AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES by John Green
Most people have a “type.” “Types” are often superficial, based on a few physical characteristics, or a particular type of personality. Former child prodigy Colin Singleton’s type is linguistic: girls with the name “Katherine.” He has dated and been dumped by nineteen of them. And Katherine XIX truly broke his heart.
Colin and his friend Hassan decide that a roadtrip is just what Colin needs to forget his troubles and his Katherines. They wind up in a rural town which is like a different world from their Chicago homes. They also meet Lindsay, a girl their age who challenges all of Colin’s preconceived notions about the type of person who reads “Celebrity Living” magazine. As Colin and Hassan join Lindsay in interviewing the locals about their personal histories and participating in local cultural activities (like hunting wild Satanic pigs), Colin tries to analyze his love life the only way he knows how: mathematically. Who knows; if he gets this particular Theorem right, he might be able to predict the future, or maybe find a way to get K-19 back.
(If you like John Green, check out the vlog he keeps with his brother, Hank: http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers.)
Susan the Librarian 