The Fault in Our Stars

The Book:

The Fault in Our Stars
By John Green
Dutton Juvenile
Published January 10, 2012

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

The Review

After reading all the fantastic reviews of The Fault in Our Stars, John Green’s eagerly anticipated fourth novel, I have been struggling to decide what I could possibly add to all the wonderful insights. First, I have to concur with a great majority of the reviewers: this is not a “cancer book” or is it even necessarily a book about cancer. Certainly Hazel thinks about cancer: her cancer Augustus Waters’s cancer, her friend Isaac’s cancer, and even the protagonist from her favorite (and purely fictional) novel, Anna’s, cancer. But trying to pigeonhole this novel with the label “Cancer Book” is akin to calling a child with cancer a “Cancer Kid” (or even, as Hazel would say, ”An Inspiration to Us All”). The truth is far more complex and thought-provoking than any label would allow.

And complexity is one of the most fabulous things about this novel–mostly because, at first glance, the novel doesn’t appear all that complicated. Hazel’s narration of events is very straightforward, almost no-nonsense, though she still retains a very sharp sense of humor. She states the facts of life as she sees them, no matter if they are pleasant or sad or inconvenient. She is also upfront with her emotions, especially romantic ones regarding Augustus Waters. Readers will no doubt find her candidness a nice change from the usual hemming and hawing plaguing female protagonists in the teen lit scene.

However, Hazel’s forthright manner is not an indication of simplicity of thought. Anyone familiar with Green’s work knows that his characters tend to wax a little philosophical, and Hazel is no exception. Drawing on a very high level of vocabulary and grammar (and a few references to philosophers like Kierkegaard), Hazel confronts readers with some very profound questions about life, death, family, and what it means to interact with a world that soon won’t have you in it.

My only complaint? Every so often Hazel’s thoughts, as brilliant and deep as they are, felt a bit masculine. This may be solely from the fact that I was aware that the author was male, but it was disruptive nonetheless.

The Rating

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The Recommendation

Although written for teens, this book will be appreciated by an adult readership too. Be prepared for nerdy moments and some tears.

Shipping Errors and John Green reads ‘The Fault in Our Stars’

I am feeling pretty frustrated today, after spending an hour on hold with customer services trying to get my copy of John Green’s new book, The Fault in Our Stars, shipped to me (hurray for unexplained mix-ups). So, in order to cheer myself up, I decided to re-watch these two videos of John Green reading the first two chapters of the book.

For those of you unfamiliar with the premise, here’s a brief synopsis:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

John Green is a Printz medal winner, and is best-selling author of the books Looking For Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines, and (my personal favorite) Paper Towns.

On to the clips!

The Gathering Storm, by Robin Bridges

The Book:

The Gathering Storm
By Robin Bridges
Random House
Due out January 10, 2012

St. Petersburg, Russia, 1888. As she attends a whirl of glittering balls, royal debutante Katerina Alexandrovna, Duchess of Oldenburg, tries to hide a dark secret: she can raise the dead. No one knows. Not her family. Not the girls at her finishing school. Not the tsar or anyone in her aristocratic circle. Katerina considers her talent a curse, not a gift. But when she uses her special skill to protect a member of the Imperial Family, she finds herself caught in a web of intrigue. An evil presence is growing within Europe’s royal bloodlines—and those aligned with the darkness threaten to topple the tsar. Suddenly Katerina’s strength as a necromancer attracts attention from unwelcome sources . . . including two young men—George Alexandrovich, the tsar’s standoffish middle son, who needs Katerina’s help to safeguard Russia…and the dashing Prince Danilo, heir to the throne of Montenegro, to whom Katerina feels inexplicably drawn.

The Review

Back in September, Publisher’s Weekly put out this article which predicted the future fad of young adult literature was historical fiction. Judging by the up rise in novels by big name authors set in past times–Bright Young Things, Anna Godbersen (2010), Clockwork Angel, Cassandra Clare (2010), Name of the Star, Maureen Johnson (2011)–this assessment is proving to be true. Joining the fray is Robin Bridges’ debut novel, The Gathering Storm, which is set in Russia at the turn of the 19th century.

