Bibliographic Information


Green, J. (2012). The fault in our stars. New York, NY: Penguin Group.

ISBN: 978-0-525-47881-2

 

Plot Summary

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is the story of 16-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster. Hazel has cancer and carries an oxygen tank around with her in order breath. She is depressed and has alienated herself from her peers and family members. She no longer leaves the house and spends her day as a recluse. One day her mother forces her to go to a support group where she meets Augustus Waters. Augustus is in remission, but lost his leg to cancer. The two become close friends and eventually become romantically involved. During the story Hazel shares with Augustus her favorite book, Imperial Affliction by Peter Van Houten. Knowing how much the book means to Hazel, Augustus surprises Hazel with a trip to meet Van Houten. The trip is not what they expected, but Hazel finds herself falling even more in love with Augustus. However, she constantly worries about what will happen once she dies and Augustus is left with just the memory her.

 

Critical Evaluation


I really like this book because of how authentic the characters felt. The character Hazel has cancer, but that doesn’t define her. She is a real teen that explores everything from the metaphysical to why we scramble eggs. I felt like that Green was able to portray a realistic teenage experience through Hazel and Augustus. Neither character sugarcoated what was going on and talked openly about their concerns. Hazel’s narration felt raw and honest as she talked about her depression and cancer. Even though they have cancer, Green created characters that liked to play video games, talk about books, and hangout with friends. They were normal teenagers that happened to be dealt an unfair hand in life. The end was heartbreaking and I did not see it coming. It was interesting though because Hazel had worried so much throughout the story about her impending death being a painful memory for her loved ones. However, when Augustus dies she realizes that she is actually grateful for their time together. His death taught her that she needs to live in the now why she can and not worry about the future. I also think the story about Van Houten is really interesting. It brings up the question do we like books for the author or for the book. Once Hazel learned the truth about Van Houten it did influence the way she viewed the book. She had Van Houten on a pedestal, which made him a hero in her mind. She had to learn that sometimes the people we idolize aren’t always the people we think they are. It was unfair to think of him as a hero when he was really just another human being with his own set of problems. However, that shouldn’t change the fact that the book was still a great book and meant something to Hazel.

 

Reader’s Annotation


Hazel and Augustus both have cancer and both love each other. Are their days numbered and is it worth it for them to even live the life they have now?

 

Author Information

The following information was taken from the author’s biography,

http://johngreenbooks.com/bio-contact/.

 

“John Green is the New York Times bestselling author of Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, and The Fault in Our Stars. He is also the coauthor, with David Levithan, of Will Grayson, Will Grayson. He was 2006 recipient of the Michael L. Printz Award, a 2009 Edgar Award winner, and has twice been a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Green’s books have been published in more than a dozen languages. In 2007, Green and his brother Hank ceased textual communication and began to talk primarily through videoblogs posted to YouTube. The videos spawned a community of people called nerdfighters who fight for intellectualism and to decrease the overall worldwide level of suck. (Decreasing suck takes many forms: Nerdfighters have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to fight poverty in the developing world; they also planted thousands of trees around the world in May of 2010 to celebrate Hank’s 30th birthday.)

 

Although they have long since resumed textual communication, John and Hank continue to upload two videos a week to their YouTube channel, vlogbrothers. Their videos have been viewed more than 500 million times, and their channel is one of the most popular in the history of online video. He is also an active Twitter user with more than 3.8 million followers. Green’s book reviews have appeared in The New York Times Book Review and Booklist, a wonderful book review journal where he worked as a publishing assistant and production editor while writing Looking for Alaska. Green grew up in Orlando, Florida before attending Indian Springs School and then Kenyon College.”

 

Genre

Fiction, Realistic, Romance

 

Curriculum Ties


Could be used for a unit on cancer and illnesses.

 

Booktalking Ideas


• Do you agree with Hazel or Augustus’s views on life? Why or Why not?

• What would you do if you had cancer?

• If you found out that an awful person created your favorite book would you like the book less? Explain?

 

Reading Level/ Interest Age


Grades 9-12

 

Challenge Issues


Death, Cancer, Children Dying, Sex

 

Challenge Issue Resources (for usage in a challenge situation)

• Active Listening

• Explanation of why it was chosen for the collection (Rational)

• Awards

• Reader Advisory Reviews (Students, Parents, Educators)

• Positive and Negative Reviews

• National Council of Teachers “Right to Read”

• ALA Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials

• ALA Bill of Rights on Intellectual Freedom

• Library Selection Policy & Library District Reconsideration Form

 

Why I choose it

I choose to read this book because I used it for literary criticism essay in INFO 265. It was also made into a wildly popular movie.  Green is one of my favorite authors and I felt that it would be important to include him in this collection.