The Fault in Our Stars in ENGL 596 / EDCI 551

Jan 23, 2015 Jawaria rated it really liked it

The Fault In Our Stars was a touching book to read. I liked how the book had a lot of dialogue between the characters, which made the story more expressive. The characters were brought to life and as a reader I could engage in their thoughts and emotions more deeply. Again, John Green wrote a book along a different route, and not only did he tell the heartbreaking story of young teenagers struggling through cancer, but he also portrayed it with an abundance of hope and resilience. Hazel and Augu The Fault In Our Stars was a touching book to read. I liked how the book had a lot of dialogue between the characters, which made the story more expressive. The characters were brought to life and as a reader I could engage in their thoughts and emotions more deeply. Again, John Green wrote a book along a different route, and not only did he tell the heartbreaking story of young teenagers struggling through cancer, but he also portrayed it with an abundance of hope and resilience. Hazel and Augustus go through their own little infinity of 'normal' and 'happy' times while the clocks of their deaths are ticking away. I really appreciated the humane touch and connection that the author brought into this story that although has cancer as its foundational background, it brings love and friendship and cherishing moments in one's lifetime to the forefront, rather than treating it in a more hospice like manner, where issues such as cancer and their victims can be marginalized into the 'others' with (fatal/incurable) chronic diseases. Green reminds us in a beautiful tale how the terminally ill have real true lives and deserve normal things (not just care as 'patients') and how they cling on to every little hope and happiness that they can salvage in their "numbered days".

I enjoyed the part (p. 22) of how Gus drove, reckless driving can get someone killed in a car accident, and that just put a lot of things into perspective, no-one knows when or how they will die. One must try to live a full, dynamic life - make the most of it! The visit to Anne Frank's house and climbing all those stairs was a moving piece; Hazel's determination was at once scary and awe-inspiring. It was a wonderful experience how first Gus then Hazel and even Isaac all became pillars of strength and motivation for each other. Life no longer remained a vicious cycle of high dosage medicines, doctor visits and support groups. Rather, Gus awakened something new and longing in Hazel - he wanted to know 'her' story, about herself. And it's a definite pull on one's heartstrings when we find out that he was already in worse health than her but strong and cheerful gave her an 'infinity' and a new perspective to the cancer-ridden lifestyle. The characters of Hazel's mother and Lidewij were pivotal and grounding, especially in the aspect of reassurance. There are many lessons that one can take away from this novel. Compassion, being there for others, working for the happiness of those around you and in your life despite your own hardships, that selflessness is a wonderful message to young adults and everyone alike. I loved how Hazel analyzed herself and explained it according to Maslow's hierarchy of needs (p.212), something to which I always refer. The two variations of eulogies that Hazel wrote and spoke carried a strong message, and perhaps the reason for a 'pre-funeral' - as she said "funerals are for the living" and her reaching out, giving hope/consolation to Gus' parents, again showed what her relationship with Gus had taught her. Hazel in turn had opened a new window to Gus' outlook on life and purpose. He had very little left to live, yet he was obsessed with leaving a legacy, but as we read in his eulogy for Hazel, that she helped him realise the value of every tiny thing, every tiny star and its glitter. Humans can leave scars instead of marks, and too foten we stay so busy engraving those that we forget to stop and notice. Paying attention, valuing, noticing the people and moments around one is the essence, too soon and unannounced the stars may well fade away. Realising just how lucky we are with what we have and are blessed with, a blessing in everything.

Based on all the hype surrounding this book (and the movie), I confess to having gone in with too high expectations when I first opened this book. Beautiful still, it did turn out to be a 'simple' story about a young boy and girl in love, finding their star-crossed love in each other and discovering things about life when life had given them an ultimatum. It wasn't a depressing book of doom or falling into the dark holes of how horrible cancer or chronic disease is. Rather, it teaches the reader to light that candle in pitch darkness and things will not be as they seem. It teaches us to rise in every fall and grasp onto hope. It guides you to reach out high, grab and "bottle all those stars", of happiness, hope, love, peace, ambition, dreams, and destiny. The magical dinner Hazel and Gus had: I loved the phrase, "we've bottled all the stars this evening" (p. 163). They needed those stars, as the title aptly said, the fault was in the stars. Yet they still found a way to shine. ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Hannah Alexander rated it it was amazing

