Reviewer: Anuprova Bhowmik
Hazel Grace Lancaster is a sixteen-year-old cancer patient who has had cancer for three years. Thanks to a new drug, she was able to buy herself some extra time, but she knows that her days are very limited. Hazel feels lonely and outcast from the rest of society, so her mom signs her up for a cancer support group in hopes of helping her find a friend. Hazel loathes the support group and its over-optimistic leader, and she just goes there to make her parents happy. However, after days of sitting through the bland and repetitive meetings, she sees a new face who changes everything: a seventeen-year-old boy named Augustus Waters.
During the introductions, Hazel finds out that Augustus was a cancer patient who had bone cancer. However, after years of treatment and a leg amputation, he is now in remission. During the support group meeting, Augustus and Hazel show a clear attraction to each other, and they quickly become friends. As the two get to know each other better, Hazel starts to realize the beauty of life, and they try to make the best of their numbered days together.
The plot of The Fault In Our Stars was very well-written, and John Green was able to tell the story of Hazel and Augustus without making it boring or overly serious. The characters in the story were very developed, and their optimism in life despite their difficulties was endearing to read. Green also did a nice job using humor to bring light a serious story about cancer, and the jokes helped the characters seem more real and relatable. However, despite the many positive aspects of the book, and I did not enjoy the style of writing. Hazel and Augustus both speak with lengthy sentences peppered with deep quotes and metaphors. Although I understand that Green was trying to portray them as matured children due to their experiences with cancer, I thought he went a little overboard with the writing. Natural conversations are not always filled with philosophical ideas, and Hazel and Augustus's overuse of philosophy as a way to show their intelligence made them less relatable to the readers. Even though I thought that the writing style of the book was a bit unrealistic, the premise behind The Fault In Our Stars made the book interesting, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a quick read.
Hazel Grace Lancaster is a sixteen-year-old cancer patient who has had cancer for three years. Thanks to a new drug, she was able to buy herself some extra time, but she knows that her days are very limited. Hazel feels lonely and outcast from the rest of society, so her mom signs her up for a cancer support group in hopes of helping her find a friend. Hazel loathes the support group and its over-optimistic leader, and she just goes there to make her parents happy. However, after days of sitting through the bland and repetitive meetings, she sees a new face who changes everything: a seventeen-year-old boy named Augustus Waters.During the introductions, Hazel finds out that Augustus was a cancer patient who had bone cancer. However, after years of treatment and a leg amputation, he is now in remission. During the support group meeting, Augustus and Hazel show a clear attraction to each other, and they quickly become friends. As the two get to know each other better, Hazel starts to realize the beauty of life, and they try to make the best of their numbered days together.
The plot of The Fault In Our Stars was very well-written, and John Green was able to tell the story of Hazel and Augustus without making it boring or overly serious. The characters in the story were very developed, and their optimism in life despite their difficulties was endearing to read. Green also did a nice job using humor to bring light a serious story about cancer, and the jokes helped the characters seem more real and relatable. However, despite the many positive aspects of the book, and I did not enjoy the style of writing. Hazel and Augustus both speak with lengthy sentences peppered with deep quotes and metaphors. Although I understand that Green was trying to portray them as matured children due to their experiences with cancer, I thought he went a little overboard with the writing. Natural conversations are not always filled with philosophical ideas, and Hazel and Augustus's overuse of philosophy as a way to show their intelligence made them less relatable to the readers. Even though I thought that the writing style of the book was a bit unrealistic, the premise behind The Fault In Our Stars made the book interesting, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a quick read.
This is a great review! You did an excellent job summarizing the plot and accentuating how the cancer patients feel with their disease. Your review was concise, and it provided me with information about the writing style of the book. This information was useful as I have never read a John Green novel. This book sounds interesting and I might pick it up soon! Wonderful job!
ReplyDeleteThis was a really nice review! I liked how you described the plot and how you added your own opinions of the book at the end. I have read The Fault in Our Stars before and I remember enjoying it. I also think that Hazel and Augustus almost seemed unrealistically mature for their age. And, their conversations weren't usually what normal teenagers would talk about. I might reread this book soon. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI remember first watching the film adaptation of The Fault In the Stars on an international flight, and let me tell you, I nearly bawled my eyes out right then and there. After watching the movie, I decided I absolutely needed to read the book. I would say you did a great job summarizing the plot of the novel, and even articulating your criticisms. If you find the time, I would also be interested in reading your reviews on a couple of his other critically-acclaimed novels, for example Looking For Alaska, Paper Towns, Turtles All The Way Down, etc. Overall, great review!
ReplyDeleteI've heard a lot about this book, but I've never got around to reading it, and have only seen parts of the movie. However, your review gave me a really good idea of what the book is like! You gave a highly detailed summary of the book without giving anything away, and made me interested in reading it. I also agree with your criticism of the book, because from watching parts of the movie, I got the sense that the character's thoughts and conversations were unrealistically metaphorical. Great review!
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