The Toll by Neal Shusterman

From Goodreads, 

"It’s been three years since Rowan and Citra disappeared; since Scythe Goddard came into power; since the Thunderhead closed itself off to everyone but Grayson Tolliver.

In this pulse-pounding conclusion to New York Times bestselling author Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe trilogy, constitutions are tested and old friends are brought back from the dead."

Goodreads - The Toll 

Awards and Nominations:

• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (2019)

After reading Scythe I was beyond excited to read the rest of the series.  Last week I wrote about Thunderhead getting stuck in the middle child situation where it was a bridge between the first opening book and the final book of the series that was trying to finish the series with a bang.  After finishing The Toll I feel that I can easily say that Scythe was by far the best book and the series went downhill after it. 

The Toll takes place after Endura sank.  The book alternates time frames and takes place from a year after the sinking to three years.  The book follows the path of the original characters Citra and Rowan.  It also follows Scythe Faraday and his quest with Munira.  We also learn more about Greyson Tolliver, or The Toll's, role that the Thunderhead has bestowed upon him.  We also meet a few new minor characters that will interact and play a roll in the grand finale.  The entire story is based around the question of will Scythe Goddard be stopped. 

I really wish that I liked this book more than I did.  Much like Thunderhead, I felt this book was written in a hurry and was thrown together.  I could never tell how many years out from the sinking of Endura the characters were because the book definitely jumped around on the timeline.  All of these books are written into parts.  It helps break the story into pieces in a way that makes it easier to read and digest.  However, I feel that the parts in this book should have stuck with one set of people per part.  For example, one part could have been following Scythe Faraday and Munira until their story was caught up to three years after the sinking.  The same should have happened for Citra, Rowan, and Greyson.  It would have made the book much easier to digest and less chaotic.  I felt like I was constantly wondering what year it was.  The book could have definitely been organized better so that it was a smoother read. 

I was also super upset that Citra and Rowan got lost in a way in this book.  The entire series started out following their story.  They were the main characters.  But in The Toll, they were lost in the shuffle of the many characters and I felt that their story was not properly told.  The entire reason I liked the book was the concept of scythes and that the two were in love, but unable to actually be together.  

My last griping point of this book is about Captain Jeri.  I didn't have a problem with the character until it was brought up about Jeri being Madagascan and being binary.  Under a cloudy sky Jeri was he, but under the sun Jeri was a she.  At one point Citra asks what Jeri's pronouns are.  I felt that this was forced into the book.  It didn't happen naturally, and the conversation between Citra and Jeri definitely felt forced.  I am all about diversity in books, but this felt like Shusterman was told he had to include a binary character and make characters have a conversation about pronouns.  This happened multiple times.  It was just very strange in a book where it really didn't matter and had no place.

I was extremely disappointed in the last two books of the series.  When I finished this book I closed the book and said, "Well that sucked."  The book took a wild venture and I felt there was never any real closure with Scythe Goddard and Earth.  It was also left very much open that another book could be written to continue the story.  Personally, I hope that doesn't happen.  I think this series needs to be done.  I recommend reading this to finish the series, and I hope that you like it more than I did.  Overall I have to give this 3 stars.  About halfway through the book I was definitely over it and it went downhill from there.  

Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman

From Goodreads, 

"Rowan has gone rogue, and has taken it upon himself to put the Scythedom through a trial by fire. Literally. In the year since Winter Conclave, he has gone off-grid, and has been striking out against corrupt scythes—not only in MidMerica, but across the entire continent. He is a dark folk hero now—“Scythe Lucifer”—a vigilante taking down corrupt scythes in flames.

Citra, now a junior scythe under Scythe Curie, sees the corruption and wants to help change it from the inside out, but is thwarted at every turn, and threatened by the “new order” scythes. Realizing she cannot do this alone—or even with the help of Scythe Curie and Faraday, she does the unthinkable, and risks being “deadish” so she can communicate with the Thunderhead—the only being on earth wise enough to solve the dire problems of a perfect world. But will it help solve those problems, or simply watch as perfection goes into decline?"