A Fault in Our Stars by John Green should not be “lumped in” with his other texts. This novel stands alone in its brilliance. So often we see stories about disease and loss through the perspective through the perspective of the bereaved… the sufferer. We let the illness consume the person, and we neglect the life that they have left to live. A Fault in Our Stars is the pleasantly humorous, romantic tragedy of two young lovers. I sound contradictory, but life is full of contradictions and this bo ...more

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Jan 28, 2015 Jacob Mroczkiewicz rated it liked it

Green certainly caters to his audience, but he also encompasses much of adolescence -- that is, the embedded experience of it -- in such a way that one cannot help but treat this text as a "mirror text". There were some parts in the text that left me vaguely aware of my eyes beginning to role, but altogether, this novel is comprised of unadulterated emotion that many adolescents have felt in some degree -- a love, or otherwise union with another human, that simply cannot be, cannot last.

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Feb 05, 2015 Michelle Parsons rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya-lit

If you see my reviews for An Abundance of Katherines and for Looking for Alaska, you may get the feeling that I have a love/hat relationship with John Green's books. You would be correct. I admit, I resisted reading The Fault in Our Stars for several years before reading any John Green at all. I was finally forced into it by a class. And I am grateful, though I cannot tell if I am glad for it.
So first, my reasons for avoiding the book. As much as I hate to admit it, I avoided it partially becau If you see my reviews for An Abundance of Katherines and for Looking for Alaska, you may get the feeling that I have a love/hat relationship with John Green's books. You would be correct. I admit, I resisted reading The Fault in Our Stars for several years before reading any John Green at all. I was finally forced into it by a class. And I am grateful, though I cannot tell if I am glad for it.
So first, my reasons for avoiding the book. As much as I hate to admit it, I avoided it partially because it was so popular. As a book store employee in a college town that hosts high school summer camps, I heard all the buzz as girl after girl bought the book or talked about buying the book or talked about how the book was different from the movie but SOOO GOOOOOD in a way that suggested an extravagance of capital letters. I like to think that as a PhD student, I am beyond the need to read something just because it is popular (Sorry, my prejudices are showing.) My other reason for avoiding the book, I will admit, had to do with a certain movie popular during my high school career, A Walk to Remember. If one has seen that film, one might get an idea of my expectations regarding a high school love story based around a character or characters with cancer. Warning: If you loved A Walk to Remember (which I admittedly enjoyed,) or have a view about cancer patients that is particularly sensitive in a way that is not reflected in The Fault in Our Stars, you will not care for my views.
I am delighted to have been so wrong. The snarky, realistic attitudes of Hazel, Isaac, and Augustus were probably my favorite part of the novel. None of them is happy about their life, really, but they are all realistic about their choices, their chances, and their anger. None of them subscribes to the cancer-myths of staying positive, "living strong", or being a kind of lay saint. This is not to say they don't demonstrate amazingly positive attitudes, or strength, or patience in the face of suffering, but they cannot be reduced to these types. They are just people in a crappy situation, dealing as they can with all that brings. As a person surrounded by friends who suffer from chronic illnesses that range from the life-threatening (leukemia, AIDS) to the merely life-limiting (depression, anxiety, fibromyalgia), who suffers from these latter illnesses as well, and who has had a cancer scare in the recent past (melanoma, excised two years ago), the kind of humor and introspection in this novel had a deep connection for me. I am living this in a way that is obviously not nearly as poignant and immediate, but nonetheless, I am in a way, living this.
What struck me most about Hazel and Augustus is the way that they are characters with too much time to think, so much time to read and think that they cannot actually escape from their thoughts. Sarcasm and metaphor are the only way to cope, because the reality would be too crushing.
(view spoiler)
Of the three Green novels I read, this one ranks as a tie for best written. In some ways, this is the best writing of the three. The emotions are honest, the characters are hardly one-dimensional in the same way that they have been occasionally in the other novels. The only stereotypes are in minor characters, like Kaitlyn, Lida, and Patrick. (High school socialite, the livestrong cancer survivor, and the depressingly-funny religious motivational speaker, respectively). Of course, it has none of the characters as a minority of any sort other than having cancer, from my recollection, but are all white midwestern middle class people. Even the usually marginal "best friend" character is the decidedly well-rounded, though long-suffering, Isaac. It is also the first one of the three Green has written from the female point of view, which he handles with surprising grace.
In finishing this review, I almost don't know what to say, except that I was inspired. The small infinity and the large infinity are both worth exploring. ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Lauren H. rated it liked it

