Scan barcode
darthjuno's reviews
250 reviews
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
4.0
A beautiful story of love and compassion, filled with all the reality of human relationships and illness, as well as the tragicomedy that is young life in the grips of death. A 16-year-old girl with terminal cancer meets a 17-year-old boy in remission, and their story is one for the movie screens. They're smart, bookish kids, who use fancy words and play video games and constantly fight for their lives. He gets her into sci-fi war stories, and she shares her all-time favourite book with him, and that bonds them in ways even they don't understand. When given the chance, the two star-crossed cancer kids travel to Amsterdam seeking answers about what happens to the characters of this book after it ends. They meet the author of their favourite book, and as all idols in real life he proves to be a gigantic disappointment. But they're not saddened by the revelation, because they have each other, and a love that is so strong John Green makes us feel it to our bones.
There's bits of it that feel odd, phrases that feel strange in their context and words that perhaps could be different; I found myself overanalysing the technical aspect of the writing, as well as the facts in the fiction (even though Green warns us against doing that at the beginning of the book). It is inevitable to wonder how much truth there is in fiction, especially when John Green made the writing process of The Fault in Our Stars so public through his videos.
Still, I digress. The modern teenager (or indeed young adult, such as myself) will find lots to identify with in this book, as John Green really 'gets' the younger generation and portrays us without mocking us. The characters all feel incredibly real - Hazel with her girly insecurities and deliberate attitude, Augustus with his pretend nonchalance and Isaac with his inadvertently hilarious disposition; Hazel's parents, the heroes without capes; Amsterdam, a city with a life and heart of its own...
Definitely a recommended book for young and old alike.
There's bits of it that feel odd, phrases that feel strange in their context and words that perhaps could be different; I found myself overanalysing the technical aspect of the writing, as well as the facts in the fiction (even though Green warns us against doing that at the beginning of the book). It is inevitable to wonder how much truth there is in fiction, especially when John Green made the writing process of The Fault in Our Stars so public through his videos.
Still, I digress. The modern teenager (or indeed young adult, such as myself) will find lots to identify with in this book, as John Green really 'gets' the younger generation and portrays us without mocking us. The characters all feel incredibly real - Hazel with her girly insecurities and deliberate attitude, Augustus with his pretend nonchalance and Isaac with his inadvertently hilarious disposition; Hazel's parents, the heroes without capes; Amsterdam, a city with a life and heart of its own...
Definitely a recommended book for young and old alike.