Turtles All the Way Down question

I actually thought this was the most personal of John's books, in that it was very revealing of John's own struggle with mental illness. It was not as funny as some of his other novels. One of the things I have loved about John's work is that they are books that have me laughing out loud and crying almost at the same time. But I loved seeing Aza's journey toward health and self-acceptance, and I loved that her and Daisy's story had a happy ending. To me they were the central story line, and the mystery and romance elements were subordinate to that.

All said, I really enjoyed it and I find myself still thinking about it weeks later. But I agree with you that it wasn't exactly like any of his other books.

I didn't really like Turtles all the Way Down as much as I thought I would. I also struggle with the obsessive side of OCD and I expected to empathize and also be empowered by the main character, Aza. I really wasn't. It's hard for me to explain why, I just felt she was uninterested in getting help for herself. I also disliked her friend Daisy who consistently failed to even try and understand what OCD is and what it does to a person. The relationship Aza had with the billionaire's son David was awkward and uncomfortable to read. Finally, the whole "runaway billionaire" idea seemed forced and rather silly, as did the kids having the run of a mansion in the way they did. Completely unbelievable.

I loved this book! Perhaps even more than The Fault in our Stars! I loved Aza's voice and particularly Davis's blog posts - it was great!

I was very intrigued to read something by john green so i bought this book and unfortunately i didnt like it. In the beginning it was really intersting but as the story went on i found myself to be very bored and it took me ages to finish it because i didnt feel like reading it at all. It kind of put me in a reading slump. Tho i think with the characters and the basic story structure this could have been a very interesting book but the way it was written, the pace and the (in my eyes) a bit wierd character development just really put me off. Maybe its the genre as well because there were other ya romace kind of books i found really boring but this book just isnt my cup of tea

It's different from his other books, but I think that was a good thing. I would say it's better than Paper Towns and Looking for Alaska. I didn't like Daisy at all though. I agree with what a lot of other people are saying- John Green did a great job writing a story about a girl dealing with mental illness.

i liked how he expressed her anxiety. Its just that he foccused on the mental illness a bit too much. There werent any suprising plottwists. The characters were quite plain.

I actually would rank this book as an all-time great. The questions the author raises are timeless-- who am I? What makes me, me? Is there some core person, some essential me deep down, or if I keep looking down down down will I just find another turtle and another turtle? These questions are now complicated by the modern reality of taking pills to be normal, but as the character herself asks-- what does that make "normal" when it can only be achieved by taking a mind-altering drug?

The McGuffin is used consciously to help form and articulate these themes and the character. In all good fiction, when people go off searching for someone, they are always really searching for themselves.

The only issue I had with this book is that Aza came off as younger than she actually was. In my head I was picturing an preteen girl, maybe like 13 or 14 even...but then she would get in her car to drive to school and I would remember she's actually like 17 years old. I think it was her internal voice that sounded young to me. Otherwise I really did enjoy the book. Did anyone else have this experience?

Yesss, i read it one year ago and i want to read it again. I remember i loved it and i couldn't stop to read. I thinks its to short but it's good for a quickly book if you dont have a lot of time, it's no the best of John Green ( always Agus and Hazel's team). But it's awesomee!!!

It's very interesting to read everyone's opinions about TATWD. Obviously, with any book, we all take something different away from it. To those who didn't like the book (or parts of the book), I would like you to consider my perspective:

Aza has OCD. Her thoughts, and sometimes actions, revolve around her OCD. When you have a mental illness, that is often all you can think about, and all aspects of your life, therefore, revolve around it. I thought the book and Aza followed the exact feelings and frustrations and slow improvement that comes with any mental illness. Did the book feel slow because of that? Sometimes, yes. But I found myself wanting to keep going because I just wanted Aza to feel better. Which I think was one of the points John was trying to make. If you were frustrated by the book, then I think you got one of the main feelings John was trying to get across! Also, I find it interesting that some of you are so strongly against some of the characters. I find all their "pros and cons" incredibly human. For example, some really didn't like Daisy. Daisy was enjoyable when she geeked out about Star Wars and when she brought Aza back when Aza was in a spiral. Daisy was horrible when she didn't know how to cope with a best friend who struggles with a mental illness, often blurting out the exact wrong things to say to a person with a mental illness. But, again, that was incredibly human. And Daisy did have some character development with that because she learned the best thing to do is acknowledge her friend's struggles and communicate when she doesn't understand or know what to say.