The Fault in Our Stars. Oh, the love-struck teenagers! One very pretentious boy falls in love with an also pretentious girl, both have lives plagued by cancer, and both struggle to find what life (and death) are about. Although there were a few moments that pulled on my heartstrings, I found this book to be relatively un-extraordinary and a bit cliche, leaving me with no huge lasting impressions or messages. I expected more from such a rave-about book; however there were still moments in the boo The Fault in Our Stars. Oh, the love-struck teenagers! One very pretentious boy falls in love with an also pretentious girl, both have lives plagued by cancer, and both struggle to find what life (and death) are about. Although there were a few moments that pulled on my heartstrings, I found this book to be relatively un-extraordinary and a bit cliche, leaving me with no huge lasting impressions or messages. I expected more from such a rave-about book; however there were still moments in the book that captured my attention, and I believe there are aspects of the book that would make it a beneficial read to young adult readers.

This book’s strength is its ability to buck against the cancer narrative and to create pictures of death (and illness and hurt in general) that aren’t beautiful. There are biting moments in this text that are not covered by glittery façades. There is hurt, pain, anger, and so many more emotions, and I think that young people would especially benefit seeing death and hurt in a genuinely painful way.

I also appreciated the ways in which the book interrogates issues of identity. It specifically looks at questions regarding what makes a person himself or herself. Is a person defined by disease? by ability? by what they can say? or by something more? For Green, I think the answer is definitely “something more.” I believe young readers would especially benefit by these questions about identity, especially because it is so easy for young people (and all people, really) to categorize others based on easily describable traits and categories.

The greatest fault (pun intended) that I found with this book was its creation of a young girl who seems to be hopelessly in love with the “hot” guy; Augustus drives the relationship forward, and Hazel Grace has little agency. She chases after Augustus’ words, his approval, his writing, and his life’s philosophies. Although she acknowledges that his constant insistence on metaphors and philosophies are not nearly as attractive to her as the moments where he lets his guard down, she still seems to embrace his incessant doting on her, which in turn consistently works to give him the power. Even in the last pages of the book, I feel like Augustus still held power over Hazel in terms of telling her how and what to think about life. I felt like Hazel was constantly objectified (even her thoughts were in a way, objectified), and I think that this creates ideals for young girls that are limited and stifling to their roles in relationships.
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Jan 31, 2015 Mykala rated it really liked it

