Why "The Fault in Our Stars" Is Overrated

The Fault in Our Stars is a young adult romance novel revolving around two star-crossed lovers, Hazel and Augustus/Gus. Hazel is a young, "not-so-special" sixteen year old girl who has stage four lung cancer. The doctors have told her that she won't live much longer and that all they can do is prolong her life, not save it. Hazel is alone in her suffering with her devoted parents until she meets Augustus, an attractive, intelligent, and interesting boy that also has cancer. As soon as she and Augustus lock eyes, their lives are changed forever!

It sounds cliche and cheesy, right? "But it's The Fault in Our Stars, a New York Times Bestseller and a book that was later made into a movie! It can't be that bad, right?" Wrong! The Fault in Our Stars was just as cliche and cheesy as it sounds. If I haven't made it clear enough yet, I did not like this book. Here's why:

1. The characters are flat and one-dimensional.

My favorite element of books are the characters. If a book doesn't have good characters, I probably won't care much for it. That's one of the reasons that I didn't like this book. Hazel and Augustus were cardboard cutouts of YA characters. Hazel is the "smart, average looking, "doesn't think I'm good enough" female protagonist that somehow is very attractive and very special. Augustus is basically the mirror image of Hazel except male. You might say,"but they were soulmates, of course they should be similar!" However, romantic partners should compliment each other, not be the exact same person as their lover. If someone read me a line of dialogue from one of the main characters, I wouldn't be able to tell if it was Augustus or Hazel because they sound. Exactly. The same.

2. They fell in love way too quickly.

Yes, I know that they're teenagers and I know that the age range for this book are teens and young adults, but seriously? Hazel first spoke to Augustus on page 14, and he confessed his "love" to her on page 153. That's barely halfway through the novel. During those 139 pages, Hazel and Augustus went on maybe three or four dates. That's a very short amount of time to fall in love.

3. TOO. MANY. MONOLOGUES.

The thing that I disliked most about this book were the constant monologues that Augustus spewed out. Keep in mind that these characters are sixteen while you read an exact quote that Augustus said and came up with on the spot. "I believe the universe wants to be noticed. I think the universe is improbably biased toward the consciousness, that it rewards intelligence in part because the universe enjoys its elegance being observed. And who am I, living in the middle of history, to tell the universe that it-or my observation of it-is temporary?” Are you telling me that a sixteen year old came up with this on the spot in casual conversation? Sure, some teens might discuss deep, thought provoking topics but not in this way! Here's another one. ”I'm in love with you, and I'm not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things. I'm in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void, and that oblivion is inevitable, and that we're all doomed and that there will come a day when all our labor has been returned to dust, and I know the sun will swallow the only earth we'll ever have, and I am in love with you.” Are you kidding me? When I first started reading this book, the dialogue annoyed me and I couldn't put my finger on what I didn't like about it. After a while I knew what it was. Hazel and Augustus are the most pretentious smart alecks that John Green could put onto paper! They're just so unlikable and annoying and quite honestly I laughed through most of the supposed "deep, well-written" quotes.

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I know, I know, I'm being pretty harsh on this book. It really wasn't a terrible read and there were some things that I did kind of like.

1. The plot does sound interesting.

The fact that Hazel has cancer was what really drew me into this book. It was interesting how she fought through her cancer and physical drawbacks so she could be with the one she loved. This shows that Hazel is a strong character, even though she repeatedly says that she isn't, because she has a morbidly optimistic look on things. Hazel knows that she's going to die soon, so why not make the best of her dwindling days? It's a tragic love story: two lovers that both have cancer and may both die someday from the thing that brought them together.

2. I did like some of the lines.

Some of the quotes/ideas in this book were actually really sad. On page 116 Hazel says,"Just before the Miracle, when I was in the ICU and it looked like I was going to die and Mom was telling me it was okay to let go, and I was trying to let go but my lungs kept searching for air, Mom sobbed something into Dad's chest that I wish I hadn't heard, and that I hope she never finds out that I did hear. She said. 'I won't be a mom anymore.'" This was a good quote because it makes the reader think. If someone had a sibling who died, would they still consider themself a sister/brother/sibling? This a scary and saddening thought to anyone who has family.

Overall, I thought that The Fault in Out Stars wasn't an amazing read and that it didn't quite live up to all the hype it was getting.

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Have you read The Fault in Our Stars? If so, did you like it? Let me know in the comment section down below!