Although this novel features a cast of characters well known to the paranormal romance crowd (vampires, werewolves, undead, oh my!), the real shining star of the story is its exotic historical landscape. Bridges spends much effort conjuring up images of what life was like for the aristocracy of a Russia caught between the advancements of the industrial revolution and the lingering grip of superstition. Through the eyes of the main protagonist, a modern-minded young Duchess named Katerina, readers are whisked through glamorous winter balls, social calls to empresses and tsars, and the complicated maneuverings of a mother intent on having her daughter marry well (à la Jane Austen). And sleighs rides. There are a lot of sleigh rides.

Bridges has obviously done a lot of research in order to make the book historically accurate. I confess I’m no expert, but I do recall from my brief attempt at reading War and Peace (it is on my ereader and I will get to it…eventually) that the Russian aristocracy spoke mainly in French and that whispering of revolution was severely frowned upon–all of which is remarked upon by Bridges. She also spends an ample amount of time name-dropping, which is acceptable in small portions, but feels a bit overdone here.

Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the historical setting, I found the rest of the book lacking. The plot was okay. Nothing extraordinary or unexpected. The action was glazed over (stating merely that they fought furiously, rather than describing the punches). The pacing at times dragged. And the romance was…well, not very romantic. Katerina and her main love-interest George Alexandrovich had surprisingly few scenes together, and those that they shared were filled more with exposition advancing the plot than building any sort of affection between the two. Perhaps Bridges was trying to channel a Darcy-type character–after all, George was often described as brooding, and Katerina was convinced he detested her–but George was too standoffish for my taste. If not for some traditional hint-dropping by Bridges I would have been just as disbelieving as Katerina when George confessed his feelings. On the bright side, this is the first in a series, so Bridges has ample room for deepening Katerina and George’s relationship.

Finally, one last note on the cover art. The publishers were given an incredible opportunity to come up with an evocative cover; something that captured the romance and glamor of olden time Russia. They settled instead on a generic cover of a girl in a traditional ushanka hat. Disappointed.

The Rating

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The Recommendation

Read it if you like a mix of paranormal and historical fiction. Those who enjoyed the settings of Clare’s Clockwork Angel and Johnson’s Name of the Star will eat up this book.

Clockwork Prince

For me, the greatest test of a book comes not in the first few lines, but rather somewhere around page 300. At this point, both the book and I have reached a post-midway slump. The book, supposing it’s following a traditional arc, is stuck in the calm between two storms: the excitement of being introduced to the world, its characters, and its problems is over; but the final build to the conclusion has yet to begin. For my part, I’m usually cranky. It’s late, no doubt verging on 2 am, and I’ve got work early in the morning–and I still have so far to go. I know it’s a bit ridiculous, but not being able to finish the book in one sitting is upsetting. If my eyes weren’t exhausting and my brain demanding sleep, I’d take the extra 2-ish hours to finish the whole thing. But it can’t be helped. I’ve got to make a decision: either a) scan the rest of the book for major plot points before skipping to the end, or b) save it until tomorrow night.

Well, I’m an incredibly impatient person when it comes to books. I absolutely detest not knowing the ending before I shut the lights off for the night–which means, nine times out of ten, I’ll choose option a. After all, I reason with myself, there are hundreds of books in my queue I’m dying to read. What’s the harm in settling for the abridged version?

I know a book is good, however, when I instead go for option b. Luckily for me, Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare was that good.

The second in Clare’s Infernal Devices series, Clockwork Prince continues the tale of the intelligent and feisty Tessa Gray. Here’s part of the jacket description:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

In order to protect Charlotte’s place at the Institute, Tessa Gray and her two friends/love interests, Will and Jem, set out on a quest to discover where the Magister is hiding. Their journey takes them through the dark secrets of the Magister’s past and also uncovers an unsavory secret one of the Clave is desperate to keep hidden.

The Review

I have read all of Cassandra Clare’s previous books, including those in her Mortal Instruments series, and I have to admit that this is far and away my favorite. I was not too impressed with the first installment, Clockwork Angel–it was one of the books whose ending I skimmed. The premise, while interesting, was not fully fleshed out. The characters were well-drawn, but slightly two-dimensional in terms of emotional motivations. Even the prose itself was a bit jilted, the historical scenery obviously heavily-researched, but feeling superficially thrown in for the sake of “touring” Victorian London.