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green follows teenage cancer victim Hazel Grace and her life beyond the hospital rooms of her youth. Hazel is our narrator throughout the book and we get a look at the difficulties of living with cancer but also at some teenage normality. She watches TV reruns, re-reads her favorite book, and doesn’t always agree with her parents. I think she provides emotional depth and brings honesty to her situation, even if at times it seems narcissistic. Upon meeting Augustus The Fault in Our Stars by John Green follows teenage cancer victim Hazel Grace and her life beyond the hospital rooms of her youth. Hazel is our narrator throughout the book and we get a look at the difficulties of living with cancer but also at some teenage normality. She watches TV reruns, re-reads her favorite book, and doesn’t always agree with her parents. I think she provides emotional depth and brings honesty to her situation, even if at times it seems narcissistic. Upon meeting Augustus in her support group everything changes. Together they create new adventures, find joy when it was thought to have been lost, and impact each other in unexpected ways. The dynamic of these two characters throughout the book weaves together a story of growth, love, and thought provoking dialogue.
Throughout the novel Green creates vivid scene descriptions that allow the reader to feel as if they are sitting next to the characters. He picks out the small details that make up a room or landscape and it makes me wonder whether perhaps you notice the small things more when you know your time here on earth is going to be cut short. He also presents the reader with several metaphors that run throughout the book enriching the characters and allowing us to get a glimpse of who they really are as individuals.
While this novel is deeply sad at times there are moments of humor that pop up just when you need them. Among the characters there are scenes of laughter mixed with thought provoking questions about the complexities of living with cancer. These characters are faced with ambiguous thoughts that some people have their whole life to figure out, such as leaving an impact on the world and making a difference in the lives of those around them. This leads to a role reversal between Hazel and her parents as she is thinking more about what will happen to them when she is gone and doing things on a regular basis just because she knows it will make them happy. Many children aren’t faced with these decisions and this perspective is worth looking at in terms of how different everyday life is for young adults fighting cancer.
I think this novel is beautifully sad and one definitely worth reading. It provides characters that want to live their lives despite their illness and have yet to give up on searching for their identity as well as their place in the world. These characters have a story to tell about love, grief, and self-discovery.
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Jan 23, 2015 Nancy C rated it liked it

Often, books such as The Fault in Our Stars—which broach topics of terminal disease and death—can suffer from being heavy-handed, becoming overly saccharine rather than maintaining a digestible balance of emotional and intellectually stimulating. Done properly, such investigations of our own mortality can leave the readers asking themselves questions concerning the meaning of their own existence in this world. This novel certainly fits into this category. While The Fault in Our Stars is certainl Often, books such as The Fault in Our Stars—which broach topics of terminal disease and death—can suffer from being heavy-handed, becoming overly saccharine rather than maintaining a digestible balance of emotional and intellectually stimulating. Done properly, such investigations of our own mortality can leave the readers asking themselves questions concerning the meaning of their own existence in this world. This novel certainly fits into this category. While The Fault in Our Stars is certainly a tearjerker, it remains challenging enough to push the envelope and force the readers to ask themselves challenging questions. The story of Hazel and Augustus is very realistic—which makes it even more provocative when the characters suffer serious health-related setbacks. Most cancer stories are necessarily sad ones, but the fact that this one is about young people dealing terminal forms of the disease make it especially tragic.

The story is quite a pleasant read. Occasionally, however, author John Green seems to revel in referencing recondite theories that are unlikely to be familiar to the majority of his readership—or even begins to sound patently sesquipedalian, apparently taking great joy in finding the least used words dug out of Roget’s Thesaurus. It can only be assumed that such inclusions likely proved difficult for several young adult readers to understand. Green, on the other hand, made it no difficult matter to identify and sympathize with the character of this novel—they are remarkably likable. Augustus is genuine in the manner that he brings up issues of existence and of the meaning of being in the world—his thoughts read as readily accessible and natural, while still encouraging philosophical reflection on the part of the readership. His reflections on what it means to be alive and wanting to be remembered eternally after death are thoughts that most thoughtful individuals entertain at some point in their lives, but rarely so profoundly at the young age at which this character feels compelled to do so. While the matter of the meaning of existence is most certainly a question that haunts many humans, it is particularly poignant when considered by teenagers whose very life is likely to end while they are still figuring out their path.

One especially interesting character, while certainly not the protagonist, is Isaac. The fact that he can find the humor even in his heartbreaking condition and that he struggles to prevent it from stopping the routine he had before going blind make him an especially inspiring example for the other characters in the novel. Isaac too is very genuine about his condition and thoughts on life—he doesn’t hide his emotions from anyone and his friends are supportive in that they allow him to express those emotions, even when it means he sobs for hours on end or becomes destructive as a release for his bottled up anger at his own illness.

The case of Hazel, who is the protagonist and narrator of the story, is particularly curious. While she is the main character and voice of the story, and therefore the reader learns from her perspective, very little is discussed about her personally. Her role in this novel seems to be to play the girl with terminal cancer who falls in love with a guy (and infinitely more interesting character) she mistook to be healthy, who ends up dying before her at the end of the novel. She’s not as complex or compelling a character as Augustus, or, for that matter, even Isaac—who in the few times he appears in the story gives a newly expanded range and depth to the matters discussed. Despite all of this, the role Hazel is interesting precisely for the lack of detail we get about her thoughts—this minimalistic approach forces the reader to exercise their own theory of mind to a greater degree to imagine exactly what the protagonist-narrator may or may not feel or believe.

