When deciding on a book to immerse myself in, I often receive many recommendations from a range of sources. Sometimes it may be my friends that urge me to read various books. My dad urged me to read the hilarious Hitch-hiker’s Guide To The Galaxy and also the not-so-hilarious 1984. Ed has urged me to read the more time-consuming books, such as The Luminaries, but also some of the most thought-provoking, such as Lolita and Slaughterhouse-Five. Sav urged me to read My Sister’s Keeper, and as a result I remain the only person in four years to have ever rented this book from the school library.
Sometimes it is cinema that makes me read these books. When I saw that Under The Skin was in cinemas, when I found it was a book, I read it immediately. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Anna Karenina also provoked this reaction, though the former was too boring to read beyond 150 pages, and having seen the latter, I decided that the film (an extraordinary one, by the way) can be seen without reading the 700-page-classic-Russian novel.
However, neither of these factors stimulated my interest in reading John Green’s most recent novel The Fault In Our Stars, which has received a Twilight-proportionate amount of interest from teenage fangirls. So unsurprisingly, it wasn’t a friend or the recently released film that caused me to read this book: society recommended it to me.
I remember when I first came across the trailer to this film, and seeing that four of my Facebook friends had shared the YouTube link with messages such as ‘OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!’ and ‘SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!! [insert relevant emoticon]’ Ever since that fateful day, not only has it been heavily advertised in every form of media, but has also become a key talking point with many if my friends, and wasn’t helped by my recently-instigated interest in the Vlogbrothers.
So I decided to check out what all the fuss was about, and read the book. Was it good?
Well…I guess.
This wasn’t a viewpoint I wasn’t expecting to have, being surrounded by a public that seems to define this books as the best thing that has happened, and will happen, to literature and people themselves. But hype can have contrasting effects. Sometimes, one will hear of the hype created and immediately increase their standards, as is what generally happens, whether this be a book, a film, an album, whatever. Alternatively, to the more cynical of us, it is assumed that if social media hype something, then it is immediately mainstream/not cool/unsuitable, and thus rubbish, hence standards are lowered. For this particular novel, it was the former. Having seen the trailer and rekindled my almost unhealthy interest in teen/coming-of-age fiction, I will not deny that I was excited about reading it. And whilst I wasn’t disappointed as such, I felt that improvements could have been made.
Firstly, the characters. This story tells the story of Hazel and Augustus, two cancer-stricken teenagers who fall in love. Now, some may be against the fact that I have decided two describe the two as ‘cancer-stricken’, which is understandable. I read one description that this books was about two people with cancer, but ‘is not about cancer’. Whilst it is clear that Green works very hard to distance cancer from the relationship itself, as it should be, it still acts as an incredibly strong obstacle, and so cancer is always discussed, or implied, and whilst it may not play a specific part in the events occurring, it is always present. For example, near the beginning, Hazel is asked to tell her story, and she begins with ‘I was diagnosed when I was thirteen…’ This causes Augustus to interrupt and ask her to tell her ‘true’ story, but it shows that cancer is a particularly prevalent theme of the novel. which kind of defeats the point of not being ‘about cancer’. In hindsight, it seems that Green has meant for this to happen, but when trying to focus on a relationship, cancer is always mentioned and intrudes on whatever is happening. Whilst some may consider this necessary, it did hinder my enjoyment of the book as a whole.
Secondly, metaphors. This book is very poetic, though not a Lolita-kind-of-poetic (Lolita. Love of my life. Fire of my loins. My sin. My soul. Lolita.). That was poetic in a more literary sense, making reading it almost like reading an anthology, and an effervescently beautiful one of them. The Fault In Our Stars is poetic for the purpose of meaning rather than literature, hence the ridiculous amount of metaphors, ranging in success from the powerful to the downright absurd. An example is the fact that Augustus, despite being in remission from cancer, still carries cigarettes and always has one in his mouth, but never lights it.
‘You put the killing thing right between your teeth, but you don’t give it the power to do its killing.’
This particular metaphor, undoubtedly the most prevalent of them all, has generated hugely contrasting opinions, from those who consider it to be the leading message of the novel, to those who think it to be a meagre attempt by Green to create meaning. Personally, I am not too sure. I appreciate that it is a clever metaphor, given their dire situations, however you easily get tired of it when it is cigarettes are put in mouths every other page. I guess metaphors are only really there to enable people to think about it, so think as you like.
Thirdly – and, granted, this is being petty – inconsistency. Nothing to do with the science or anything, but more specifically the language of Hazel and Augustus. Hazel always mentions that her parents wish she could live like a normal teenager (her excuse whenever she enters the typical hormonal strop of any 15-year-old). However, she speaks very eloquently when talking about certain topics, such as her favourite book, An Imperial Affliction (which, if you’re interested, doesn’t exist in real life, and thus neither does the epigraph at the beginning), but not so eloquently about other topics, generally smalltalk. Similarly, Augustus writes extremely eloquently, as shown by his letters, and also speaks very eloquently when discussing his metaphors. However, there are stints where he speaks like a typical teenager. Whilst it might be Green’s attempt to highlight interests, passion, wonder etc., it seems odd how the style of speech can jump quite quickly, thus confusing me a bit.
Despite these three factors, which admittedly did hinder my admiration of the book, I still found the book very enjoyable to read. It may have been the curiosity of what could happen to them, given that their days were numbered. Or it could have been the fact that you are always rooting for them regarding their cancer battles, which make the characters seem more tangible than fiction, which is always important. Or it could be that I read the entire book whilst listening to Badly Drawn Boy’s The Hour Of Bewilderbeast (brilliant, and also relevant in places. I strongly recommend it).
Anyway, in conclusion, if you are looking for a friendly, quick Summer read, then The Fault In Our Stars is a great book for you, and I’m very open to disagreements, so I’d be interested to hear any of your own opinions.
If you have read it, or are for some reason desperately trying to avoid this book:
-For a coming-of-age novel, read The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.
-For a cancer-related novel, read My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult.
Alternatively, just listen to Badly Drawn Boy, okay?
Okay…
My Factless Autobiography 