The Fault in Our Stars by John Green – Review

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.

My Review

I recently listened to the audio version of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.  Honestly, I didn’t really know what the book was about until I received the audio gift. I just knew that it was being turned into a movie and I was familiar with the author.  Let me just say, I really loved this book.  Audio books offer that extra sensory experience, the voice of the character or narrator, and I instantly loved this one. Listening to Hazel and her story was awesome.

This story follows the life of Hazel, a teenage cancer patient and her friends, also cancer patients.  I wasn’t too sure I wanted to continue listening to it because from the onset, learning that Hazel was a cancer patient made me sad and made me think of the worst.  I knew tears would be unavoidable. I continued listening and just couldn’t put my headphones away.  I spent my day, yes all day, listening to this story.  As I cleaned, did my groceries and even cooked dinner, I was totally into this audio book. I had to finish it in one day.

“Amazing” is the word I use to describe this book.  It is definitely a story that makes you look at your life through a brand new set of eyes.  I am a parent and I am blessed to have healthy children.  I don’t usually relate to how a parent with a sick child might feel or live their life.  This story opened my eyes to my own life.  It is a must read.

I actually recommend this book to teenagers/young adults because they often only focus on their own lives and their own problems which they think are too much to handle.  This fantastic story will also make young adults think and appreciate life.  Young adults will be able to relate with Hazel and Augustus perfectly.

Let me warn you, you will laugh and cry and along the way meet two of the most amazing brave teenagers I have ever met/read about.  You will learn about the importance of living your life to the fullest and enjoying every single moment.

There are so many things I would love to share but then I would be giving the story away.  I won’t do that.  You need to read this book!

If you haven’t read this book, or listened to it like I did, I highly recommend it.  The movie is set to release this summer.  I know I am looking forward to meeting Hazel and Augustus on the big screen.

I gave this book 5 stars!

 

Some of My Favorite Quotes

“Okay.”

“What a slut time is. She screws everybody.”

“The marks humans leave are too often scars.”

“That’s what love is. Love is keeping the promise anyway.”

“The world in not a wish granting factory.”

“Maybe ‘okay’ will be our ‘always.”

“You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I’m grateful.”

 

Here’s the movie trailer.  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2582846/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

About the Author

John Green

John Green’s first novel, Looking for Alaska, won the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award presented by the American Library Association. His second novel, An Abundance of Katherines, was a 2007 Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His next novel, Paper Towns, is a New York Times bestseller and won the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best YA Mystery. In January 2012, his most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, was met with wide critical acclaim, unprecedented in Green’s career. The praise included rave reviews in Time Magazine and The New York Times, on NPR, and from award-winning author Markus Zusak. The book also topped the New York Times Children’s Paperback Bestseller list for several weeks. Green has also coauthored a book with David Levithan called Will Grayson, Will Grayson, published in 2010. The film rights for all his books, with the exception of Will Grayson Will Grayson, have been optioned to major Hollywood Studios.

In 2007, John and his brother Hank were the hosts of a popular internet blog, “Brotherhood 2.0,” where they discussed their lives, books and current events every day for a year except for weekends and holidays. They still keep a video blog, now called “The Vlog Brothers,” which can be found on theNerdfighters website.

Website: http://johngreenbooks.com/

Twitter:  @realjohngreen

Throwback Thursday Special: The Kingdom Keepers Series by Ridley Pearson

Today’s Throwback Thursday selection (series)  is very special to me.  You see, I got to meet the amazing Ridley Pearson yesterday at his book signing.  This awesome author has written a series of books that has captivated the minds of people of all ages.  This series, The Kingdom Keepers  is a favorite in my own classroom. I can never keep his books on my shelves.  My students love his books and reread them often.  As you can see, Ridley is one of my favorite authors.  This series is now up to seven books.  I just got my hands on the new book,  #7 and cannot wait to read it.

 

 

If you have never read this series, I recommend you do. If you are a Disney fan like me, you will love them even more.

 

 

 

About The Author

Ridley Pearson is the author of more than twenty novels, including the New York Times bestseller KILLER WEEKEND; the Lou Boldt crime series; and many books for young readers, including the award-winning children’s novels PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS, PETER AND THE SHADOW THIEVES, and PETER AND THE SECRET OF RUNDOON, which he cowrote with Dave Barry. Pearson lives with his wife and two daughters, dividing their time between Missouri and Idaho.

http://www.ridleypearson.com/

Twitter:  @RidleyPearson 

Throwback Thursday – Holes by Louis Sachar

Today’s Throwback Thursday book selection is Holes by Louis Sachar.  My students recently read this book and really loved it.  I read this to my older son when he was younger and enjoyed watching the movie with him as well.  This is one of the books that I keep on my bookshelf at school.  It is a most enjoyable 5 star read.

And so, Stanley Yelnats seems set to serve an easy sentence, which is only fair because he is as innocent as you or me. But Stanley is not going where he thinks he is. Camp Green Lake is like no other camp anywhere. It is a bizarre, almost otherworldly place that has no lake and nothing that is green. Nor is it a camp, at least not the kind of camp kids look forward to in the summertime. It is a place that once held “the largest lake in Texas,” but today it is only a scorching desert wasteland, dotted with countless holes dug by the boys who live at the camp.

The trouble started when Stanley was accused of stealing a pair of shoes donated by basketball great Clyde “Sweetfeet” Livingston to a celebrity auction. In court, the judge doesn’t believe Stanley’s claim that the shoes fell from the sky onto his head. And yet, that’s exactly what happened. Oddly, though, Stanley doesn’t blame the judge for falsely convicting him. Instead, he blames the whole misadventure on his “no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather.” Thanks to this benighted distant relative, the Yelnats family had been cursed for generations. For Stanley, his current troubles are just a natural part of being a Yelnats.

At Camp Green Lake, the warden makes the boys “build character” by spending all day, every day, digging holes: five feet wide and five feet deep. It doesn’t take long for Stanley to realize there’s more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the treacherous warden is searching for something, and before long Stanley begins his own search—for the truth.

Fate conspires to resolve it all—the family curse, the mystery of the holes, the drought that destroyed Green Lake, and also, the legend of Kissing Kate Barlow, an infamous outlaw of the Wild West. The great wheel of justice has ground slowly for generations, but now it is about to reveal its verdict.

 

Have you read this book?

Take this fun quiz. https://www.goodreads.com/quizzes/4525-holes-quiz

Quotes from the book:

“If only, if only, the moon speaks no reply;
Reflecting the sun and all that’s gone by.
Be strong my weary wolf, turn around boldly.
Fly high, my baby bird,
My angel, my only”

“I’m not saying it’s going to be easy. Nothing in life is easy. But that’s no reason to give up. You’ll be surprised what you can accomplish if you set your mind to it.After all, you only have one life, so you should try to make the most of it.”

 

Happy Thursday!

~Susi