Goodreads - Thunderhead

Awards and Nominations:

• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (2018)
• Grand Prix de I'Imaginaire Nominee for Roman jeunesse etranger (2019)

Recently I have avoided books that are part of a series.  I haven't felt committed to sitting down and staying in the same fictional world for multiple books.  It feels like I have to dedicate an immense amount of time to reading the books close together as to not forget important parts of the overall story.  After reading Scythe I knew I was going to quickly jump in and start Thunderhead.  I just had to hope that the second book could beat the curse of the forgotten middle child and that I would power through quickly. 

Citra is now a scythe and known as Scythe Anastasia.  She is busy finding her pattern as a new junior scythe.  Her fellow apprentice Rowan did not make it as a scythe.  Instead, he escaped and is now gleaning scythes who aren't following the rules of the Scythedom.  Both find they are in danger.  Rowan is being hunted by the Scythedom and Citra is being targeted by an unknown person.  Both must figure out how to survive to help both the all-knowing Thunderhead and the Scythedom. 

I have this really strange thing with middle child books.  These are the second book in a trilogy (sometimes a quartet).  The first book usually knocks it out of the park and hooks you.  The final book is always the big finale and pulls out all the stops to make it magical and memorable.  The middle book though always gets stuck.  It has to be the bridge between fantastic and amazing.  I find that middle child books are always boring and lackluster due to their role in the overall series.  That being said, I struggled with this book.  It felt like Shusterman rushed to get it finished and just slammed everything together.  The first two-thirds of the book was an absolute snooze fest.  There was nothing happening and no progression in the plot.  It felt like Rowan, Citra, and newcomer Greyson Tolliver were all just roaming about MidMerica and nothing was happening.  Rowan was busy gleaning rogue scythes and then in hiding.  Citra was gleaning in her unique way, but also trying to hide because there were threats to her life and Scythe Curie.  Greyson Tolliver was undercover, but got lost in the undercover system and ended up at a Tonist colony.  It was only when everything happened at Endura that I really got excited about the book, which sucked because it all happened at the end.

I think the idea of having a "Thunderhead" or our cloud is unsettling the way it is written in the book.  It is ALWAYS watching and always listening.  I didn't feel that the idea of the Thunderhead was really relatable in the first book, but after reading insight from it and being present as it eavesdropped on conversations I realized that we are living in the same world.  I can just mention needing to buy a new pair of shoes and on all my social media I will start getting ads for shoes.  Just recently I searched for a virtual race website and purchased a race.  Shortly thereafter I started receiving ads for multiple virtual race sites.  It is unsettling that we are being monitored the way we are.  Because no matter what you say we are most definitely heading toward a world where an AI controls everything for us.  

Scythe was way better than Thunderhead.  I still have the final book The Toll to read.  I expect it to follow the pattern I mentioned above and it will be a big fireworks finale to conclude the series.  If you read Scythe I absolutely advise you to finish out the series like any true reader would.  I give this book 3 stars.  

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

From Goodreads,

"Thou shalt kill.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own."

Goodreads - Scythe

Awards and Nominations:

• Michael L. Printz Award Nominee (2017)
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (2017)
• Premio El Templo de las Mil Puertas Nominee for Mejor novela extranjera pertenceciente a saga (2017)
• Missouri Gateway Readers Award Nominee (2018)
• Rhode Island Teen Book Award (2018)
• Grand Prix de I'Imaginaire Nominee for Roman jeunesse etranger (2018, 2019)
• South Carolina Book Award Nominee for Young Adult (2019)
• Lincoln Award Nominee (2019)
• Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Book Award Nominee (2020)

About a month ago my boyfriend and I decided to go on an outing because we were tired of being cooped up with all the restrictions.  We ended up at Books-A-Million so I could use a gift card I got for teacher appreciation week.  While shopping I spotted Scythe on the shelf as recommended reads for young adults.  I remembered it being on at least one of the award lists that I'm reading through.  Luckily, when I got home I found that it was on two lists, the Missouri Gateway Readers Award and the Arkansas Teen Award Level 1.  The fact that it was on two of my lists, moved it to the top of my TBR (To Be Read) list. 

Imagine a world where humans had access to everything and it made us immortal.  If you jumped off a building you would "splat" and be taken to a revival center to be revived.  In Scythe that is exactly what life is like.  No one can die unless it is at the hand of a scythe.  A scythe is the only person that can glean or kill another person.  Scythe Faraday decides to take on two apprentices, Citra and Rowan, to train them to become scythes.  Everything becomes complicated when they find out that only one can become a scythe, while the other must be gleaned by the victor. 

