‘The Fault in Our Stars’ was written by popular teen fiction author, John Green. Other books by him include ‘Paper Towns’ and ‘An Abundance of Katherine’s’. However along with writing, John Green makes video blogs. He co-hosts a YouTube video blog channel with his brother, Hank Green.

The main characters in this novel are Hazel and Augustus, two young and witty teenagers burdened with cancer. Augustus, a charming, metaphor loving teenage boy had osteosarcoma, a cancer that caused him to lose his right leg which has since been replaced with a prosthetic. On the other hand, Hazel, an extremely smart and witty girl has thyroid cancer and metastasis on her lungs which causes fluid to build in her lungs and forces her to use an oxygen tank to breathe. They’re extremely different, with Hazel having a more openly pessimistic outlook on life and hating her looks, yet Augustus has a seemingly more positive view and often flaunts his looks. But along with their differences come similarities, their sarcastic attitudes and above average minds keep them together.

Hazel and Augustus first meet in the basement of a church (dubbed “The literal heart of Jesus” by Hazel) during a cancer society meeting. When Hazel first sees Augustus, she seems to almost instantly fall in love, and that love is strengthened when he states his insightful and mysterious answer to the rest of the society when asked what he feared most. After exchanging phone numbers and talking for a while, Augustus quickly becomes one of Hazels’ few friends. Hazel even tells him of her favorite book ‘An Imperial Affliction’ which is about a young girl with cancer like herself, however the book ends in the middle of a sentence. After he reads the book Augustus and Hazel often discuss their thoughts on the ending and opt to write fan-mail to the author, Peter Van Houten, something Hazel states that she had done many times in the past. However, Van Houten’s assistant replies to Augustus letter, inviting him and Hazel to Amsterdam where Peter Van Houten lives to ask him their questions. Augustus uses his wish from “The Genies” (an organization that grants wishes to children with cancer) to take himself and Hazel who is accompanied by her mother, to Amsterdam.

The theme of this book is that anyone can fall in love, no matter the circumstances. The tone switches often, although it is usually either carefree and fun, or grim and almost depressing. The emotions change with different plot points, for example when Augustus tells Hazel that he is taking her to Amsterdam, the emotion is happy, but when Hazel is in the hospital, the emotion is dark and sad.

‘The Fault in Our Stars’ is an amazing book, full of twists and turns. Its witty quips and relatable characters are what truly make this book spectacular. John Green’s wonderful descriptions of people and places add to the books compelling charm as well. I recommend this book to everyone who likes a book with humor, but also a bit of sad undertones.