That the novel veers away from the sentimentality of other terminal disease narratives and deals with the role of death among the young in such a unique way likely contribute to the possibility that in the future this novel could become part of the literary canon—at the very least among the classic works of young adult literature. It deals with issues that are typical of the teenage experience—relationships, questioning the meaning of life, and sex, and adds to it the threat of death which hovers above each character in the novel, including the difficulties of dealing with the death of a friend. It is all too facile to think of teenagers as living within their own happy worlds, and not needing to deal with “real” problems. The Fault in Our Stars definitely has the capacity to challenge such views and possibly change the beliefs of people with such prejudices. After all, as is aptly shown in this novel, matters such as death, sickness, and love are not limited to adults.
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Aug 06, 2014 Morgan rated it really liked it

The ending was ruined for me, due to my inability to jump on the bandwagon quickly. I waited to read this, due to other books and my disinterest. I listened to all the mixed reviews and decided, eventually, that I should read this. Plus, since the telease of the movie, not almost everyone knows what happened. It is definitely no longer a severer.

So here's my consensus: The Fault in Our Stars is not a terrible book. Were there cliches? Yes. Was there true emotion despite the cliches? Yes. As I s ...more

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Jan 07, 2014 Logan rated it liked it

The strength of The Fault in our Stars lies in the emotional power leveled by its primary character: sixteen-year-old Hazel, who carries with her a terminal form of cancer. Written in first-person, the novel captures Hazel's character and continually sells the reader her young adult philosophy, darkened by her cancerous present but continually evolving as Hazel herself grows and develops. Despite her struggle with the terminal illness, Hazel's cancer is not the main event of the novel. It is eve The strength of The Fault in our Stars lies in the emotional power leveled by its primary character: sixteen-year-old Hazel, who carries with her a terminal form of cancer. Written in first-person, the novel captures Hazel's character and continually sells the reader her young adult philosophy, darkened by her cancerous present but continually evolving as Hazel herself grows and develops. Despite her struggle with the terminal illness, Hazel's cancer is not the main event of the novel. It is ever-present, but acts more as an environmental concern, occasionally impacting her actions and permeating her thoughts, but generally slips to the background of the novel. This is one of John Green's best successes: though the cancer is ever-present throughout The Fault in our Stars, the characters are determined to live as themselves, to have relationships that are not defined by their illnesses, and to lead lives in which they themselves are not reduced to their tumors.

I found the novel's first half difficult to read, mainly due to Augustus' character. While he operates as a bright spot for Hazel, he darkened my experience of the book, and I found myself at times ready to set the book aside permanently. Despite this, however, Augustus' initially obnoxious character traits are a testament to John Green's writing; as the novel progresses, Augustus becomes more bearable (though never actually likeable). Similarly, Hazel begins and ends the novel in separate places, having developed throughout her interactions with Augustus, her parents, and other characters.

Though I found myself surprisingly disinterested while reading this book, I think that, for many people, it stands as something certainly worth reading. The concepts with which John Green works operate in interesting juxtaposition with one another, and not many popular young adult novels can boast that their main characters regularly contemplate mortality on one side of the page and teenage romantic angst on the other. Though Green's novel was not for me (and really, I think it was the forced-seeming romance that turned me off), it still exists as a solid example of young adult literature that attempts to delve into difficult and frequently shied-from topics about life, and is a good read for people looking to contemplate a little existence.
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Jul 19, 2014 Michelle rated it liked it

Shelves: owned-books

The Fault in Our Stars is, primarily, a love story (but man, does it pull me in with that Shakespeare reference in the title). However, it is also a story about coming to terms with the inevitable concept of death and accepting the fact that not everyone is going to leave an imprint in the history books, in fact, very few will manage to do so. This being my second reading of the novel, I found myself focusing more on Augustus's character on this read through, perhaps because, in my opinion, Haze The Fault in Our Stars is, primarily, a love story (but man, does it pull me in with that Shakespeare reference in the title). However, it is also a story about coming to terms with the inevitable concept of death and accepting the fact that not everyone is going to leave an imprint in the history books, in fact, very few will manage to do so. This being my second reading of the novel, I found myself focusing more on Augustus's character on this read through, perhaps because, in my opinion, Hazel is not near as intriguing. Gus is the force that keeps this novel moving.

