Great characters, great Story - A must read!
By: Samm Senik
The Fault in Our Stars is a novel that follows Hazel Grace Lancaster, a teenage girl who has terminal cancer. Hazel reluctantly attends a Cancer Support Group and meets Augustus Waters, a cancer survivor and amputee. The two quickly become close and go through ups and downs, trying to solve the mystery of Hazels favorite book, An Imperial Affliction, dealing with their diseases, and the aftermath of
it all.
As someone who enjoys reading, I have always had difficulty naming a favorite book, but if I had to pick, I would say The Fault in Our Stars. This best selling novel, which is currently being made into a movie, amazed me and I never wanted to put it down. The writing is amazing and the story is compelling. It goes along with other books of John Greens, as it features intelligent teenagers, and a realistic story. Unlike his other books, though, it is written from a female point of view, which he did a great job as his narrator, Hazel Grace, feels like she could be a real person, along with the other characters.
“Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death" (1).
The story is honest and so is Hazel Grace who is open with her views on life and death. As someone with terminal cancer, she spends a lot of time thinking about the two and their effects on hers on the people around her. And although she doesn't try
to hide the reality of her disease, she doesn't pity herself.
Her dry sense of humor and honesty made me love her character, along with her intelligence and her personality. Also the fact that she is her own person, she doesn't try to be like other girls and marches to her own beat.
“Its a metaphor, see: you put the killing thing right between your teeth but you don't give it the power to do its killing” (12).
Augustus Waters is the charming male protagonist of the novel. He is someone who goes for what he wants, including Hazel. Gus's personality and sense of humor also make him easily likeable. Between this and his obsession with metaphors, he has one thing that may be considered his flaw: he is so determined to leave his mark and be remembered, to the point that it effects Hazel. All in all, Augustus is a great, realistic character, that is easy to fall for.
“You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old man, but you do have some say in who hurts you" (313).
This book to me to is one of the best things since sliced bread. It pulls you in with its funniness, and continues to keep you
though the serious and sad parts. Yes, this book has been known to make people cry. As someone who doesn't cry easily, this book had me on the edge of tears . It is completely worth it though. There are a few things that may concern some
readers, such as that there is sex in the book, but the scene is brief and not detailed as to what is going on. Another concern may be some of the themes of the novel, such as death and cancer. It is also written with a more advanced vocabulary, which is why the novel may be considered better for a more mature audience.
I believe it is a great novel with a frank tone and a captivating plot. I am not one to usually share this book as it is like my 'An
Imperial Affliction', and I like having it to myself, but it deserves to be read. So stop at the library, or head to a book store. I hope that you have the roller coaster of emotions that comes with the novel. Happy Reading!
it all.
As someone who enjoys reading, I have always had difficulty naming a favorite book, but if I had to pick, I would say The Fault in Our Stars. This best selling novel, which is currently being made into a movie, amazed me and I never wanted to put it down. The writing is amazing and the story is compelling. It goes along with other books of John Greens, as it features intelligent teenagers, and a realistic story. Unlike his other books, though, it is written from a female point of view, which he did a great job as his narrator, Hazel Grace, feels like she could be a real person, along with the other characters.
“Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death" (1).
The story is honest and so is Hazel Grace who is open with her views on life and death. As someone with terminal cancer, she spends a lot of time thinking about the two and their effects on hers on the people around her. And although she doesn't try
to hide the reality of her disease, she doesn't pity herself.
Her dry sense of humor and honesty made me love her character, along with her intelligence and her personality. Also the fact that she is her own person, she doesn't try to be like other girls and marches to her own beat.
“Its a metaphor, see: you put the killing thing right between your teeth but you don't give it the power to do its killing” (12).
Augustus Waters is the charming male protagonist of the novel. He is someone who goes for what he wants, including Hazel. Gus's personality and sense of humor also make him easily likeable. Between this and his obsession with metaphors, he has one thing that may be considered his flaw: he is so determined to leave his mark and be remembered, to the point that it effects Hazel. All in all, Augustus is a great, realistic character, that is easy to fall for.
“You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old man, but you do have some say in who hurts you" (313).
This book to me to is one of the best things since sliced bread. It pulls you in with its funniness, and continues to keep you
though the serious and sad parts. Yes, this book has been known to make people cry. As someone who doesn't cry easily, this book had me on the edge of tears . It is completely worth it though. There are a few things that may concern some
readers, such as that there is sex in the book, but the scene is brief and not detailed as to what is going on. Another concern may be some of the themes of the novel, such as death and cancer. It is also written with a more advanced vocabulary, which is why the novel may be considered better for a more mature audience.
I believe it is a great novel with a frank tone and a captivating plot. I am not one to usually share this book as it is like my 'An
Imperial Affliction', and I like having it to myself, but it deserves to be read. So stop at the library, or head to a book store. I hope that you have the roller coaster of emotions that comes with the novel. Happy Reading!