The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Title: The Fault in Our Stars
Author: John Green
Pages: 318
Publisher: Dutton Books

From goodreads.com: Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumors tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

I went into this one having heard all the talk about it so I was prepared to be a hysterical mess by the end.   I was not prepared to love it as much as I do.  The Fault in Our Stars is the story of Hazel Grace, a girl with cancer.  She has been terminal since her diagnosis, but a miracle drug has bought her some extra time.  Enter Augustus Waters - the newest addition to my favorite fictional boys list - who Hazel meets at her cancer support group.  It's just another day in the Literal Heart of Jesus, which, by the way, had me laughing out loud.  You had to see me at work reading this book.  I felt like everyone was like, "Oh, look at that girl, chuckling at the cancer kid book."  AWFUL.  But this book is so much more than that.  There's so much humor and so much heart.  It really is as good as everyone says it is.

My favorite thing about this book is that it is totally Gus and Hazel's story, their journey together.  We come into Hazel's life and she's already been diagnosed and the miracle drug has already taken effect.  It's simply the story of a girl and a boy falling in love.  TFiOS is definitely going to have me reaching for more John Green books in the future.  The only other one I've read is Will Grayson, Will Grayson and to say I had a less than positive reaction would be an understatement.  This, though, has shown me that I really do enjoy John Green's writing and am looking forward to reading more by him in the future.