Whether you’re looking for something heartbreaking, something funny, or something to liven your spirit, there’s a bit of everything for everyone in John Green’s novels. While his catalog is still manageable for anyone who wants to read anything and everything he’s done, this list will focus on just a few to get you started. Meanwhile, hardcore John Green fans my also point you toward his video blogging project with brother Hank Green called VlogBrothers, in production since 2007; his work with Crash Course; his involvement in VidCon; his project known as the Foundation to Decrease World Suck; and many, many other things to explore if you decide Green passes your vibe check and you want more.
Reading Pathway: John Green
After John Green
Now you know where to get started with beloved young adult author John Green, check out some other young adult authors like Green’s friend, Maureen Johnson, Jason Reynolds, and Jenny Han. Looking for Alaska has been the subject of challenges and bans for some time and as recently as 2019. If that (and its promise to break your heart) doesn’t tempt you enough to pick it up, the book has been compared to The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and has some lowkey dark academia vibes—a great choice for fans of Dead Poets Society. You can also catch the adaptation on Hulu. If you love this one, the book is also thematically similar to another of Green’s novels, Paper Towns. An Abundance of Katherines takes a sharp left turn from the heaviness of most of the rest of Green’s work to be funny and playful while still maintaining his signature philosophical poignance. Readers who like extras will enjoy the illustrations and footnotes. Some readers have pointed out Abundance hasn’t aged particularly well and does have some problematic elements including misuse of the Arabic word “kafir” and self-deprecating fatphobic language. Will Grayson, Will Grayson is Green’s second collaborative novel (the first being Let It Snow with Lauren Myracle and Maureen Johnson, adapted by Netflix in 2019). Will Grayson has an LGBT storyline and the benefit of Levithan’s extensive experience in YA literature including several solo and collaborative books and a career in editing. More lighthearted than Green’s usual fare, Will Grayson is a nice pick for readers who want to wait on the heavier material. I waffled on whether my last pick ought to be Turtles All the Way Down or The Fault in Our Stars, the latter of which is easily the better known. Ultimately, I went with Turtles because it’s own voices and, while it was well-received, I’m not convinced it got the love it deserved as far as John Green novels go. This is John’s second go with a teen girl narrator (something he prepared readers for prior to the publication of The Fault in Our Stars, which has the same). Despite the less enthusiastic response, I maintain this one is worth a read. It’s also worth noting that, more than any of his other books, Turtles feels like a book written for adults.