These are just some of my takeaways from the book and a response to some of the comments in this discussion. I hope no one feels like I'm saying "Your takeaway is wrong!" because that is not what I'm trying to do at all.

Lastly, as a person who was in the worst parts of her mental illness during high school like Aza, I found the book extremely relatable. The pace, the characters, and the reality that improvement is soooo slow and imperfect. I think John described how mental illness can feel very well--even if some feelings and experiences are hard to describe.

I did love it, to be honest. I though the portrayal of mental illness was spot on. I didn't mind that it focused mainly on that, because I truly was interested on the character of Aza and what was going on inside her mind. It was a nice yet also heartbraking way of understanding what people with anxiety sometimes feel like. I'm actually thankful for the book for opening my eyes like that.

I like how John Green didn't try to make her mental illness lighter or prettier on the reader and therefore I think he wrote in such a wonderful way.

I really loved this book. Aza is such a sensitive character. I don’t believe think this is a book about mental illness, but a book that has as a main character a girl that got it. In my opinion, the characters did developed. My favourite part was the development of Aza and Daisy’s relationship.

I liked it because it didn't glamorize mental illnesses which other books can do.

Personally, I felt like Aza lacked personality. Her mental illness really seemed to define her, and although it was portrayed perfectly, I caught myself being bored by her far too often.

Honestly I really didn't like it. I can see how people like it - but to me, it really just fell flat.

I like that John Green wrote about mental illness. However, the plot drops halfway and there is no character development. In fact none of the characters were likable or interesting. I can't like a book just because it tries to be inclusive. My least favorite part is how Aza is reduced to her mental illness. She is not developed as a character in any other way. Not to mention the writing is pretentious.

this book made me learn all the things that i had to know

best OCD and metal illness book ever! Romantic, perfect, interesting, and always, my favorite

Didn't like this book. It just didn't hold for me. I could barely get through the first 50 pages. Tried to read further but it was too darn boring. The writing didn't help much either. I found it rather vague at times.

Didn't do it for me. However, I might give it a try again sometime later.

zosi wrote: "Honestly, the book was really good, but definitely not my favorite out of John Green's books. The book seemed to start a mystery, pause, and not finish it until the very end. I didn't particularly ..."
Out of all the books john green has written, I love Turtles all the way down the most. Unlike his other books, I can relate to this book on a personally level. I like the whole plot of the book, how Aza tries to focus on other things instead of her anxiety and OCD disorder. In addition, Aza's relantionship with Davis was romantic, I was kind of sad when I realized that they were not going to end together,

Sadly I didn't enjoy it that much at all. It was too predictable for me and I didn't like the characters (found them a bit annoying and not that interesting). It felt like the same book as every other book he has written. Maybe I had too many hopes up for it. :(

Well it does not have really great story and not so mysterious but that is what made it different in a way how the case was actually on the sidelines but Aza's feelings, thoughts and her struggles were on focus. And i loved it because you can relate to it. The anxiety issue has been tackled in a very truthful way and i appreciate it most. It always makes you feel better or at least something worthy when you read the words which you don't say but have in you. Like you are reading a part of your soul. And that is what this book did.

Turtles All The Way Down was an exceptional, poignant read.

I ordered this because of John green. I like him as an author and it has an open ending which sucks. So, Aza has intrusive thoughts and most of the book focuses on it, so why at the end don't we give a conclusion to it and it happens almost every time that John Green has a bummer-packed ending in most of his books.

