So if you know me in real life, you may have heard me say something along the lines of "Augustus feels" or make the noise equivalent of "nyaaaaaagh" when describing my love for this book. Because truth be told, I cannot put how I feel about into words. The book is, of course The Fault in Our Stars, or TFiOS (Tih-fee-ose)
So first things first: John Green. The man is literally a genius (that is a misuse of literality- read it to understand). But in all seriousness, I idolise him for everything. For every book he has written, for every tumblr post. I have read all of his solo novel fiction, the only missing one being Will Greyson, Will Greyson, in which he collaborated with David Levithan (Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist), although that will be amongst my next literary purchases. John is part of Youtube dynamo brother/brother team The Vlogbrothers. He has taught me so much, not only about English and writing, but about life, and all the little things, amongst other titbits of information, such as copious anagrams from An Abundance of Katherines (or should that be 'Knob nauseate an arch-fiend'). So for that, I thank him eternally.
Now onto the actual novel. Without spoilers, I thought it was so sad that I cried immensely at both readings yet I never cry at anything fictional - props to Mr. Green. Despite the tears, it remains my favourite novel of all time thus far. In actuality, finishing the book in three days the first time and two the second means I have only spent 5 days with this novel, yet it has had a lasting effect on me. I have also recommended it to a lot of people, all of which have had the same response as me - tears, followed by endless praise. So what makes it a truly great novel? The characters are ridiculously relatable, or so I think. I adore how both Hazel and Augustus are smart as teens, yet still make errors which don't seem to matter because they are teens and teens do get things wrong because that is how they learn. Being the same age as the main characters gives me a real insight into how they feel which gave me a deeper understanding of the novel, helping me really connect with it. However on a completely different level of the book, they both have cancer which throws a spanner into the works of the everyday teen connection. Yet, although cancer is technically the primary premise of the plot, Green doesn't allow it to completely take over the story which is why so many people young and older feel as though they can completely connect with the story. The cancer storyline is not dealt with in the typical sympathetic way, either. It is told just like it is - harsh and unfair. I think the way that it doesn't hide the brutal details gives some of the maturity to the reader as they aren't reading a watered down version that hides them from the truth. I admire this about the book, that Green wasn't afraid to explore the nastier side of disease, whilst also writing a story about normal teenage life and love. In addition to this, John Green, a man, wrote the story from the perspective of Hazel Grace Lancaster, a girl. There have been many inquisitive glances exchanged over this detail, followed by their doubts that he could manage to make a character that real teenage girls can relate to. Well he did it. He did it better than I probably could and I have lived the life of a teenage girl. There was probably no need for doubt, at all. Then again, he has managed to brilliantly write from the teenage boy perspective, shown in the rest of his novels, most notably Looking For Alaska, which just made the Bestseller List, 7 years after it's release! (4 for you John Green, you go John Green).
While there is a lot of attention focussed on Hazel and Augustus, one of the best characters is often overlooked. This character is Isaac. His role is so brilliant, especially towards the end. I adore how he, as a boy is not afraid to show his emotions toward Augustus and still manages to be collected and humourous, even in times of sheer heartache. Lets all praise Isaac!
Overall, I adore this book so much its not even real. I just cannot thank John enough for writing such an inspiring piece of fiction.
5/5 stars.
