The Fault In Our Stars - The first book I ever read
My journey of reading books began with this one. I happened to watch the movie adaptation first, and that inspired me to pick up the book it was based on.
About the book
The story follows Hazel Grace, a teenage girl who has been living with thyroid cancer that spread to her lungs. She has been dealing with the illness since childhood, trying to live as strongly as she can despite her limited strength, carrying its weight throughout most of her life. Because of the cancer, Hazel struggles with her breathing and relies on an oxygen tank to help her get through each day.
One day, Hazel’s mother made her join a support group at the church. Since she couldn’t avoid her mother, Hazel went to the group in the church basement. That’s where she met Augustus Waters, also known as Gus. Little by little, they became friends and started sharing the books they loved.
Hazel shared a book called “An Imperial Affliction” by Peter Van Houten. Gus loved the book and wanted to find out what happened at the ending because the book ended without a proper conclusion. Gus emailed Peter Van Houten and got in contact with the author’s assistant, which gave him and Hazel a chance to meet Peter Van Houten in Amsterdam. Hazel and Gus, along with Hazel’s mother, went to Amsterdam to meet him. However, Peter Van Houten was not a very nice person, so Hazel and Gus didn’t get the answers they wanted and left his place disappointed.
A few weeks later, Gus got very sick with his secret osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. He knew he wasn’t going to live much longer than Hazel and his other friend Isaac, so he invited his two best friends, Isaac and Hazel, to the church to share their final thoughts with him before he passed. They spent some meaningful moments together during that time.
A few hours after Hazel went to sleep, she received the news of Gus’s passing from her parents.
What you can take from this book to your life
You can have the most awful and painful times in your life. Even when it’s really hard to deal with these moments, you can always find joy no matter what situation you’re in.
Take every chance you can to make your life better and happier. Spend time with your loved ones and do what makes you happy and what’s meaningful to you, to the people around you, and to the world.
Good friends and family can make your life much greater, even when it’s full of pain. Be a good friend or family member to your loved ones, and you will get love and care in return.
Everything is not permanent; everything is temporary — even your life. People come and go, and that’s just how it is. You have to face it, but you can always find more people in your life who care about you.
Face your fears and the painful times in your life, and keep moving forward.