The ending of this book might be a happy one according to the author but it is just sad that there are so many loose ends. We do not know if Noah ever recovers from the shock, we do not know Aza's mental condition now, We do not know if she gets into college. We do not get to know shit and these were the questions that kept us looking for them till the end of the book and it is just nothing.

Although, I like it because it is relatable and it deals with what I think is not normal. I keep having these thoughts and I sometimes think that something bad is going to happen which ruins my moment always and it is dealt with beautifully in this book but we needed a conclusion. The character is amazing. Aza is the accurate representation of a teen who keeps on having thoughts that she does not like to have and she keeps on punishing herself. This is a good read overall,

I give this 3/5

I absolutely loved this book! This is my favourite John Green book, followed by 'Looking for Alaska' and 'Will Grayson, Will Grayson"!

I liked the book, is very focused on Aza's mental illness, her inner thoughts, her self destructive behaviors and her OCD.
They portrayed anxiety and depression is a very realistic way. They actually humanize mental illness and make you feel connected with the struggles Aza was facing. In some parts I felt frustrated because I knew how powerless Aza felt and how controlling invasive thoughts can be and how miserable they can make you feel.
Although I really like how the book gave us a glimpse of Aza's mind I would've love to get a better understanding of those around her. Daisy is the only character I feel I know and I think the reasons for that is because a big part of the story is focused on Aza and Daisy's relationship.
As for Davis, I felt like so much was left out. We always saw him as this vulnerable person who wanted company at all cost.. at the beginning he even ignored the fact that he was being used just because he wanted to feel loved.. I didn't like the ending, I think it could've be way better and he could've had a better plot in general..
As far as Aza's mom, I feel I never got to actually know her at all..
I know this book is mainly about Aza but I got so emotionally involve I think I would've just love to see more..

I agree with you guys about the start of a mystery and pausing of the solving process, only to vaguely sum it all up in the end. However, this book is one of my favorites. John Green is one of my favorite athors and I am very happy about his work with this book.

Turtles All the Way Down was actually my favorite John Green book. I've read The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns as well, but I honestly didn't like any of those characters as much as I liked the ones in this book. I can see why some people might not like it, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Turtles All The Way Down is my favorite John Green book. I got it randomly for a present one year and it is just so good! I struggle a bit with anxiety myself but one of my best friends struggles with severe anxiety and they had a panic attack reading it, that’s how accurate it was. That might seem bad but it’s really good mental health rep and so good

I really liked this book! Except for the entire plot! Just... why??? Was the romantic aspect of this book necessary? I just don't really see the point...

Turtles all the way down is my favorite book. It wasn't particularly exciting and the plot wasn't great: true. But as someone who deals with anxiety every day it was freeing to find words to match with complicated feelings. I think John Green did a splendid job at expressing mental illnesses. Although I totally despise Daisy, I fell in love with David. I think it was heartwarming to discover a male character so sensible. Tho as a hopeless romantic, the lack of romantic background was a bit hard to take but the story wasn't about that anyway. The story wasn't either about Pickett's disappearance, I truly think it is about a girl with mental illness. Pickett's disappearance was just a nice element to trigger Aza's anxiety.

This book was excellent and one of my favorites for sure. I loved the mental illness representation and it made me feel really connected to Aza. As a person who struggles with mental illness myself and really like mystery I recommend this book.

I know people have mixed feeling about this book, but I actually really liked it and I'm about to reread it for the third time.

If anyone sees this, what are your opinions about the ending?
Honestly it pains me even to think about it. It's just sad how everything ended.

Honestly, this book seems controversial when it comes to how people like it or not, but I loved it. I loved it more than The Fault in our Stars. That terrifying thought relaying in your mind, and the parts where she is sort of falling for this dude and she still somehow "can't love right" due to the OCD. I dunno, I loved it

We watched Paper Towns, but I hadn't read him until this. I liked how Aza's illness was portrayed. I have an anxiety disorder as well and feel it difficult to relate how it works to people who can't understand.

I do like how her mental illnesses were portrayed, but overall I'm not a huge fan of the book. I think John Green tried to add too many subplots to it, resulting in it not having a real plot.

