What a talented writer John Green is--The Fault in our Stars is powerful, engaging, and emotional. The characters are teens living with terminal cancer. The topic scared me away. I didn't want to connect with these characters. But so many of you told me I had to read it...so I did. Thank you, Dana, for lending me your book. I need to buy my own copy now. It deserves a place on my shelf. As a Language Arts teacher, the reference to Shakespeare should have pulled me in right away. In his play, Julius Caesar, Cassius says to Brutus, "The fault, dear Brutus, in not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings." When you guys read this play in 10th grade, come back and explain that line...I know you will understand it even better. Can we change the future? Is our life today, this day, up to us?
I grew to love Hazel, the wise-beyond-her-years bibliophile (yes, I used a stem word). I understood the love her mother had for her--a tragic love, really. And I immediately fell in love with Augustus (Gus), whose sarcastic wit and positive view on life (even his) is contagious. As their friendship turns to love (we know it before Hazel) I was rooting for a happy ending. But can there be one? There will be no spoilers here (but have kleenex close by). This is a story that will stick with you. Even I learned a thing or two about life and cannot wait to visit Amsterdam. As you probably know, the film version is planned to be released on June 6, 2014. Let's go see it as a group! Those of you reading The Book Thief for your Holocaust unit--Markus Zusak, the author, described The Fault in our Stars as "a novel of life and death and the people caught in between." Perfect description.
I grew to love Hazel, the wise-beyond-her-years bibliophile (yes, I used a stem word). I understood the love her mother had for her--a tragic love, really. And I immediately fell in love with Augustus (Gus), whose sarcastic wit and positive view on life (even his) is contagious. As their friendship turns to love (we know it before Hazel) I was rooting for a happy ending. But can there be one? There will be no spoilers here (but have kleenex close by). This is a story that will stick with you. Even I learned a thing or two about life and cannot wait to visit Amsterdam. As you probably know, the film version is planned to be released on June 6, 2014. Let's go see it as a group! Those of you reading The Book Thief for your Holocaust unit--Markus Zusak, the author, described The Fault in our Stars as "a novel of life and death and the people caught in between." Perfect description.