The Fault In Our Stars
>> Friday, January 13, 2012
Why hey there, bloggy people. I'm not going to apologize for not posting in a long time, because that's getting pretty repetitious, and I don't think anyone cares anyway. So, I'm going to jump right into today's topic, which is actually something super exciting: My book review for The Fault In Our Stars by John Green which came out on January 10th, 2012! So, here's my review (NO SPOILERS!). :)
Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.
Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wow, this book...this book. I finished it an hour ago, and I'm still trying to figure out how I feel. I don't really know how to put it into words. John Green, though? He sure knows how to put things into words. I knew he was hilarious. I knew that he was a good writer. I didn't know until yesterday when I started reading TFIOS that he was a literary genius who is possible to make something heartbreaking and meaningful and gorgeous and beautiful and funny and happy and sad and everything all in one book with a shiny blue cover and a signature in the front if you're lucky (mine's purple. I like it.).
Reading the first two chapters was kind of strange, admittedly, because I had already watched John read them (on Vlogbrothers, his and Hank's YouTube channel), so initially I was worried that the whole time I would just hear his voice, like I did during chapters 1 and 2, and not make my own voice for Hazel and Augustus and everybody else. I ended up not needing to even worry about that problem, though. Wait, what problem? Hazel had such a strong voice, such a ridiculously amazing and certainly intelligent point of view. I had no idea that I would think so much while reading this book. The words were insanely beautiful. Yes, beautiful words. Sure, some of them were long and some of them I didn't know what they meant. But they were still all beautiful. I appreciated the long words. It didn't seem pretentious, or old fashioned, or boring. It seemed perfect.
This book might not be jam-packed with action. It is, essentially, not just a story about cancer - it's a story about love. At the heart of it (no pun intended), TFIOS is a love story. And the love in this story is, dare I use the word again? Beautiful. Augustus Waters captured my heart from the first moment. Even his name screams GORGEOUS and AMAZING. I mean, really, Augustus Waters? Definitely considering naming my child Augustus...assuming I have one, that is.
Anyway, back to the point. Augustus was awesome. Hazel was awesome also, and so so so deserving of Augustus's awesome. That's something I love, when I feel that the female character is actually worthy of the amazing male character. Definitely true in this case. Hazel cared so much for Gus, and she was there for him, even when he wasn't at his best. If you've read any of my other reviews, you'll know I'm a serious sucker for romance, and this was no exception. :)
The supporting characters were great too. They all had very distinct personalities, they weren't bland, and they weren't just there in the background. Isaac specifically was pretty cool.
Did I mention the awesome poetry John Green has mixed into TFIOS? I don't normally care too much for poetry, especially since the kind of poems I've been reading lately for lit class are the kind of epic poem ones like Beowulf and Paradise Lost and frankly, I don't like that kind. But John reminded me that there's another kind of poetry, the kind that has words that flow and might not make sense but they sound freaking GOOD. Several books have made me want to read some of that kind of poetry recently, but none so much as this one. I think I'll go back and write down the names of all the poems Hazel talked about, so I can read them myself. Oh, and also An Imperial Affliction sounded awesome. Actually it sounded like the type of book I'd like to read, and like to think that I'd love, but it'd probably go over my head. Well, who knows.
I consider myself a writer, and hopefully someday an author. Ha, I guess I said I didn't really know how to put my feelings into words, and yet here I've gone and written a lot of them. But really, that doesn't begin to express what I want to. I really liked this book. I loved this book. I really did. And someday I hope I can write something as beautiful and deep and meaningful as this book was to me.
P.S. Now, just because I can, I'll leave you with a few pictures.
Mood: tired, but besides that, pretty good :)
Listening to: Set the World on Fire by Britt Nicole
Quote of the day: “Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book.” -The Fault In Our Stars (you guessed it!)
Random something: Paper Towns is the only other John Green book I've read, but I've been wanting to read Lookin For Alaska and An Abundance of Katherines for a while now. Oh and also, I'm writing this on my laptop. Yes, I have a laptop now. It's pretty sweet. Read more...
