The Fault in Our Stars

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Green, John. 2012.THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. New York: Penguin Group. ISBN 978-0-525-47881-2.

PLOT SUMMARY

Hazel Lancaster has battled for cancer for years, and knows that ultimately, she is described as having a terminal diagnosis.  Her life has become predictable in the ordinary day-to-day struggles that having nearly non-working lungs present.  Predictable until she meets Augustus Waters at a cancer support group.  Together, Augustus and Hazel navigate the struggles of life with cancer and understanding the mark that each of us make simply by being alive.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Even after finishing the book, I can’t help but wonder how Hazel is doing and wish I could become true friends with her. John Green’s characters became real in his most recent work and are every bit John Greenish as they can be.  Fans of the author are awarded with Green’s typical high-level vocabulary and sardonic teenage quips, but this book is far more realistic than any other work.  Despite my limited experience with cancer, readers will understand the struggles the characters face trying to prolong the days they have on Earth.

 

Set in ‘anywhere USA’, readers are able to supplement the setting as anywhere that the reader holds close.  More than anything, readers stop realizing their reading a book and feel as though they have an up close look at two lovers who are fighting a battler much bigger than themselves. Undoubtedly THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is a book that stays with the reader, long after the last page has been read.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Voice of Youth Advocates: “Purchase for small and large libraries alike, though several copies may be wise considering both Green's popularity, and the potential of this book to become a classic.”
BOOKLIST: “Green shows his readers what it is like to live with cancer, sometimes no more than a breath or a heartbeat away from death. But it is life that Green spiritedly celebrates here, even while acknowledging its pain. In its every aspect, this novel is a triumph.”

CONNECTIONS

Readers who enjoyed Green’s stylistic writing can check out his other novels:

Green, John. PAPER TOWNS. ISBN 978-0142414934

Green, John. LOOKING FOR ALASKA. ISBN 978-0142402511
Green, John. AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES. ISBN 978-0142410707

Readers who are interested in reading other fiction about young adults with cancer:

Andrews, Jesse. ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL.ISBN 9781419701764                                          
Castrovilla, Selene. THE GIRL NEXT  DOOR. ISBN 9781934813157                                                             
Crutcher, Chris. DEADLINE.ISBN 0060850892