Paper Towns - John Green

A thought has been lingering in my head for a while, but it hadn't reached the surface until I closed the book of Paper Towns and I let myself listen to the voice: To be in John Green's creative mind would be a wonderful place to be.


























Quentin (Q) always adored Margo; Margo, the popular girl; the mysterious girl. The girl next door that isn't quite the girl next door you imagine.

After a night full of adventure with Margo, Q is more than confused when she isn't around anymore. In a trance of love and confusion, Q sets out to find her; the girl that no one can understand; the girl Q wants to understand.

Through using traces Margo seems to have left behind, Q becomes besotted with the idea; addicted to finding the girl he loves.

It's true that every John Green book is famous as a piece of art; Paper Towns is the novel I had been intrigued to read for a very long time. It, naturally, didn't disappoint.

Paper Towns is a melodic book; a book that made me think a lot. It made me wander about Margo's intentions and the force behind Q's actions. It made me think about friendship and love and all that is in between. I understood the craze created around Paper Towns straight away. I could use Paper Towns as a metaphor for everything awesome about books and literature and stories.

Paper Towns is awesome.

Maps & Road Trips,

The Girl in the Moonlight.

P.S. I am blogging every day up until Christmas for Blogmas! You can read my most recent post HERE!

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS!!1!!!!11!

So. I saw The Fault In Our Stars at the cinema, and it's time to let my thoughts spill out.

*Smiles with all of the fangirl in my heart.* It sticks SO closely to the novel. So closely. Not only did I feel it had everything essential in it, but watching it felt like what I pictured when I read John Green's novel was perfectly translated onto the screen in front of me. It was raw and honest, beautifully sweet, funny and sad, exactly to the way in which the novel projected.

The acting and the characters, again, were simply spot on. Hazel didn't show her fear and Augustus was beautifully pretentious; her mother was positive, and her father more outwardly emotional. Isaak was funny, and the support group leader, Patrick was hilariously serious. They all just worked. Hazel and Augustus's personalities bounced off of each other easily; their humours and thoughts acting as two separate reflections from the same mirror. A characteristic of Hazel that was obvious throughout the novel was her selflessness. This was so prominent in the film. She wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings and she put everyone before herself. Hazel was incredibly admirable.

The Fault In Our Stars is a must see. Yes, I would suggest reading the book (one of my favourite books of all time), but I saw it with a friend who hadn't read the book and she loved it a lot! The bursts of emotion and tragedy were poignantly beautiful, while the laughs and the love and the friendships made me grin like a John Green fangirl would.

I began thinking a lot about oblivion again because of seeing the film. It's a key theme throughout the book and film, and Augustus's fear of it is so sad to watch, and endure as his genuine fear is etched across his face. I ultimately learned a lot from Hazel's responses to the fear, and was glad of her reassurance for him.

*This is a spoiler-filled paragraph... This post would have to have one.* Hazel and Augustus's trip to Amsterdam was divine. Their relationship sparkled in the setting, and their experience was sweet and full of my eyes widening in happiness for them. The meeting between the two of them and Peter Van Houten was as raw as it was in the book. When reading the book, as much as I would have wanted the meeting to be as perfect as Hazel dreamed of, I will always be grateful for John Green's honesty. The scene in the film both broke my heart and made me want to punch the sky with glee at Hazel's awesome response.

As the film ended, no one in the cinema moved. The credits rolled and my tears made friends with one another. The Fault In Our Stars is a fresh, bright film that covers a dark topic both beautifully and honestly; it's a beautiful tale that will never leave my heart.

Okay.

Okay.

Clouds & Benches,

The Girl in the Moonlight.

An Abundance of Katherines - John Green

To review a John Green book is an exciting endeavour and that's why I have posted Looking for Alaska and this review (and the two more to come) so long after I read them. I like to re-live Mr. Green's words by flicking[1] through and remembering a feeling I had at the time of reading and writing about it. It's like seeing an old friend and having a good ol' natter.

 

Colin Singleton is a child prodigy and is also very specific about what kind of girl he likes: Katherines. With his streak of nineteen Katherines as girlfriends, comes his streak of being dumped by nineteen Katherines. When the nineteenth Katherine does so, Colin and his best friend Hassan decide to go on an adventure and alongside this eye-opening journey is Colin and his theorem of predicting the outcome of any relationship.

The idea of this book (and the idea being progressed on throughout then novel, of course) is awesome. The whole idea hooked me from the start and the novel is John Green "doing a John Green": being a ridiculously awesome writer.