For me, it ranks somewhere in the middle of his books. I still really liked it, but, it's no Paper Towns for me. I think this one currently ranks around 3rd or 4th. It keeps swapping places with Looking For Alaska. However, I recommended Paper Towns to a coworker and she HATED it, her favorite is Looking For Alaska,.

Which John Green book ends up being your favorite really varies by personality and so on.

I wasn't overly wild about the whole billionaire portion of the plot. That part just felt like something that gets tossed into a trashy romance without the romance part. It just felt weird. But, I was really fond of the rest of the book, if that makes any sense.

this book was really good. it wasnt my favorite out of all of his books but it was definitely entertaining. i loved the portrayal of aza's mental illness and i cried multiple of times. the problem i had was the subplot of the missing father. i feel like john added that in because he needed some form of mystery but i found it quite irrelevant for most of the book.

I thought it was alright, this was my first John Green book, and I liked the way Aza's mind was represented on the paper. For me, it was a little slow moving, I kept thinking some crazy plot twist was coming, but it never did. I think it would've made it better if the mystery of finding Pickett was the main plot of the story, but I think the best part was how Aza was learning to adapt to her illness and learning to live with herself.

I'm really conflicted with my feelings towards TATWD. One part of me loved but the other was really dissapointed. Aza was a great main character, I really liked her perspective and she was a complete person. Davis was also really great, I loved him and I would have liked this book way more if we had his perspective in the narrative. The secondary characters, a.k.a Daisy and Mychal, really bothered me. I hated Daisy with a passion, what an awful best friend and Mychal was extremely meh. He wasn't special nor memorable.
The plot was gripping and interesting but I feel it could have been better.
My favorite John green book is Looking for Alaska, then TFIOS, then this one and lastly paper towns. I haven't read AAOK, would you recomend doing it?

Yes it was good but. . .

it would be really scary to not be able to control your thoughts.

I think that John Green has written a great book about a girl who struggle with a mental illness. First i thought that Aza struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder, as a result of her stressed behavior in some situations. Furthermore, I saw that Aza did different things do control her mind when the complicated thoughts came to her. Trough the book Aza ask a lot of good question about how we control our mind, do we get to choose our own thoughts? Can we control our thoughts? Most significantly, is it right that a pill should have the power to be able to control your thoughts? Aza wants to be normal and able to chose her own toughts, that is the reason why she chose to not take her pill every day. What do you think about this? I think that it is really struggling to have this stressing thoughts every day, on the other hand, I understand that it must be hard to allow yourself help from others. Above all my opinions, I believe that you should talk to your friends and family about your problems, because family and friends is always there for you when you need them.

Mvh Finn Edland Gjøsteen

Alright, this book to start was well written to say the least! Not only did I love this story's plot but the characters were so unique. John Green has a talent of getting readers to connect with his characters. The only common theme in John Green's books for me is, all his books end without and ending, the endings are not elaborate enough for me. In this book I felt like I barely knew what would happen! Five stars from me for this book though because of the brilliant writing and ideas!

I really enjoyed this book and how he portrayed every aspect of it. I also loved how Daisy was a Star Wars nerd like me. It made her easy to love.

being honest and open here ... please no hate ...
but i didnt like this book. i did at first then I found it triggered my ocd and anxiety quite bad..

Sí claro fue una historia entretenida. La teoría de las tortugas me encanto. Jhon Green es excelente escritor

I really liked the evolution and development of the protagonist guy. In this book, John Green moves away from the prototype "nerdy guy without self-esteem that goes unnoticed by girls"
In this novel we find a pretty handsome teenager with hobbies and that his life is different from what others can see.
I do not know if Turtles All the Way Down is my favorite novel but I enjoyed.
It is a very personal novel.

Hi everyone,

I'm conducting some research about YA books for my undergraduate dissertation.

If you'd be interested in answering some short and brief questions about Turtles All The Way Down and John Green's other books please message me here on GoodReads and I'll send you the questions.

Thank you in advance :)