Monday, December 4, 2017

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green


The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

                                                        
1.      Bibliography

Green, John.  The Fault in Our Stars.  Grand Haven, MI: Brilliance Audio, 2012. ASIN B00OHX3KT4.

2.      Plot Summary

Hazel has been struggling as a cancer survivor much of her life.  Medical science has found a drug to keep her cancer at bay but it has still only bought her time not eradicated the disease.  At the insistence of her mother, Hazel attends a support group where she meets the love of her life, Gus.  Gus makes her feel more alive than she has ever felt but he is also a cancer survivor.  Hazel turns Gus onto her favorite book, An Imperial Affliction, and they use his “Cancer Kid” wish to go to Amsterdam to meet the author. The story tackles the heavy questions, ‘Does my life and will my death have meaning?”

3.   Critical Analysis

The character of Hazel feels real because she has the same emotions as any teenager we ever met.  She has depression over her situation in life, elation over her new love, and angst about what others think about her.  The story is about Hazel’s emotional journey and how other people impact your views about life. Hazel’s world is small, since she takes classes online, she really only ever sees her parents and her support group.  So, when she goes to Amsterdam, her world opens up and seems even bigger to her then it would to a more traveled individual.

The Fault in our Stars explores Life and Death.  The story also explores Family, Isolation, Love, Religion, Courage, Identity, Consciousness, Existence, Morality and Coming of Age. Sometimes in life, you may not always get what you want and what you wish for, so you have to be thankful for what you have while you have it. John Green says in the Questions and Answers after the audiobook, that he chose a female lead to show that women can be strong in the face of adversity.  And since the story is told through Hazel, the reader can feel Hazel’s emotion as she goes from despondent to hopeful.

I listened to the unabridged version of the book on CD.  The reader of the story was actress and voice talent Kate Rudd whose narration of a teenage girl is excellent.  She is also believable in her narration of the other myriad of characters. This version of the audiobook also includes a question and answer session with the author.

4.      Review Excerpts

#1 New York Times Bestseller
TIME Magazine’s #1 Fiction Book of 2012

From Booklist: Starred review. “Beautifully conceived and executed, this story artfully examines the largest possible considerations—life, love, and death—with sensitivity, intelligence, honesty, and integrity. In its every aspect, The Fault in Our Stars is a triumph.”

From Horn Book Starred review. “Hazel, the most multi-dimensional yet of John Green Girls, may not be able to change the course of her stars, but she navigates their heartbreaking directives with humor, honesty, and — while she would probably deny it — grace.”

From Kirkus Reviews: Starred review. “A smartly crafted intellectual explosion of a romance.”

From Publisher’s Weekly: Starred review. “So maybe there's not a new formula at work so much as a gender swap. But this iteration is smart, witty, profoundly sad, and full of questions worth asking, even those like "Why me?" that have no answer.”

From School Library Journal: Starred review. “An achingly beautiful story.”

5.      Connections

Gather and use with other John Green books such as:
      Looking for Alaska. ISBN 0142402516
      Paper Towns. ISBN 014241493X

Gather and use with other #1 Best Seller in Teen & Young Adult such as:
      Forman, Gayle. If I Stay. ISBN 014241543X
      Yoon, Nicola. Everything, Everything. ISBN 0553496670

Gather and use with other teen books that explore death and dying such as:
      Ness, Patrick. A Monster Calls. ISBN 0763655597
      Hesse, Monica. Girl in the Blue Coat. ISBN 0316260630
      Niven, Jennifer. All the Bright Places.  ISBN 0385755910

Explore the connections between the story and Romeo and Juliet.

 

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