When I read An Abundance of Katherines, I found Colin to be incredibly sweet. There is something about him that is so... lovely. To the characters in the book he's perceived as occasionally (okay, even he seems to accept that it's a bit more than "occasionally") quite annoying but, I felt like I was experiencing his thoughts and emotions which made his little "not interesting" ways and thoughts and quirky ways so endearing.

There were two friendships that made me learn a lot in this novel. They were the friendships of Colin and Hassan, and Colin and Lindsey. Hassan is an incredibly funny character, always finding the light side of things and it compliments Colin's humour hilariously. The two of them clearly love each other as best friends should and going along through their journey is all the more exciting because of their friendship. In turn, the friendship that develops quickly between Colin and Lindsey is lovely, with the two of them understanding each other more than they may have expected.

John Green always teaches me something with his writing. In An Abundance of Katherines a valuable lesson of the outcomes of situations is learnt alongside Hassan's discovery that I wouldn't want to ruin for anyone.

I also loved John Green's use of footnotes and graphs through the novel making it that kind of unique that John Green does so well.

An Abundance of Katherines is a really charming read.

Theorems & Friendship,

The Girl in the Moonlight.

P.S. I have reviewed two other John Green books:

1) I first reviewed The Fault in Our Stars but PLEASE don't click on THIS link if you have not read it. It's more of a discussion with myself than a review.

2) I reviewed Looking for Alaska HERE.

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[1] I flick carefully through the Wonderful Works of Mr. Green because, as much as I love the look of a loved book, the thought of damaging these creations makes me upset. In turn, this brings me onto another issue: I do love the look of a loved book. Yet, with all books I try not to make them look "loved." A world full of paradoxes is a world full of confusion.

Looking for Alaska - John Green

Cor blimey, gov'nor! Looking for Alaska... Well, that was an emotional journey.

When I wrote a review on The Fault in Our Stars (if you want to read it, I'll link it at the bottom because it comes with a big disclaimer), I found it difficult because I just wanted to talk about it; let out all of my feelings like I was in the support group in the novel. Hence, why again, I am finding it difficult to write a review like a review and not a huge text of my train of thought. However, this time, unlike my "review" of The Fault in Our Stars, I am determined to not have a large bit of text with the whole plot being covered!

Miles Halter seeks a Great Perhaps that he can't find at his school or at home or even with his memory of learning last words; so, he, after hearing stories about the boarding school Culver Creek from his father, knows where his Great Perhaps lies. Thrown happily into a world of pranks, friendship and the moments of drama and danger, Miles falls in love and learns about life.

Looking for Alaska is captivating, honest and raw: just how John Green does it. As per usual, he taught me something.

Alaska is quirky yet haunted by the past; Miles longs for a chance with this mysteriously beautiful girl. I spent the novel longing for them to meet in the middle, for Miles to banish Alaska's sadness and Alaska to show Miles that he is worthy of this Great Perhaps. I, like Miles, missed the whole point that John Green depicted to me through Alaska in true John Green Style. I'm not sure if that sounds cryptic, but, well, that's John Green for you! It's just not always about what you think it is.

A common attribute people will for other's to have and to share is honesty and this is both my favourite thing about John Green's writing and the aspect that saddens the part of me that hopes for complete harmony in plots. However, I am grateful for the way John Green can rip out of my heart and complete it all at the same time: I am always learning something important, just like the characters in his novels.

John Green puts me under a spell with his words; a spell I can't break. His novels are classics, they are beautiful and for ever haunting my heart.  I have done a review/long conversation about The Fault in Our Stars but before I link it, there are HUGE, unforgiving spoilers so please do not read if you've not read the novel: The Fault in Our Stars - John Green.

Have you ever read a John Green novel? Let me know!

Books & Pranks,

The Girl in the Moonlight.

The Fault in Our Stars - John Green

*Many traces of spoiler... Like, seriously, some real spoilers. This may be more like a retelling of the novel than a review.*

You know when people claim to have not been prepared to experience something so mind-blowingly amazing that they now see the world as a more meaningful sphere of metaphors? I experienced it and I experienced it oh so much. When I purchased The Fault in Our Stars I knew I would have my heart taken away from me on a rollercoaster cart, ready for the ride of Hazel Grace's life, but I didn't know my eyes would rain quite so much. (Oh, Mr. Green, my love for metaphors has increased).

Oh, and hold on tight because this is going to be a long post.
























Let's start with the characters.

