100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Overnight NZ-wide delivery on in-stock orders 🚀

Looking for Alaska

Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Looking for Alaska follows Miles Halter, a boy obsessed with famous last words, who leaves his uneventful home life for boarding school in search of the 'Great Perhaps.' There, he meets the enigmatic Alaska Young, whose magnetic presence draws him into a new world of friendship, pranks, first love, and loss. This poignant novel explores the profound impact one life can have on another.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$4400

International Supplier

This title is in-stock with overseas suppliers. While it is not available locally, we fly books in weekly from the US and UK to our Auckland warehouse for immediate dispatch.

AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 2-3 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for young adults and fans of contemporary coming-of-age stories seeking an emotionally rich and thought-provoking read.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Miles "Pudge" Halter befriends some fellow boarding-school students and falls in love with Alaska Young, the razor-sharp, self-destructive nucleus of the group. When tragedy strikes, Pudge discovers the value of unconditional love. Speak

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The award-winning, genre-defining debut from John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and The Fault in Our Stars

Winner of the Michael L. Printz Award • A Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist • A New York Times Bestseller • A USA Today Bestseller • NPR’s Top Ten Best-Ever Teen Novels • TIME magazine’s 100 Best Young Adult Novels of All Time • A PBS Great American Read Selection • Millions of copies sold!

First drink. First prank. First friend. First love.

Last words.

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words—and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet François Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young, who will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. A modern classic, this stunning debut marked #1 bestselling author John Green’s arrival as a groundbreaking new voice in contemporary fiction.

Newly updated edition includes a brand-new Readers' Guide featuring a Q&A with author John Green

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780142402511

Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 28 December 2006

Country: United States

Imprint: Penguin USA

Audience: Teenage

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 14.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 227g

Pages: 272

About the Author

John Green is the award-winning, #1 bestselling author of books including Looking for AlaskaThe Fault in Our Stars, and Turtles All the Way Down. His books have received many accolades, including a Printz Medal, a Printz Honor, and an Edgar Award. John has twice been a finalist for the LA Times Book Prize and was selected by TIME magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. He is also the writer and host of the critically acclaimed podcast The Anthropocene Reviewed. With his brother, Hank, John has co-created many online video projects, including Vlogbrothers and the educational channel Crash Course. He lives with his family in Indianapolis, Indiana. You can visit John online at johngreenbooks.com.

Also by John Green

View all
  • Everything Is Tuberculosis
    John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and a passionate advocate for global healthcare reform, tells a deeply human story illuminating the fight against the world's deadliest disease. Tuberculosis has been entwined with humanity for millennia. Once romanticized as a malady of poets, today tuberculosis is seen as a disease of poverty that walks the trails of...
    Paperback
    $3499
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Fault in Our Stars
    Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten. Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is...
    Paperback
    $2000
    Elsewhere:
    $2199
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Turtles All the Way Down
    The best-selling book from acclaimed, award-winning author John Green, Turtles All the Way Down, is now available in paperback. This gripping and profoundly moving novel delves deeply into the complexities of friendship, mental illness, and first love, making it an unforgettable literary journey. Aza Holmes, a sixteen-year-old girl, never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett. However,...
    Paperback
    $2400
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Anthropocene Reviewed
    Mind-expanding essays on modern life and the human experience in the first non-fiction work by #1 internationally bestselling author John Green - one of the world's most beloved novelists. A deeply moving and mind-expanding collection of personal essays in the first ever work of non-fiction from #1 internationally bestselling author John Green. The Anthropocene Reviewed is the current geological age,...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Paper Towns
    Quentin Jacobsen - Q to his friends - is eighteen and has always loved the edgy Margo Roth Spiegelman. As children, they'd discovered a dead body together. Now at high school, Q is nerdy while Margo is uber-cool. One night, Q is basking in the predictable boringness of his life when Margo, dressed as a ninja, persuades him to participate...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Looking For Alaska
    The unmissable first novel from bestselling and award-winning author of The Fault in Our Stars and Turtles All the Way Down. “In the dark beside me, she smelled of sweat and sunshine and vanilla and on that thin-mooned night I could see little more than her silhouette, but even in the dark, I could see her eyes – fierce emeralds....
    Hardback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $2999
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • An Abundance of Katherines
    From the New York Times bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska, John Green delivers a fresh and witty tale with An Abundance of Katherines. When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton, a former child prodigy, has a peculiar type: girls named Katherine. Remarkably, Colin has dated and been dumped by nineteen different Katherines. On...
    Paperback
    $2300
    Backorder
    Ships early August
  • Will Grayson, Will Grayson
    Will Grayson, Will Grayson: What if your oldest, wildest, only best friend started writing a musical about your life... and it made you look like a joke? What if the girl you didn't think you were interested in started being interested in you? And who is this other guy called Will Grayson? The other Will Grayson: What if you are...
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Everything Is Tuberculosis
    John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and a passionate advocate for global healthcare reform, tells a deeply human story illuminating the fight against the world's deadliest disease. Tuberculosis has been entwined with humanity for millennia. Once romanticised as a malady of poets, today tuberculosis is seen as a disease of poverty that walks the trails of...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Pre-order
    Out
  • Everything Is Tuberculosis
    #1 New York Times bestseller • #1 Washington Post bestseller • #1 Indie Bestseller • USA Today BestsellerJohn Green, award-winning author and passionate advocate for global healthcare reform, tells a deeply human story illuminating the fight against the world’s deadliest infectious disease.AN ACCLAIMED BEST BOOK OF 2025: NPR, Scientific American, Science News, Booklist, BookPage, Chicago Sun-Times. Goodreads Readers’ Choice Nonfiction...
    Hardback
    $6700
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • Pre-order
    Hollywood, Ending
    #1 bestselling author John Green makes his much-anticipated return to fiction with a behind-the-scenes Hollywood love story that brilliantly confronts the private cost of a public life. For rising young actors Kai Laramie and Juniper Castillo, being cast in the buzzy biopic Andy Warhol Never Gets Old is the opportunity they’ve both been waiting for. They’re on the verge of breaking out,...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    Pre-order
    Out 22 Sep 2026
  • Looking for Alaska
    The unmissable and genre-defining first novel from John Green, the international number one bestselling and award-winning author of The Fault in Our Stars and Turtles All the Way Down. Includes a brand-new Readers Guide featuring a Q&A with the author. Soon to be a HULU TV Series! “In the dark beside me, she smelled of sweat and sunshine and vanilla...
    Paperback
    $2299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks

