Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs… for now.
Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.
Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.
If I had read the back of this book before picking it up, I would never have read it. There is something about death and dying that alienates people and scares others away from the harsh realities surrounding it. For me, I am Thanatophobic (afraid of dying). I have literal anxiety attacks when faced with anything concerning death. Because of that, I would never have chosen to have read this book.
That said, The Fault in Our Stars is phenomenal. It truly is a book that encompasses the human nature and brings out a humor and reality to death that I would never have thought of. For many of us, death is something to fear, but this book does bring up thoughts beyond that. I loved the main characters. Hazel Grace has a personality that is close to mine. She is funny and intelligent and brings out her humor in a sarcastic witty way. Augustus Waters has the charismatic personality that makes you love him every time he opens his mouth.
I got this book at the library and unfortunately, I will have to return it now. That said, I will be wanting a copy in my own bookshelf. There isn’t a part in the book that I wasn’t smiling. I would be crying out, but I continued to smile. This book is simple and yet complex. It is pure human.
Casia's Corner 