 

Hazel Grace is one of my favourite characters ever. She's courageous, funny and so selfless. She always seemed to be protecting other people's feelings and although it broke my heart because she didn't have to, she did all the same. She was also so outrageously, inappropriately funny and it made some really sour parts of the book lighter. She had an attitude that made horrible truths easier to take in. "Even cancer isn't a bad guy really: Cancer just wants to be alive." This quote just epitomises Hazel Grace, her justifying the destructiveness of her own illness.
 

I'm not going to talk too much about (one of) the love(s) of my life Augustus Waters because I will soon be posting a Fictional Fantasy post about him but he is just awesomeperfectlovely. From the moment he was mentioned in the novel, I knew he would tattoo my heart with his every organism. The way he saw things as a metaphor and his view on life lit my heart with wonder. Oh, and he's so gosh dang charming.

The parents of Hazel Grace played such a big role in the novel with setting up how heart-breaking the novel is." As Hazel stated, the thing worse than being a sixteen year old with cancer is being a parent with a sixteen year old child with cancer. Throughout the whole novel, whenever one of Hazel's parents was mentioned, this would play through my head, making every tear from her father sting me all the more. I, like Hazel, felt the best relief near the end of the novel when it was made certain that her parents would eventually be okay after she was gone.

 

I had built myself up to meet Peter Van Houten, this wonderful author, the image of him in my heart mirroring Hazel's and so when May came, I felt Hazel's pain with her. Her one wish, her one real wish turned out to be horrendously disappointing. I turned to my brother after I read it and complained about how he ruined Hazel's dream and then he reminded me, it's fiction. Still. What's more, Van Houten, by the end of the novel is still an alcoholic. That's raw and as much as I would have loved for him to be okay (I hope, beyond the pages, he is - I really want to email John Green about this), he wasn't and, well, that added to the realism.

Augustus and Hazel's relationship is at the top with all of my favourite romantic relationships because of one thing: their differences and similarities made a coherent whole. Everything about them worked so well; they understood each other and they wanted to understand each other. What was even more touching was how in love with each other they were before they were together. Hazel didn't want to be with him so as to make sure he never ended up hurt and Augustus wanted to be with her so they could be happy together.

"I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly and then all at once."    

 

Augustus's fear of oblivion is a part of the novel that made me think. He feared being forgotten because, in time, there would be no one alive to remember.
"Almost everyone is obsessed with leaving a mark upon the world. Bequeathing a legacy. Outlasting death. We all want to be remembered. I do, too. That's what bothers me the most, is being another unremembered casualty in the ancient and inglorious war against disease."
No matter how strong Augustus appeared, how sure of everything he was, he was vulnerable and he had fears. He wanted to make a mark and he feared not making it. Well, he made a mark on my heart, that's for sure.

The part of the novel that broke my heart the most about the novel was this: "...I was beginning to suspect that even if death didn't get in the way, the kind of love  that Augustus and I share could never last." I don't like to believe it's true, but, in my head I linked it with oblivion: nothing ever lasts. Although when I read the quote it caused me to dampen the top of my top, tears not staying at the bay for anything, I know it's exactly what I love about the novel. I really love how honest it is.

I've not felt sadness at a novel like the day I read of Augustus's exit. I went to bed and Augustus was alive and charming Hazel and me. I woke up to read and before long he was dead, gone from the pages of the novel. There's some sense of realism there. That's why my throat was caught and my eyes pricked for a second before I really began to sob.

I'm glad that the book was left where it was because, despite the novel spelling out Hazel's death and what happened after, without the "scratches on a page", we know that beyond Hazel's death, her mom's happiness will exist despite the pain and her parents stay together. I just know it. Mr Green, I thank you.

I've never been so touched by one novel before and heck, not many novels have made me cry quite like this one. I was left with a muddle of thoughts and sadness but enlightenment. Not only did this novel bring me great joy with opening my eyes quite so much, the tears it created meant some really moisturised cheeks! The Fault in Our Stars is full with lines that made me stop, re-read the sentence made up of everyday letters that formed something so special and let the words make my heart pound until I was ever so slightly over the hauntingly perfect or beautiful words. Every special line is in my memory, etched with the romance and the tragedy of it all. True, the overwhelming sadness I felt was genuinely heartbreaking, but it's the most raw, true and touching novel I've read.

I could ramble on (as I've done above) about how amazing this novel is for a days and days without thinking I've not covered everything. The Fault in Our Stars is a love story, a fight, a tragedy. The Fault in Our Stars is a masterpiece, a tear-provoking work and a story that will never leave me.

John Green, this novel was more than "scratches on a page."

Crooked Smiles & Metaphors,

The Girl in the Moonlight.