Green, John. The Fault in Our Stars. New York: Crown 2012. Print.
First Sentences:
Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death.
Description:
As a cancer combatant, I retain a fascination for cancer-themed books, both fiction and non-fiction. To me, it always seems interesting to read how an author/character depicts the thoughts and actions of someone experiencing the fears, hopes, and broken dreams that accompany cancer.
In John Green's The Fault in Our Stars I found three teenage characters living typical teenager lives while coping with various stages and types of cancer. Having met in a dull support group meeting, Augustus, Hazel, and Isaac bond over video games, jokes, conversation, loves, and one particular book, An Imperial Affliction with it's esoteric philosophy about suffering that speaks to them.
Normal kids, right? But each has challenges to address. Hazel uses a portable oxygen machine to keep her cancer-ruined lungs working; Gus has lost a leg to the disease; and Isaac has only one weak eye which will soon be removed due to cancer. But they persevere by testing out their new relationships with each other, family, and friends; embarking on adventures; and always seeking to somehow contact Peter Van Houten, the reclusive Dutch author of their favorite book.
For Hazel, the romantic attention of Gus is a first and she is cautious, but happy. For Isaac, Gus is a great supporter and fellow video-gamer, and for Gus ...well, who knows what the ex-basketball star gets out of these relationships besides fellowship with fellow cancer travelers.
But this description belies a truly great book. The dialogue is snappy and clever, the disdain they have for anyone who condescends to their illness is realistic, and the strong bonds they form make them seem like young people you wished you really could meet just so you could sit around and talk with them as ordinary people, not merely sick kids.
There it is: a simple story about complex, real characters who are living life of ordinary kids, but who happen to have a fatal disease that will take their lives someday. Hazel describes herself as a "grenade" who will destroy someone someday if she gets too close, But that does not stop her friends nor prevent them from seeking adventure and confidence as they interact with the non-sick world.
To me, it is an honest portrayal of what those of us who have experienced cancer go through and think about, both positive and negative. It's a rare book that combines personal reflections as well as physical actions of its characters on
Weir, Andy. Looking for Alaska
First Sentences:
Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death.
Description:
As a cancer combatant, I retain a fascination for cancer-themed books, both fiction and non-fiction. To me, it always seems interesting to read how an author/character depicts the thoughts and actions of someone experiencing the fears, hopes, and broken dreams that accompany cancer.
In John Green's The Fault in Our Stars I found three teenage characters living typical teenager lives while coping with various stages and types of cancer. Having met in a dull support group meeting, Augustus, Hazel, and Isaac bond over video games, jokes, conversation, loves, and one particular book, An Imperial Affliction with it's esoteric philosophy about suffering that speaks to them.
Normal kids, right? But each has challenges to address. Hazel uses a portable oxygen machine to keep her cancer-ruined lungs working; Gus has lost a leg to the disease; and Isaac has only one weak eye which will soon be removed due to cancer. But they persevere by testing out their new relationships with each other, family, and friends; embarking on adventures; and always seeking to somehow contact Peter Van Houten, the reclusive Dutch author of their favorite book.
For Hazel, the romantic attention of Gus is a first and she is cautious, but happy. For Isaac, Gus is a great supporter and fellow video-gamer, and for Gus ...well, who knows what the ex-basketball star gets out of these relationships besides fellowship with fellow cancer travelers.
But this description belies a truly great book. The dialogue is snappy and clever, the disdain they have for anyone who condescends to their illness is realistic, and the strong bonds they form make them seem like young people you wished you really could meet just so you could sit around and talk with them as ordinary people, not merely sick kids.
There it is: a simple story about complex, real characters who are living life of ordinary kids, but who happen to have a fatal disease that will take their lives someday. Hazel describes herself as a "grenade" who will destroy someone someday if she gets too close, But that does not stop her friends nor prevent them from seeking adventure and confidence as they interact with the non-sick world.
To me, it is an honest portrayal of what those of us who have experienced cancer go through and think about, both positive and negative. It's a rare book that combines personal reflections as well as physical actions of its characters on
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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
Weir, Andy. Looking for Alaska
Four friends at a private boarding school discuss life, scheme pranks to pull, consider their lives, and in general reveal what is occurring inside a teenager's head. Excellent (previously reviewed here)HItchens, Christopher. Mortality
The famous columnist Hitchens contracts cancer and records his progress in the journey to address the disease. His thoughts about entering the "country of the well" to the "land of malady" are clever, defiant, heart-breaking, and honest. (previously reviewed here)
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