More from Young Adult

View all
  • New Release
    Song of the Saltings
    On the isolated island of Brack, the people live by an ancient bargain: every year, a sacrifice must be made to the Glimm, the creature that haunts the salt marshes. Eight years ago, it should have taken Lotta. Instead, the monster spared her and claimed her pony, shattering tradition and anointing her both folk hero and object of suspicion. Now...
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • New Release
    Tell Me with Kisses
    From New York Times bestselling author and Wattpad sensation Mercedes Ron comes the English translation of the third in the Tell Me series, where Kamila Hamilton is caught between the two Di Bianco brothers after they burst back into her life. From New York Times bestselling author and Wattpad sensation Mercedes Ron comes the English translation of the third in...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Release Me
    The searing second volume in a new series set in the #1 global bestselling Shatter Me universe ten years after the fall of The Reestablishment. Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. Now she wants revenge. To save her sister she needs to get back home and destroy the system that created her. Rosabelle’s greatest strength is her ability to deaden her...
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • A Language of Dragons
    The most exciting debut of 2025 – an incredible fantasy Dark Academia, perfect for fans of Babel, Fourth Wing, and the Scholomance trilogy. EVERY FIRE STARTS WITH A SINGLE SPARK. Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons. London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivien Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules,...
    Paperback
    $1700
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Shatter Me: Shatter Me series 1
    Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi is a gripping dystopian novel that plunges readers into a world where society is on the brink of collapse. At the heart of this chaos is Juliette, a 17-year-old girl with a fatal touch—literally. For 264 days, Juliette has been imprisoned in solitary confinement, her only crime being an accidental touch that resulted in death....
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Cozy Corner
    Relax and unwind with this adorable colouring book – it’s time to get cozy! Step into a world of calm and comfort with Cozy Corner, featuring 45 beautiful hand-drawn pages ready for you to colour in. Settle into your very own cozy corner with these brand new colouring pages! This follow-up to Coco Wyo's beloved Little Corner promises a new...
    Paperback
    $1700
    Elsewhere:
    $2100
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Bunny vs Monkey: The Great Big Glitch (a Phoenix Comic Book): the instant number one bestselling book from Jamie Smart, Illustrator of the Year
    When Bunny, Monkey and friends discover a glitch in reality, life gets even crazier than normal: Bunny declares himself The Woods' Magical Protector, Pig becomes a superspy, plus there's complete metal Monkey mayhem! Experience the laughs and chaos in Bunny vs Monkey: The Great Big Glitch (a Phoenix Comic Book), the instant number one bestselling book from Jamie Smart, Illustrator...
    Paperback
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Summer I Turned Pretty
    The Summer I Turned Pretty is now a major new TV series on Amazon Prime! If you loved The Kissing Booth and Jenny Han's smash-hit Netflix movie series To All the Boys I Loved Before, then you'll adore this gorgeously funny, romantic story! Everything that happened this past summer, and every summer before it, has all led up to this....
    Paperback
    $2400
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
    A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson is the New York Times No.1 bestselling YA crime thriller that has captivated readers globally. Now adapted into a major BBC series, this intricately plotted and intensely gripping novel is being lauded as a modern classic in young adult literature. Pippa Fitz-Amobi, an intelligent and determined high school student, is looking...
    Paperback
    $1800
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Powerless
    OVER A MILLION COPIES SOLD! THE INSTANT NO. 1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON. ‘Nothing short of epic’ - Rosie Talbot, bestselling author of Sixteen Souls ‘A thrilling fantasy with the most delicious slow-burn romance’ - M.A. Kuzniar, bestselling author of Midnight in Everwood ‘[A] titillating debut’ - Publishers Weekly ‘A masterpiece’ - Goodreads Reader Review ‘Everyone needs to read it’ -...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2899
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Free Gift
    The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks
    Louise Rennison for the Dork Diaries generation - hilarious, relatable and full of heart. The first book in the hilarious new series for children by the bestselling creator of Hurrah For Gin. The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks follows Lottie Brooks, who is 11 and feels like her life is already officially over. Not only is she about to...
    Paperback
    $1799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Free Gift
    Lottie Brooks's Totally Disastrous School-Trip
    The fourth book in this hilarious bestselling series full of friendship, family, and first experiences from the creator of Hurrah for Gin. Lottie Brooks's Totally Disastrous School-Trip continues to navigate the many perils of growing up in this fantastically funny illustrated series for a 9-12 audience, filled with friendship, embarrassing moments, and plenty of lols. Woe is me. So much...
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2100
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.