The Fault In Our Stars - John Green

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS

ISBN - 978-0-141-34565-9
FIRST PUBLISHED - 2012
PAGES - 324
GENRE - Fiction
PUBLISHERS - Penguin

AUTHOR - John Green

BESTSELLERS - Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines

SYNOPSIS - Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

EXCERPT - 

“May I see you again?" he asked. There was an endearing nervousness in his voice.

I smiled. "Sure."

"Tomorrow?" he asked.

"Patience, grasshopper," I counseled. "You don't want to seem overeager.

"Right, that's why I said tomorrow," he said. "I want to see you again tonight. But I'm willing to wait all night and much of tomorrow." I rolled my eyes. "I'm serious," he said.

"You don't even know me," I said. I grabbed the book from the center console. "How about I call you when I finish this?"

"But you don't even have my phone number," he said.

"I strongly suspect you wrote it in this book."

He broke out into that goofy smile. "And you say we don't know each other.”  

QUOTES - 

“As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once.” 

“My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.” 

“Some infinities are bigger than other infinities.” 

“The world is not a wish-granting factory.” 

“Books so special and rare and yours that advertising your affection feels like a betrayal.” 

“You are so busy being YOU that you have no idea how utterly unprecedented you are.” 

"That's the thing about pain," Augustus said, and then glanced back at me. "It demands to be felt."

FL Speaks - Everywhere I look, people are talking about this book/movie. Be it twitter, where everyone is advising those who plan to read it to keep a box of tissues nearby or be it Instagram, where selfies with the book is the new hip thing. And so, I jumped on the bandwagon as well. No, you won't find me on Insta with a selfie of the book. Yet.

TFIOS is a masterpiece. That's my verdict. Although it didn't make me shed tears, much to the chagrin of millions of others who filled a bucketload of it, it did made me immensely happy and equally sad. More like a scotch on the rocks. The scotch being the happy me and the ice, well y'know. 

And now we begin. This is the story of Hazel, a thyroid cancer patient whose inevitable end is prolonged by a miracle drug. And yet, she is destined to live her life with her disease never knowing when it could relapse. And then she meets Augustus. This is a tale of friendship and love, that spans infinities. Hazel is funny without trying to be, Augustus is a charmer with the good looks.

This is a story about death. This is also a story of an entire lifetime that you can fit in before you succumb. This is a story of hope and wishes and tears and laughter and ambition. John Green has weaved magic with his words. Magic that you don't want to unravel. You end up wishing for a miracle. But then, as Augustus says, the world is not a wish granting factory.

Ever get the feeling of the calm before the storm? This is the book. From the very first page, you realize the impending storm is coming. And you hold on to the calm as long as you can. Now, maybe you know, half of how Hazel and Augustus life has been. They've been riding the calm or trying to. The wish of this book is not to make you cry. It is to make you live the life our young heroes are leading. Crying is just the side-effect of feeling.

The last 100 pages are ruthless. I can very well imagine this is where your restraints fail. Its a complete sob fest hereafter. Hazel probably wouldn't want us to cry. She hated being pitied upon. She also wanted people to notice everything.

The ending was abrupt. I would've liked to know more, but John has left something for the imagination. In a way, that's how it should be. We make our own endings.

RATING - 4.5/5

MOVIE TRAILER : Do NOT forget to watch the movie when it comes out (already has in the States)

P.S| This book is dedicated to Esther Earl. Esther was a young girl who lost her fight to her disease. Her family and wellwishers have set up a foundation "This Star Won't Go Out". I hope you check out TSWGO and help any way you can.