The Fault in Our Stars

17 year old Hazel is waiting. While the treatment is slowing her cancer, she knows it won't stop it. She's dying and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it. Her need for the portable oxygen supply, like a millstone around her neck, is a constant reminder of the damage already caused to her frail body. Her mother insists she attend the cancer kids support group at a local church. Hazel will always try to find a reason not to go, until she encounters Augustus, when her outlook on life, and death, is changed forever. I'm not a regular reader of YA fiction, but I'm so glad I read The Fault In Our Stars. This book deals with cancer with honesty, how it affects the families and loved ones left behind. The story's inexorable spiral towards oblivion put me in mind of Willy Russell's stageplay Blood Brothers, where you know how it will end but pray things turn out differently. I felt genuine emotion for Hazel and Augustus, although there were times I felt they were too clever for their own good. The humour and banter between them was adorable, and the supporting characters created in me such empathy, that I felt I shared some of their loss. I'm not ashamed to say this book made my eyes leak a few times toward the end. There aren't many books that can cause such strong emotions, or leave you sitting in silence, contemplating those emotions, but this is one of them. It was sometimes a difficult read, but those of us who have lost someone to cancer, understand that art imitates reality, in this case very well. I recommend this book not just young adults, but to anyone, hence the five stars.

This book contains no super heroes, no super powers, no fairies, no secret spies, etc but that doesn't make it any less thrilling. A beautiful book that nearly brought me down in tears, the only book to have done so, and forced me to think about many things that I never dreamed of thinking about. John Green has buried my self-pride with his truly magnificent story.

The characters feel hollow, their dialogue is unrealistic, and the plot feels so fast but so slow at the same time. Getting through this book was physically painful, and I wanted to cry from how utterly boring it was. There were a few good moments, yes, but they were ruined by Hazel's sarcastic metacommentary. It was a struggle to keep up with what was going on, with the poor characterisation and identical speech patterns. Everyone feels the same. It's disorienting.