I have to admit that I put off reading John Green's novel An Abundance of Katherines because I know that there was math in it. Yes, I'm a little phobic when it comes to math and didn't want to be mixing business with pleasure, so to speak. But, when I finally sat down and read the darn book, I found it entirely enjoyable, despite (or maybe because of) the mathematical formulas and graphs included in the text.
An Abundance of Katherines is the story of super genius Colin and his quest for the perfect Katherine and a chance to have a "eureka" moment. He has been uber smart all of his life, but has yet to discover what it's like to feel a part of life, a part of the whole. He's dated nineteen girls named Katherine, with absolutely no success. This may sound corny (and I promise that the book isn't), but it's almost like he needs to find himself. And, what better way to find one's self than to go on a road trip.
When Colin's best friend Hassan insists on a road trip to clear Colin's mind of the recent break-up with Katherine XIX (that's 19), Colin is initially hesitant to go. He doesn't see that he needs an unpredictable adventure to get him away from studying and Katherine-ing. Once they land in Gunshot, Tennessee, everything is unpredictable and adventurous.
I won't tell you too much more because Colin's journey is full of surprises and I'd hate to ruin any of them. I loved the book and this experience has taught me plenty. For starters, I now know to never let a John Green title stew on my To Be Read shelf for any length of time. I don't know that I'm convinced that reading good books and thinking mathematically go together, but I have to admit that I did not skip any math-related footnotes, even when Mr. Green said I could. That's a big step!
