Okay, so if you're a breathing person on the internet, which I assume you are if you're reading this, then you have probably heard about The Fault in Our Stars, AKA, TFIOS.
The Fault in Our Stars is a novel written by author/blogger extraordinaire John Green, which quickly turned into the hot ticket item amongst teens. From personal experience, I found that if you are a female teenager who has not read the novel, it made you feel so uncomfortable and out of the loop that you immediately went to the library to check it out, but you couldn't because some other girl in the same boat as you beat you to it, so you ended up borrowing it or whatever. Point is, you read it, you know, if you fall under the description I just described.
I read the novel about this time last year, and can honestly say that out of all of John Green's novels, it was my least favorite. But, to be clear, it was a great read and very emotional, but I feel it is certainly not his best, as a die-hard Looking for Alaska lover. So you can imagine my surprise when it snowballed into what it is now, which is craziness.
I was however, thrilled to find out that the movie was being directed by Josh Boone, I am a HUGE fan of his debut film, Stuck In Love, which also features Natt Wolff, who appears as Isaac in TFIOS. I went to see the film with a friend and found myself in a theatre full of other teenage girls, who I ended up laughing, cringing, and to my surprise, crying with. I didn't cry when I read the book, but seeing it all unfold in front of me with actually people and actual medical equipment, I cried like a baby with colic.
The TFIOS fandom is INTENSE! The image of two clouds with the words, "Okay” scrawled in each is plastered all over the internet. People are overanalyzing and obsessing over each inch of the book and film, and I can honestly say that if it was any other book with any other author, I would be exhausted and annoyed. But I have a crazy amount of respect and admiration for John Green, not only because he was the ONLY reason I got through my World History AP test, but also because he is crazy smart, charitable, personable, and so gracious.
So, being real about TFIOS: No matter how overhyped, and teenagery it may seem, it is an excruciatingly harsh story about life, love, friendship, and the incredulous power of words. It is also about metaphoric death by cigarettes, Amsterdam, basketball, infinity, and the strength it takes to be on a rollercoaster that only goes up when life has given you every reason to felt down. I am proud to be a part of a generation that can recognize the beauty of fiction and latch on so tightly to it, I am thrilled that John Green has taken up the duty of being our voice, and screaming into the void for us, shouting at the world and calling their attention to what it's like to be young and broken, young and restless, and just, well, young. So thank you Mr. Green, thank you for your crazy mind and ability to lift us from our lives and drop us into a vortex of emotions so overwhelmingly swirling around us, and making us feel, just feel emotions instead of running away from them. Thank you for making this thing called life that much better.
As for TFIOS, novel and film, I suggest that you go to your local library and put your self on the waiting list for the book, because I am almost certain that there will be a waiting list. And after you've read the book in its beautiful entirety, you should get some popcorn and a box of tissues and sit in a theatre full of teenage girls, cry with them, laugh with them, and immerse yourself in the story. And when you leave, numb and exhausted from feeling all the feelings, learn from Hazel, and Augustus, and Isaac, and Peter VanHouten, and seize the day, carpe diem. Don't take it for granted, or shy away from it, but take on life at 100 mph, live every moment like it'll be your last, do what you want when you want, damn it!
And, well, that's all I've got to say about that.
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