The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green has provided one of the most satisfying reads so far this summer. Teen Hazel Grace, diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer, confronts issues of life, death and love. Hazel meets cancer survivor Augustus Waters at a group therapy session which her mother forces her to attend. Attraction is mutual and immediate. Hazel's narration of their developing relationship is loaded with witty dialog and dark humor as well as explorations of what it means to die unremarked or forgotten. The plot turns around Hazel's need to contact the reclusive author of her favorite book, An Imperial Affliction, which is about a young girl who dies of cancer. The books ends abruptly, leaving exasperating questions about what happened to Anna's mother, her friends and her hamster. Hazel, with Gus's help, is determined to discover the answers, even though the author now lives in Amsterdam and has never acknowledged her many letters. Although Green emphasizes that the book is fiction, it nonetheless thoughtfully explores what life for a teenager dealing with cancer can be like. It is both serious and light-hearted: "Hazel GRACE!" he[Gus] shouted. "You did not use your one dying Wish to go to Disney World with your parents. . . . I can't believe I have a crush on a girl with such cliche wishes."