The Fault in our Stars by John Green

This story was heart wrenching for me to read. Hazel, the main character is has cancer but is doing well because she is on a drug that keeps the rumors in her body from growing. She was first diagnosed three years prior when she was 13. That prognosis was not good so her parents took her out of school, but her body fought through it and she survived. Because she continued to have health problems her parents let her get a GED instead of returning to high school. 

She does take a few classes at a community college but is constantly depressed. To her dismay her mother suggests that she attends a cancer support and she only agrees so that her mother will leave her alone. She does make one friend, Isaac, in the group but only because they both think the group is absurd. One day, while attending the group, Hazel notices a new boy in the group and he keeps staring at her. After the session begins she learns that the boy who keeps staring at her is Isaac's friend Augustus, who had his leg amputated because of his cancer.

From the moment that Augustus sees Hazel he is in love but she isn't so sure but they do become quick friends. She even tells Augustus about her favorite novel, An Imperial Infliction, which she has never shared with anyone before. 

There friendship soon blossoms to love but because Hazel is afraid that she will die soon she does not want Gus to feel that way about her.

As I was reading this story I longed for their to be a happy ending even though I knew there wouldn't be one. It just didn't seem fair that these two teenagers could find true love only to have it taken away. 

This would be a good book to read in a high school class. It may be sensitive to some because it is not a book that tip toes around the subject of cancer. Hazel describes in great detail what she and her parents went through. However that is not the focus of the book. This novel shows that people who have been diagnosed with cancer do not want to be pitied. They strive to have normalcy in their lives just like everyone else. 

This was a great read, but you might need some Kleenex.