Teaser Tuesday: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Were she better or you sicker, then the stars would not be so terribly crossed, but it is the nature of stars to cross, and never was Shakespeare more wrong than when he had Cassius note, “The fault is not in our stars but in ourselves.” Easy enough to say, but there is no shortage of fault to be found amid our stars.

I kept thinking that it sounded like a dragon breathing in time with me, like I had this pet dragon who was cuddled up next to me and cared enough about me to time his breaths to mind.

“Some tourists think Amsterdam is a city of sin, but in truth it is a city of freedom. And in freedom, most people find sin.”

Bookish Thoughts: Will Grayson and Tiny

Will Grayson, Will Grayson almost didn’t get read, but I decided that if you read one you must read them all… and I am glad I did, as this became my favourite of all the books (thus far). It’s about a chance meeting between two teenage boys who have the exact same name and how that meeting leaves an impact on each other’s lives.

I admit that I didn’t always love the characters; in fact I’m not sure I truly liked a single one of them in this book or any of the other novels, yet that is so true to life. You don’t always like everything about everyone, even if they are your best friends. Instead it is more like you grow used to their flaws and accept them, love the person despite their flaws. In the end I realize that I don’t have to like the characters in order to like the book itself.

Teaser Tuesday: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Without Pain, How Could We Know Joy? (This is an old argument in the field of Thinking About Suffering, and its stupidity and lack of sophistication could be plumbed for centuries, but suffice it to say that the existence of broccoli does not in any way affect the taste of chocolate.)

We all miss you so much. It just never ends. It feels like we were all wounded in your battle. I love you.

Bookish Thoughts: Looking For Alaska’s Depth

Following the many Katherines came Looking for Alaska, which has a very similar premise to Paper Towns. Boy falls for the girl whom he has built up in his imagination only for her to disappear and he needs to figure out what happened.

The story opens with Miles having a need to head into ‘the great perhaps’, something that meshed with my current lifestyle as I had just left home to live in a different country. I too wanted to go on a road trip, move to another place, with the hope that a new location would also mean a new me.

Teaser Tuesday: Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

We acknowledge that being the person God made you cannot separate you from God’s love.

A lot of this novel is about the weird relationship between identity and existence: in  some ways you are who you are because other people observe you; but in some ways, you are who you are in spite of other people’s observations of you.

*note: these are not quotes from the story, but after it has finished and are in relation to the novel. I liked them so I decided to include them

Bookish Thoughts: Abundant Katherines

An Abundance of Katherines followed Paper Towns—though I fluctuated between it and the next book in regards to which should be read. Being a little more familiar with Green’s writing style I knew the book would be more on the oddball side than cookie-cutter, happily-ever-after, and thus wasn’t disappointed by what unfolded on the pages.

In the story Colin has a thing for Katherines, and he sets out on a road trip with his bestie to get over being dumped for the nineteenth time. Being the prodigy he is, Colin comes up with a theory that he can discover the reason behind the nineteen failed relationships through the creation of a mathematical equation. It’s downright bizarre, but even the math doesn’t detract from the unique tale.

Teaser Tuesday: Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Me giving my mom romantic advice is kind of like a goldfish giving a snail advice on how to fly.

“In a way, it’s good. Love and truth being tied together. They make each other possible, you know?”

He hugs me. Imagine being hugged by a sofa. That’s what it feels like.

Bookish Thoughts: Paper Towns in Paper Books

I have working at a school library for the past three months and they just got some new John Green books. They already had a few of them, and I was told I could set one of each title aside to read before the kids got a hold of them… so I did.

I read the back cover blurbs and put them in the order of interest, with one exception. I wasn’t sure I actually wanted to read all the books, but The Fault in Our Stars had to be last. Everyone said it was amazing, and I wanted to have something to look forward to if I didn’t like the other novels.

Teaser Tuesday: Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

You like someone who can’t like you back because unrequited love can be survived in a way that once-requeted love cannot.

I can’t help thinking that ‘getting a life’ is something only a complete idiot could believe. Like you can just drive to a store, see it in its shiny box, take it to the counter, put it on your credit card, and get a life… Your life isn’t out there waiting. No, your life is right here. And, yeah, it sucks. So if you want things to change, you don’t need to get a life. You need to get off your ass.