Paper Towns Part 2, Chapter 5 Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • On Monday morning, Lacey Pemberton—yes, the Lacey Pemberton—stoops to Quentin and Ben's level to ask Quentin questions about Margo and to set the record straight: She swears she had no idea Jase was cheating on Margo.
  • She also mentions that Margo once said that "New York was the only place in America where a person could actually live a halfway livable life" (2.5.18). Where do you have to go for an entirely livable life? Dubai?


  • Quentin heads to class to give Ben a shot at asking Lacey to prom.
  • At lunch, Quentin finds Ben, and he hasn't scared Lacey off yet.
  • They continue speculating about Margo's whereabouts, and Lacey says she'll send posters of Margo to her cousin in NYC to hang up at record stores.
  • Then, Ben and Lacey start talking about prom. Quentin is now the only one without a date. Not that he wants to go or anything—no, not at all.
  • After school, while Radar and Ben are at band practice, Quentin reads Leaves of Grass.
  • When band is over, Ben suggests they take the line "Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs" (2.5.58) literally and unscrew Margo's door.