“I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once.”
I just finished The Fault In Our Stars, by John Green. I’m I am by no means a fast reader and I read this in three days. I literally couldn’t put it down. It’s very good, insightful. I’m finding it difficult to express just exactly how I feel after reading this, but I’ll do my best to explain it.
If you’ve ever lost someone you love to a disease then this will hit exceptionally close to home, especially if that disease happens to be cancer and the person you lose was a girlfriend/boyfriend or spouse. I’ve never lost anyone that close to me, but I did lose my dad when I was young so I can understand it in a way.
The way John Green looks at and discusses issues like cancer, love, and death are very touching and very honest.
The book is about Hazel (endearingly referred to as Hazel Grace), a 16 year old girl who has been fighting cancer for several years. She is a recluse, taken out of school, not willing to really do much of anything. Her mother makes her to go a group therapy session with other kids dealing with the same sort of ailments to get her out of the house. There, she meets Augustus (Gus) a 17 year old who has had his leg amputated due to cancer.
To fall in love with someone you know is dying makes for a powerful and wonderful story. The quote above says so much to me, that you fall in love like you fall asleep, slowly and then all at once. I love that quote, because really, isn’t that the truth? I tend to think so. And when someone you love dies, you don’t love them any less. You continue to love and in that love they do live on in a way.
My other favorite quote from the book (which is actually a true quote according to Wikipedia) is from Dom Perignon after he invented Champagne (my favorite drink ever) “Come quickly: I am tasting the stars.” I never knew why I liked champagne so much, but it is like tasting the stars and I will forever think of that when I am drinking champagne!
I don’t want to spoil the book. Honestly, it’s about cancer and love and loss, so you can probably already guess that it is sad. That being said, even knowing that there is no way to really ruin this book. It’s amazing! I recommend you read it while drinking a glass of the stars. Have some kleenex ready, and if you happen to have someone you love nearby this will make you want to love them more and to make sure they know it.
shauna825 