I have never done book reviews in my life except for those compulsory ones that I was made to do in 9th grade by my English teacher. He made us write five book reviews in a month (yes, you heard me right)..So yeah, the quantity ruled over quality and the whole "reviewing books" thing was an epic fail to sum it up. And for a while, I have been running out of things to write about that interests me. So, I had an epiphany this evening about doing reviews. And I said to myself, what better book would there be to start with other than 'The Fault In our Stars' which is probably the most hyped Y/A fiction of the 21st century, yet. In both good and bad ways. I don't remember the first time I heard about the book and that shouldn't surprise any of us as it basically ruled the internet since it came out. So, succumbing to the calls of pop culture, I finally decided to read the book in the fall of 2013. I'm aware that I might be a little late. Here goes nothing.....
The plot follows teenagers Hazel and Gus who are bound together by their shared history of being a cancer patient. But that's where the similarities end. Hazel is more of a depressed soul, who thinks her life started the moment her cancer was diagnosed.And believes that there's nothing more to it. On the other hand, Gus is reluctant to let the disease decide his way of life. He is, as he himself puts it, a roller-coaster that only goes up. When the two of them meet, there's an instant spark and they decide to hang out together further.They bond over books and video games and their conversation will have anyone's face split in two with grin. The story takes an unfortunate turn when Gus tells Hazel that his cancer has returned with no hope of subsiding. Hazel sticks with him through thick and thin, but life has a way of taking it's course.
When I first read the book, I couldn't figure out if I liked it or not. The book was funny, sweet, romantic , closed off with a rather sob-worthy ending. But here's the twist, with me there was no sobbing involved (at all) and I found it eerily similar to "A walk to remember" by Nicholas Sparks. It left me kind of dissapointed, because when two cancer patients are involved, there is 90% chance of death being involved and this book was no different. The characters have traits and monologues which could be fairly suited to the late 19th century than the present day timeline. Also the fact that Gus is so perfect intrigued me. Let's face it: He was tall, handsome, funny, charming, romantic who made rather long romantic confrontations without hesitation and/or fear. No guy is that perfect. And he is the kind of character, that sets unrealistic expectations and it's rather sad. Gus also has a habit of making Venn-diagram for everyday things and make lists for everything which happen to be a trait of most of the protagonists in John Green books. So, that's quite a let-down as well.
But having said all this, the book does have its moments. The quotes mostly left me spell bound. And there is this one quote that has to be in my list of all-time favourite quotes, which spoke to me the most. "That's the thing about pain, it demands to be felt", said Gus and my mind exploded with all my saddening personal encounters. One of my friends thought this was an illogical sentence but I guess that's the thing about quotes, it demands to be related. And there was this other one, "I fell in love the way you fall asleep, slowly then all at once". The fact that John Green related sleep to love left me astounded. And I bet everyone who has been in love can relate to this. I also loved Issac's character, who is Gus's best friend. The way they cherish their friendship is exemplary. And it's breath of fresh air from the two love birds which are rather too uptight in their conversations.
All in all, 'The fault in our stars' is an okay book. Pun-intended. The story line is not the best but the way John Green puts it, things definitely becomes interesting. If you haven't read the book yet, you might want to lower your expectations a notch. And even though, it's not the "BEST BOOK EVER", you might want to give it a try if you haven't read it yet. Because if this is the way things are going to be, everyone's going to be talking about it for a quite long time to come.
If you want me to review any other book, comment below and I'll try my best to do it. Thanks ! :)
I loved your review. Awesome. (y)
ReplyDeleteThank you Amit! O:)
DeleteGood try but sorry i couldn't resist myself... umm heres the thing... you NEVER reveal the ending of any book in a book review since you just stated that Gus's cancer returns which is a crucial climax in the plot and then you give away the ending about Gus's death and it is something which shouldn't be revealed. THAT is a very fatal flaw in your book review.. Hamertia as Hazal puts it.. No hard feelings though.. just putting it out there ..accept a little improvising criticiism?
ReplyDeleteI know that one's not supposed to give out major plot points in a review but this is TFIOS we are talking about....I don't think there's anyone who doesn't know that Gus dies in the end. Maybe it was Hamertia on my part but I kinda had my reasons for putting it there. But hey thanks! I'll keep that in mind the next time I do it.
DeleteThank you for being concerned enough to point it out, I appreciate it :)