Colin Singleton, a former child prodigy, has been dumped by his 19th girlfriend. The strange part? All of his girlfriends have been named Katherine. How will Colin deal with his latest breakup, and will he break the cycle? The book, written by John Green, answers these questions and more as it follows Colin and his friend Hasan as they take on a part time job, a small town, and the age old question: do I matter? Characterization is strong in this book and Colin is a likable character who inspires empathy if nothing else. The plot is fairly good, featuring twists and turns, and it serves the characters well, though there are occasional contrivances. With that said, the actual content of the book verges on the edge of dumb. The premise, a guy who only dates Katherines, does not help its cause. If you’re looking for a decent romance novel with high readability and a premise just a little less absurd than the Jungle Book read backwards, this book might be for you. I grudgingly recommend it (there are better books out there).
WARNING: This is not primarily a road trip story. If you want one of those go watch The Muppet Movie.