John Green's The Fault in our Stars

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I've been hearing a lot about this John Green piece for a while and I've seen this book in bookstores where I usually hang around but never got to get one for myself.

It wasn't until I stumbled upon Read Philippines that I got interested into reading The Fault in our Stars. The overview kind of intrigued me into reading. Also, it's actually a July Challenge in RP where members are to post their thoughts and reviews on the book and there will be one lucky winner.  

Here is the short summary:

"The story follows the main character, Hazel Grace Lancaster, as she battles cancer. Not only is Hazel trying to live the normal life of a 16-year-old girl, but she is also struggling with what it will be like for her parents after she dies. While Hazel attends a church support group for cancer survivors, she meets a boy that is one year older than her, Augustus Waters. While Augustus had a type of cancer that causes him to lose his leg and wear a prosthetic, it also has a survival rate that is much higher than Hazel's death sentence."

 -"excerpt from Bookrags"

 

I've only finished reading The Fault in our Stars last Monday night after a week of reading it by chapters. The concept of the story (Cancer patients who fall in love and families and love ones who are going to be left behind) reminded me of Nicholas Sparks' A Walk to Remember and Lurlene Mcdaniel's Goodbye Doesn't Mean Forever. Yes, the ending is quite tragic but we can't blame John Green since it's quite obvious how the story would end. It would either Hazel dies or Augustus. For me, I never thought it was going to be Augustus. He just seemed to be the most healthy guy among all the sick young kids mentioned in the story. I pictured him as Tony Stark with only an iron leg. Funny and strong with incredible thoughts and quotes that make sense. I personally like the line he said in the first day he was with Hazel.

"It's a metaphor, see. You put the killing thing between your teeth without giving it the power to kill you."

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I have to admit that the story is really touching. When reading its overview, reader would automatically see the book as something really-really dramatic but surprisingly, after reading it, I have to admit that it's not just all drama. There are lots of funny scenes and I admire John Green for this incredible writing skill. It's rare to mix drama and humor plus it is actually a tearjerker.

John Green exposed something really awesome about people with illnesses like Hazel and Augustus. These kids inspires us to be strong and the metaphor Augustus kept on saying only proves that no one or nothing can hurt us without our consent. The pain of their illnesses didn't keep them from enjoying the time left in their lives. They laugh, they play, they fall in love and even make their eulogies in advance. It was silly(all the advance eulogy making) but I find it really courageous. Only few people are tough enough to accept their fate and and even prepare eulogies.

In general, The Fault of the Stars is a 5 star for me. It's a wonderful story for teens and families plus it teaches a lot of lessons, some in funny ways and most in melodramatic ways.