The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Read this 100% because it was so heavily recommended by my wife. Granted, she recommends a lot of books to me, but this time she had me at “it’s a quick read and I still have it out of the library for a few days”. Does she ever know me…
It’s a grabber. I was snagged within a page and a half. I can see why so many people fall so hard for this book and this author. What an amazing way with words he has.
I absolutely fell in love with the main character, Hazel. So well written, so interesting. I can certainly understand why some may feel that the dialogue is not realistic for teenagers, but I disagree. Certainly not all teens are so introspective and literate, but based on my experience, I’d suggest probably a lot more are than you may expect.
The novel in unflinching in its depiction of the harsh realities of living with terminal illness, and the refreshing honesty of the writing makes this a wonderful read.
The heady first third of the novel is filled with the kind of exhilarating relationship creation that you just love to read – and is sadly unsustainable. One of these days we’ll come up with a novel that is made up of the exciting first acts of other books.
While the luster may wear off a bit, the novel continues to be interesting and moving throughout. It really is a wonderful book. It is definitely a heartbreaker, but I never felt as though it was a manipulative tearjerker. It’s a sad tale, but the author’s great writing delivers it without mawkish sentimentality.
Highly recommended.