If Augustus Waters were a real person, I'm fairly certain that he would grate on my nerves constantly. However, as this is a piece of literary work, I can appreciate his moments of pretentiousness and find that his words do have a merit of truth in them, he has the audacity to address topics that many would consider trivial or inappropriate. He himself is the one who breathes life into Hazel, reminding her of the joys of living when she had resigned herself to continue on in a half-life until she died. And I believe that Augustus works out so well in this novel because he fits Green's writing style perfectly. Throughout all of his novels, Green has some extremely beautiful lines, most poetic in a deep, introspective manner. Reading such sentences in correlation with Augustus's character is so seamless because I can so easily imagine such things coming from him.

But apart from character analysis, I really enjoyed the theme of acceptance of not being remembered after death, as I mentioned previously, more so the second time I read this novel than the first. Its one of those things that I know I think about a lot, but I never actually considered how it must plague everyone else just the same. Green does an excellent job encompassing such a reality not only in a positive light, but in a way that younger readers could also understand.

Not only is this novel an enjoyable read and beautifully written, it also deals with some heavy stuff in an enjoyable fashion. Oh, and it'll probably tug at your heartstrings. Just a little. I'm a sucker for that little detail, too. ...more

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Jan 07, 2014 Matthew Troxel rated it liked it

You can't turn on the television without hearing about "The Fault in Our Stars." A best selling novel that has won the heart of teens and even inspired a revolution with his Nerdfighters, I expected a lot when I cracked open this novel. You don't become the most successful author in recent history for nothing right?

That is true but it isn't because TFiOS. Fault, as I am going to call it from here, was built on the back of several of Green's other works and it shows. That doesn't make it a bad no You can't turn on the television without hearing about "The Fault in Our Stars." A best selling novel that has won the heart of teens and even inspired a revolution with his Nerdfighters, I expected a lot when I cracked open this novel. You don't become the most successful author in recent history for nothing right?

That is true but it isn't because TFiOS. Fault, as I am going to call it from here, was built on the back of several of Green's other works and it shows. That doesn't make it a bad novel. It just felt like I was partaking in the same old song and dance after three of his books.

Fault is about a young girl named Hazel who meets a boy named Augustus. Hazel has cancer. Augustus had cancer. They fall in love. Just youtube the movie trailer if you want more details.

The book begins with Hazel reacting how, I feel, a teenager would handle cancer. Pessimistically and sardonically. I fell in love with this voice mostly because of its rawness. It didn't last though as Augustus inspired her with hope. Little tidbits of conflict are sprinkled throughout the rest of the novel but it is mostly a hopeful story of romance. Then stuff happens. What bugs me most is that "stuff" doesn't come soon enough. When it does finally hit though, the novel really begins to shine. You get to see Hazel's strength and not just her wishes fulfilled.

Hazel and Augustus are interesting teenagers. Green's strength lies in his ability to transmute teenhood into a printed media and give teens a relatable experience. When he talks about pain, he doesn't just tell you about it. He gives you a real dose of it.

This feels very much like Green's other work though. If you've read Looking for Alaska or Paper Towns then you've read a very similar story. All three are stories about love and infatuation that turn bittersweet. Where they are different is the catalyst for their collapse and their pacing. My favorite so far has been Paper Towns, mostly because it had the fastest pacing and a story that is rarely told buy very relatable to me. Looking for Alaska was a close second. Last but not least is Faults.

Faults is his most commercially successful of course and it is definitely a great book. After three and a half John Green novels though, I was mildly disappointed. ...more

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Jan 24, 2015 Jung Han rated it liked it

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