I finished reading The Fault in Our Stars tonight, sooner than I thought, because of one quality John’s books all have. I want to keep listening to his characters.
His writing is transparent and simple. He captures teenagers’ conversations and interactions believably and yet while I’m reading, I have to stop and stare at the page every now and then because suddenly there’s a sentence that says “I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once.” Sentences like those are beautiful, stand out against the rest of the narrative, and yet they feel completely natural. Totally organic to the story.
I’ve read John’s previous novels and while each deals with different themes, all of them dig deeper to show something about humanity. The Fault in Our Stars is no different.
Half of one of the bookshelves in my room is dedicated to the Books You Read In High School (Or Should Have Anyway). I’ve got The Great Gatsby up there. Catch-22 and Cather in the Rye. Some Vonnegut, some Hemingway. John’s novels are there too because they belong with thoughtful literature.
All the characters will. I will warn you to have a tissue box nearby, but this book is far from depressing. I found it to be a very cathartic read, something that made me laugh and cry in equal measure, but it did not depress me. It's been a long time since I've had a book make me react this way--it was totally worth the pre-order wait. Great work John!
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