Friday, June 20, 2014

The Fault in Our Stars

   

     Why not start off with one of my new favorite books? I was late to the bandwagon with reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, and I will fully blame that on George R.R. Martin. Still, I completed reading TFiOS a couple of hours before the movie started showing, so I consider that a great accomplishment. (That many emotions in a few hours probably isn't healthy).

     TFiOS follows its main character, 17-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster, through the pain and boredom of everyday teenage life - with the added complication of trying new treatments for cancer. At the urging of her mother, she attends a cancer support group. There she meets Augustus Waters, and immediately they begin a friendship that (spoiler you should have seen coming) soon turns into love. 
   
     Yes, this is a book about cancer. But it is far from a typical "cancer-book", which has a totally different connotation. What I love about these characters is that they are not defined by their cancer. They don't let it become a defeated identity, instead it is just something that they happen to have and learning to deal with that makes them stronger. 

     In fact, one of the bigger sub-plots regards Hazel's obsession with the imagined sequel to her favorite book (whose characters beautifully reflect certain people in her own life, thereby showing us who she would be concerned for if her own story was cut short). Without success, Hazel has reached out to the author to have her questions answered. In an attempt to better understand his new crush, Augustus can't help but want answers too (well, that and impress Hazel, but who can blame him?) 

     If I tell you any more beyond this point, protecting you lovelies from an ocean of spoilers will be impossible. Just read it and watch Hazel and Augustus grow and have once-in-a-lifetime experiences together already, okay? Okay.  
photo from barnesandnoble.com
     Now, I knew that this book is famous for making its readers cry but that rarely happens to me so I arrogantly accepted the challenge. I failed. Oh my goodness, did I fail. But here's the thing, and it's probably cheating since I read it from another reviewer, BUT IT'S SO TRUE: "This is a book that breaks your heart - not by wearing it down, but by making it bigger until it bursts" (The Atlantic).

     I felt that stupid lump in my throat because of how full and strangely complete the lives of Hazel and Augustus are, when I had the assumption that they would be doomed to never experience the joys of life that non-cancer patients so easily can take for granted. 

     To top it off, Green is such a talented writer. This would have been a compelling story even if it was told matter-of-factly, but Green's metaphor-heavy descriptions and realistically imperfect, funny dialogue add such a robustness to the book that just makes it so complete. 

     I already want to reread it. 


     

     

     
    
      

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