I am beyond glad that I am reading through these award lists because it really introduces me to books that I normally wouldn't read.  Just by glancing at the cover, I wouldn't normally want to read this.  But this book was really good.  So good in fact that just 40 pages in I stopped to order the other two books in the series.  The entire book in a way centers around "The Thunderhead" which is an advancement of what we call "The Cloud".  Humans have access to everything which makes them brilliant, and as a result, everyone is now in a way immortal.  If you start to look old you can "turn a corner" and reset your age back to a younger you.  This is resulting in people resetting multiple times and continuing to have multiple children.  The world is becoming overpopulated and no one can die.  But a scythe has the power to glean or kill someone.  They make the decision if your time is up and they choose the way that you will die.  This entire concept is completely wild.  Just think about what you would do with your life if you knew you couldn't die.  Would you be more daring because you couldn't die or would you continue living life as you always have?  I like to think that I would be more daring and try more things.  I'm a very cautious person and I consider every scenario that could happen.  But I like to think that I would "live my best life" and try different things because it wouldn't matter.  I wouldn't be able to die.  I would just be revived and in a few days would resume life as normal.  But even more, think about what life would be like if we had scythes running around.  It would be terrifying to see one because it could mean the death of you or someone else nearby.  Then it becomes a question of who is suitable to be a scythe.  I feel like no matter what "screening" process you had there would always be people who were in it just to kill people.  The entire concept of this book is so crazy to wrap your head around, but it is also amazingly intriguing.

Unfortunately, the content of this book makes it unsuitable for my 5th-grade classroom.  I suggested it to our librarian and she didn't think the content would be suitable for the library either.  I always hate to be that person that closely monitors what books go into my library, but it is also a fact of what will my students take away from this if they read it.  This is a very mature book and would be perfect in a high school library.  There were a few cuss words, but it didn't take away from the book.

This book was amazing and I'm so excited to share my review of the next two books Thunderhead and The Toll.  This book is a perfect book for high school-aged students.  I give it 5 stars.  I hope the other two books in this series live up to my expectations!

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

From Goodreads,

"For fans of Old Yeller and Shiloh, Where the Red Fern Grows is a beloved classic that captures the powerful bond between man and man’s best friend. This special edition includes new material, including a note to readers from Newbery Medal winner and Printz Honor winner Clare Vanderpool, a letter from Wilson Rawls to aspiring writers, original jacket artwork, and more.

Billy has long dreamt of owning not one, but two dogs. So when he’s finally able to save up enough money for two pups to call his own—Old Dan and Little Ann—he’s ecstatic. It’s true that times are tough, but together they’ll roam the hills of the Ozarks.

Soon Billy and his hounds become the finest hunting team in the valley. Stories of their great achievements spread throughout the region, and the combination of Old Dan’s brawn, Little Ann’s brains, and Billy’s sheer will seems unbeatable. But tragedy awaits these determined hunters—now friends—and Billy learns that hope can grow out of despair."

Goodreads - Where the Red Fern Grows

Awards and Nominations:

• North Dakota Children's Choice Award (1981)
• Massachusetts Children's Book Award (1987)

Before the coronavirus outbreak and quarantine, I was teaching my 64 5th graders.  We enjoyed our time together with many laughs and teachable moments.  We also had discussions about books.  I had finished reading The Honest Truth in one of my classes.  It was a whole emotional ordeal and I had kids crying.  We discussed it and the dog in the book and its fate.  One of my students said something along the lines of, "If you think that is sad, you should read Where the Red Fern Grows."  He asked if I had read it and I told him I hadn't.  He told me I REALLY needed to read it.  Fast forward into quarantine and I finally sat down to read it. 

Where the Red Fern Grows takes place in Oklahoma with a young boy named Billy.  Billy is dying to have a pair of coon hounds to call his own, but his family doesn't have a lot of money.  He starts saving money to buy his hounds and eventually gets them.  Together Billy, Old Dan, and Little Ann chase coons and have many adventures in the woods where he lives.

