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A review by kmccrory
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
John Green is a competent writer, but the introduction to this book made me realize that he often can only really write one type of story.
I found that often times the book came off as very pretentious, and trying to be "deep" where no depth can be found.
I found the callousness, and sometimes downright cruelty, of the main character towards others (including family trying to help and her own support group leader, who had a seriously traumatic medical complication from his own battle with cancer), to make her incredibly unlikeable. This wouldn't even be an issue, considering she is a teenager and going through a terrible condition, but the response of the narrative is more the issue.
It seems that the characters around her and the book itself simply holds none of these behaviors accountable, and there's almost never any meaningful consequences.
While I had issues with the story itself and how "trying to be deep" I found it, the writing itself is very good.
Characters do feel real in isolation from the main character, and the descriptions and prose make it an easy and enjoyable read. I wanted to give the review a 3 for the writing skill alone, but the lack of depth and how superficial the entire story felt wouldn't allow me to go above a 2.75.
I found that often times the book came off as very pretentious, and trying to be "deep" where no depth can be found.
I found the callousness, and sometimes downright cruelty, of the main character towards others (including family trying to help and her own support group leader, who had a seriously traumatic medical complication from his own battle with cancer), to make her incredibly unlikeable. This wouldn't even be an issue, considering she is a teenager and going through a terrible condition, but the response of the narrative is more the issue.
It seems that the characters around her and the book itself simply holds none of these behaviors accountable, and there's almost never any meaningful consequences.
While I had issues with the story itself and how "trying to be deep" I found it, the writing itself is very good.
Characters do feel real in isolation from the main character, and the descriptions and prose make it an easy and enjoyable read. I wanted to give the review a 3 for the writing skill alone, but the lack of depth and how superficial the entire story felt wouldn't allow me to go above a 2.75.