The Fault in Our Stars

Over the last few months, I heard so much about this book that I just had to read it.  It's been one of those crossover titles, like The Hunger Games or books by Jodi Picault or Nicholas Sparks, that seems to appeal equally to adults and teens.  In this novel, sixteen year old Hazel is living with cancer; she is not cancer-free, but her cancer has stopped spreading since she began taking a new drug two years ago.  She knows that she is living on borrowed time, and she prides herself on taking each day as it comes, realistically and philosophically, without pinning too much hope on a future that she might never get to see.  Then one day in support group, she meets a cancer survivor named Augustus; she begins to discover that although it might be painful to risk hope and love when the future is uncertain, that risk makes living worthwhile.

Although this book is beautifully, beautifully written, I cannot confidently put it in the hands of my students.  If I taught high school, I might feel differently.  As it is, however, The Fault in Our Stars contains enough rough language and morally "muddy" subject matter that only a parent would know if it is appropriate for his or her own 12- or 13-year old.  After I finished the book, I gave it to my daughter, a sophomore in high school, with the understanding that she and I can discuss the trickier aspects of the plot if she chooses to read the book.  Beyond my disappointment that the book is truly "young adult" and therefore too mature for my classroom library, I really enjoyed the writing in The Fault in Our Stars and will probably seek out other books by John Green in the future.