

Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon, like its predecessors, avoids storyline and instead
focuses on ordinary interactions, rituals, and the banal. It makes a commitment to the emotion.
It's well-crafted, with scenes that seamlessly transition from one character to the next. It's also
beautifully lit and painstakingly framed, with each scene reflecting the complicated emotions
that have been boiling for years.

The film uses gloss and luxury to create tension, enabling shards of thunderous
uneasiness to infiltrate personal and private areas that are intended to convey stability.
Abrogena’s sequel is more concerned in elaborating on the implications of those defects, in
completing the portrayal of persons dedicated to their frailties in the middle of loving, than in
presenting what happens after a plainly defective romance that flourishes in secrets and corners.
VI. LITERATURE CITED

Oggs Cruz, 2019

https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/movies/tayo-sa-huling-buwan-ng-taon-movie-review

IMDB PH, 2019

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6941512/

Word Press, 2019

https://guywithinternetaccess.wordpress.com/2019/05/28/movie-review-tayo-sa-huling-buwan-
ng-taon-the-burdens-of-an-illicit-affair/