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What Members Thought
This is the novel John Green was born to write. Stop trying now, buddy. You'll never do better than Hazel and Gus and Isaac and Peter Van Houten.
(Just kidding. Please keep writing. I'd like to see you try, at least, to out-do yourself.)
But yes: this is how you write a book. For teenagers. For everybody. ...more
(Just kidding. Please keep writing. I'd like to see you try, at least, to out-do yourself.)
But yes: this is how you write a book. For teenagers. For everybody. ...more
I did love this. I love the way Hazel's voice is Holden-like--tired and cynical and young but also geeky and uncertain. I can say with some confidence that the gallows humor the main characters share is authentic. And I just loved the smart, fast pace of the thing. Oh, and the frankness and non-exploitiveness (it's a word, right), with which Hazel's attraction and desire for Augustus is treated--refreshing. And I liked how the kids get to be funny and smart and have their own world of values and
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Flawless. A few favorite quotes:
"People always get used to beauty, though." (p. 164)
"Sometimes it seems the universe wants to be noticed." (p. 223)
"It seemed like forever ago, like we'd had this brief but still infinite forever. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities." (p. 233) ...more
"People always get used to beauty, though." (p. 164)
"Sometimes it seems the universe wants to be noticed." (p. 223)
"It seemed like forever ago, like we'd had this brief but still infinite forever. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities." (p. 233) ...more
I finally read this and loved it!! Definitely buying it so I can read it again.
It's been a while since a book made me both laugh out loud and cry in the same chapter. The Fault in Our Stars has easily been the best book I've read in 2013.
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Read this book in one sitting. I love the stream-of-consciousness-philosophical thoughts of Hazel Grace. And I love that her middle name is Grace.
April 2014 COTC Book Club selection
Just managed to delete my entire review. Take 2.
Enjoyed this more the second time around, but I still felt like it was just a touch manipulative. What's really well done is Hazel's relationship with her parents - that's what made me cry more than anything with her or Gus and I must remember this the next time someone asks for a YA book with good parents. Long-term terminal illness isn't a type of grief I've personally dealt with, but much of the general grief s ...more
Just managed to delete my entire review. Take 2.
Enjoyed this more the second time around, but I still felt like it was just a touch manipulative. What's really well done is Hazel's relationship with her parents - that's what made me cry more than anything with her or Gus and I must remember this the next time someone asks for a YA book with good parents. Long-term terminal illness isn't a type of grief I've personally dealt with, but much of the general grief s ...more
Grades 9-12. It's not like me to pick up a cancer romance. Those things never end well. But this is not your typical book. It won the Printz award this year, which it truly earned. It is a BEAUTIFUL book. The characters are so genuine. They become your friends. The love story is so tender--cancer has aged them beyond their years. I will remember this one for a long time.
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I tried to read this book a year ago and I put it down because it was too sad. Reading about young people with cancer is really difficult. My mind just starts imagining all sorts of terribly depressing and difficult situations: what if my kids had cancer? What if I had cancer? What if my husband had cancer? How would we get through it? How could I go on? etc., etc.
I tried again, this time with the audiobook version, and I finished it! I enjoyed it. John Green is always reliable for a good read. ...more
I tried again, this time with the audiobook version, and I finished it! I enjoyed it. John Green is always reliable for a good read. ...more
Recommended Ages: grades 9 and up
"Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten"--Jacket.
Thanks John Green for making me cry. ...more
"Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten"--Jacket.
Thanks John Green for making me cry. ...more
Finally gave this a try since sooooooo many people loved it. While I think it's fine, and there are some humorous moments and big words, I'm not really digging the characters. I'm almost a third though the book and indifferent about finishing it. Are there books that I might like better? Probably.
I do like John Green's Crash Course videos and I enjoyed An Abundance of Katherines way back when, but the others have not clicked wildly with me as they seem to with most other teens and librarians. ...more
I do like John Green's Crash Course videos and I enjoyed An Abundance of Katherines way back when, but the others have not clicked wildly with me as they seem to with most other teens and librarians. ...more
... couldn't put it down, read it straight through, 3 hours.
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This one will stay with me for awhile. I have to say that I haven't really liked his books as much since he wrote Alaska, but this one was amazing. A moving love story (that guys would like too, I think). He totally gets the teen mind and all its snarkiness. LOVED it!
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