SPOILER ALERTS ARE TO FOLLOW!!!!  READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

Let me just say that I was 27 years old at the time of reading this and I bawled like a baby for the last 20 pages of the book.  I knew that the dogs died at the end.  I've known the story for years but had never read the book.  As I was nearing the end I knew that the dogs were getting close to dying by some strange accident.  I sobbed as Billy had to cope with losing Old Dan.  He went out and built a box for his dog and dug the hole to bury him.  And then a few days later he had to do it all again.  I cried in the hot mess, nose running, tears streaking down your face way.  Anyone who has ever lost their favorite pet knows EXACTLY what Billy was feeling in those moments.  There were a couple lines from the book that stood out while I was reading the final pages.  It said, 

"I looked at his grave and, with tears in my eyes, I voiced these words: "You were worth it, old friend, and a thousand times over."  In my heart I knew that there in that grave lay a man's best friend."

Y'all, I have never had a quote from a book fit so perfectly in my life.  It has been two and a half years since our family's English Bulldog George passed away.  He passed peacefully in his sleep.  It wasn't a tragic death like Old Dan's and it wasn't from sorrow like Little Ann's.  But this quote fits so perfectly.  I have so many good memories with George.  There are times when it is so hard to talk about him or write about him, and other times I can share a memory and have no problems.  George is buried under an oak tree behind my parent's house.  My dad and I built a cross to mark his grave, and we have since had a stone made to put there.  For just like Billy said, I know that in that grave lay a girl's best friend. 

This book is full of ups and downs.  The end is heart-wrenching and if you don't cry you have never had a pet that you loved dearly.  I can easily see why so many of my students said this book was so good and that I would like it.  It is dated, but it is so fantastic.  I could read it again and would still sit and cry at the end.  I give this 5 stars.  This is a classic that everyone should read.  

Ban This Book by Alan Gratz

From Goodreads,

-Readers, librarians, and all those books that have drawn a challenge have a brand new hero.... Stand up and cheer, book lovers. This one's for you.- --Kathi Appelt, author of the Newbery Honor-winning The Underneath

An inspiring tale of a fourth-grader who fights back when her favorite book is banned from the school library--by starting her own illegal locker library!

It all started the day Amy Anne Ollinger tried to check out her favorite book in the whole world, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, from the school library. That's when Mrs. Jones, the librarian, told her the bad news: her favorite book was banned! All because a classmate's mom thought the book wasn't appropriate for kids to read.

Amy Anne decides to fight back by starting a secret banned books library out of her locker. Soon, she finds herself on the front line of an unexpected battle over book banning, censorship, and who has the right to decide what she and her fellow students can read.

Reminiscent of the classic novel Frindle by Andrew Clements for its inspiring message, Ban This Book is a love letter to the written word and its power to give kids a voice.

-Ban This Book is absolutely brilliant and belongs on the shelves of every library in the multiverse.---Lauren Myracle, author of the bestselling Internet Girls series, the most challenged books of 2009 and 2011

Goodreads - Ban This Book

Awards and Nominations:

• Bluestem Book Award Nominee (2020)

I was recently talking with a friend about books and what book I read as a child that made me really fall in love with reading.  I thought about my elementary years and couldn't think of one.  In sixth grade, my language arts teacher read Shipwreck which was the first book in the Island series.  I really enjoyed the book and looked forward to her reading it to us.  But I think the first book that I read by myself that really made me latch onto reading was A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks.  I think I was in seventh grade and fell in love with his love story novels.  So my question to you is, have you ever stopped to think about what book made you fall in love with reading?  What book had a big impact on your life?

Ban This Book is a moving novel about a quiet girl named Amy Anne who loves the book From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.  Everything is fine in fourth grade until a parent decides that there are books in the library that are completely inappropriate.  These books, including Amy Anne's favorite, is banned from the school library.  Quiet Amy decides that this isn't right or fair and starts the B.B.L.L. or the Banned Book Locker Library.  Soon kids are checking banned books out as they all take a stand to get their favorite books back into the library.  