With Clockwork Prince, Clare has moved past all that. While we are certainly touring Victorian London and its surrounding environs, including a trip to York to see its great cathedral, it doesn’t feel as forced. In fact, the description of the turrets “piercing the sky like Saint Sebastian stuck through with arrows” is very fitting, and fleeting enough that it doesn’t interrupt the story’s flow. It also gives the pace more breathing room, so the scenes truly in need of lengthy descriptions (Starkweather’s hall of horrors, for instance) don’t feel bogged down.

From a plot standpoint, the story was pretty transparent. No major revelations. No unexpected twists. The bad guys remained bad. The good guys good. And the betrayals, such as they were, were extremely obvious on both sides.

But the plot was never meant to be the shining star of the novel. Relationships were. The romantic triangle was, naturally, delightful to read. Tessa’s emotions were realistic and complex, as was her attraction to both Will and Jem. The scenes build the romantic tension at a subtle, but not dragging pace. When the emotions at last boil over, it is believable and heartbreaking.

Other things I liked: the exploration of non-romantic relationships, such as those between parabatai; the comprehensive tour through Victorian literature; the discussion of sickness and immortality; and, of course, the ever-fabulous Magnus Bane.

[Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
Published December 6, 2011
Margaret K. McElderry Books]

The Rating

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The Recommendation

READ IT! It is an excellent addition to Cassandra Clare growing repertoire of young adult literature.

(Phew! I made it through my first review! Please let me know what you think by leaving a comment, liking the post, or sharing it on facebook or twitter.)

YA Covers Get All Dressed Up

Have you noticed lately that a visit to your local bookstore’s young adult section is like a trip to a high-end New York fashion show? Everywhere you look, hauntingly lovely girls grace the bookshelf catwalk, modeling intricate and, often, extremely voluminous gowns.

Just take a look at these extravagant covers:

This fancy-dress trend has exploded in the past year (all these books were published in 2011, except for The Luxe and Matched, which came out in the tail end of 2010), a symptom of the revival the gothic–aka paranormal–romance novel is currently undergoing. There’s no doubt that the covers are evocative. The atmosphere is dark. The subjects’ expressions, if seen at all, are forlorn and longing. Combined with single-word titles like Passion, Wither, and Entwined, the images are clearly meant to elicit tingling emotional responses from their teenage consumers, rather than hint at any sort of plot point.

And it works, usually. I know I’ve picked up these books in part to admire the pretty dresses and bask in their deliciously dark aura. With the best ones, I can practically feel the intrigue and romance seeping through the covers.

However, even the most gorgeous dress, if staged improperly, can go horribly awry. The new YA novel by Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me, is one such example. An otherwise fantastic debut novel that plays with classic gothic and dystopian motifs, the cover art is sadly disappointing.The straightforward view had the potential to be fresh and different from the slew of other dress covers. The fact that the female subject’s entire face is showing is a huge improvement, in my opinion, on the trend of using partially hidden features. Her expression is obviously meant to be strong and determined, but  just comes off as a generic runway face. The backdrop doesn’t help matters either, since it, in fact, looks like a catwalk, complete with a door through which the model can disappear once she’s stomped the length of the runway. Even the strike-out in the title and tagline comes off cheesy, although I’m more willing to forgive this, since the style is employed throughout the text as well.

All in all, I quite like the fancy-dress cover trend. Done right, the covers are beautiful and exciting, conjuring up visions of magic and mystery. Done wrong, the gorgeous dress becomes nothing more than a flat stage piece, easy to pass over in favor of the multitude of others vying for attention.

(P.S. Want a full review of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi? Check out this one by fellow blogger endlessqueue.)

 It’s a superhero story with a female protagonist. I feel like it may be harder to find your own voice in the YA genre lately, as so many novels seem to be playing off of all the other ones in the genre. What Tahereh Mafi does is all natural, it’s her voice developing a unique idea and standing out from all the rest.