The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

I'm a little late on the uptake, but this is my review and thoughts of the book that took my life by storm a few days ago.

5/5 stars

When approaching John Green’s novel, The Fault in Our Stars it was less with a sense of what I had heard of it rather than what hadn’t I heard. There have been so many reactions to this book, from absolute enthusiasm to descriptions of how the story destroyed them, and every emotion in-between. Not a complete novice on Green’s work, having previously read the excellent novel, Looking for Alaska, I came prepared to the pages of TFIOS, ready for whatever the work could throw at me, or so I thought.

Meant as merely a book to pass the time whilst waiting for an afternoon train, one I could easily put down and then find my way again to later, became an eight hour reading storm. The expression, ‘I just couldn’t put it down,’ can be accused of over-exaggeration, but in this case, that’s just what happened. No matter my original intention the witty, sarcastic and painfully truthful voice of Hazel Grace wouldn’t let me go. She hooks the reader in on page one and there is no turning back. This book is about her life, and it demands to be read, to be heard, felt, and lived.

I had expected to cry, to feel the pain of a young character faced with death and the devastation that accompanies a family going through this pain. I did not expect to be laughing out loud far past the half way point of the book, raising the eyebrows of my fellow passengers the whole long train ride home. I learned fast that this book was not about the dramatization of disease and pain, but the reality of life. It is a near perfect characterization of the human heart in its imperfect and raw beauty.

Hazel Grace is a master piece teenager, the dying child in all of us, reminding what it is to breathe, love, and live through pain. Because as much as Hazel is obsessed with death, it isn’t just about how painful death is but how hard it is to live, taking into account all we take for granted. Her story is tears and laughter, life changing, and completely truthful.

Written within the genre of Young Adult, this book should be lauded as a classic, one that young people and adults can share alike. No question, TFIOS is a hard book to read, but worth every moment. I highly recommend this book to anyone who will take half a moment to listen and I look forward to the upcoming movie adaption that has come into production. Hopefully it will do this wonderful novel justice. 

- By Alissa Writing