I have decided that Alan Gratz is probably one of the most amazing humans that exist.  I've read Allies and Resist which are both books about WWII.  I had pegged him as a war and military genre writer, but he surprised me again with this book.  This book had the same vibe as Frindle.  Students decide to rise up against "the man" aka adults.  I use Frindle in my classroom because I can bring in word studies and Greek and Latin roots.  This book would be a wonderful read-aloud to discuss censorship.  The book is full of real books that have been challenged in schools across the country.  I think it is great for kids to have access to all books, but allow the parents to make decisions on what THEIR child reads.  I have friends that only allow their kids to read certain types of books while others let their kids read absolutely anything.  That being said, from a teacher standpoint, I have a slightly different approach to this.  I teach fifth grade and will put just about any book in my library.  However, I do censor what books we read in class or that I read aloud.  If I am reading a book that has cuss words in it then I do change them as I read.  As a teacher, it is a very fine line that we walk with censorship.  You want to make books accessible to kids, but you also don't want parents causing a big stink over a book that you had in your library.  I always tell students if the book makes them uncomfortable or it has something they don't like, to not read it. 

This book is about banned books, and I figure eventually it will get challenged.  It does talk about sex a couple times in the book, but very very briefly and not with much in the detail department.  I think there will absolutely be parents who think this book is "inappropriate" because it gives multiple books that have been challenged or banned for one reason or another.  I think it is opening the door for many kids to find other books that could possibly be their new favorite.  

Favorite quote from Ban This Book:

"I loved the weight of them, the feel of the, especially the hardback books with the clear plastic coating that crinkled and crackled as you opened the book."

I absolutely loved this quote because this was always me as a kid.  I would purposefully check out books that had the plastic coating because I liked the way it sounded as I opened the book and held it while reading.  I'm weird.  I know.  This book exceeded my expectations and I have definitely added Alan Gratz to my list of favorite authors.  I give it 5 big stars and suggest that everyone read this book.  It is just a really good book about finding your voice and empowerment. 

Slam! by Walter Dean Myers

From Goodreads

An exciting, eye-catching repackage of acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers' bestselling paperbacks, to coincide with the publication of SUNRISE OVER FALLUJAH in hardcover.

Seventeen-year-old Greg "Slam" Harris can do it all on the basketball court. He's seen ballplayers come and go, and he knows he could be one of the lucky ones. Maybe he'll make it to the top. Or maybe he'll stumble along the way. Slam's grades aren't that hot. And when his teachers jam his troubles in his face, he blows up.

Slam never doubted himself on the court until he found himself going one-on-one with his own future, and he didn't have the ball.

Goodreads - Slam!

Awards and Nominations:

• Coretta Scott King Award for Author (1997)
• South Carolina Book Award for Young Adult Book Award (1999)

I remember being in elementary school, maybe fourth grade, and I asked my Mom if I could play basketball that winter.  The only other sport I attempted was tee-ball when I was in kindergarten.  As soon as I was to move up to machine pitch I was out of the softball game.  That being said, my loving mother kindly informed me that it was a contact sport where I would have to run and there was a possibility of being hit with a ball.  I quickly decided that I did NOT want to play basketball.  Looking back I wish my parents would have pushed me to play a sport.  I think it would have made me more of a "team player".  That being said "Slam!" is all about basketball and all about being a team player and good sport on and off the court.

Slam is just a typical kid growing up on a shady block in New York.  Drug deals go down around him and he knows people that are dealing.  He has been lucky enough to get in at an art magnet school, but it is unfortunately full of white kids.  Slam finds that he doesn't quite fit in, but hopes to if he joins the basketball team.  It seems that everyone has it out for him, and he thinks it is because he is black.  Slam must learn from one of his coaches how to be a team player and a good person on and off the court so that maybe he can get out of the hood and into a good school with a scholarship.

As I mentioned earlier I didn't play sports.  I grew up watching football because that is all my hometown would eat, sleep, or breathe.  So I gradually learned the terms and what thinks meant, even though I never played.  So it is safe to say that I am lacking in the sports interest department.  This entire book is centered around basketball and it is to the point that if you don't understand what a pick is or what a box-and-one is then you are going to be totally lost.  Every time Slam went to practice or to a game I internally groaned and tried to power through it as quickly as I could.  That being said I think there are ways the book could have had the strong basketball theme, but getting across more of a message.  I think the overall plot was weak in this book.  If someone close to Slam would have died, such as his grandma, Ice, Mtisha, or Bianca then it would have had a more emotional pull in the book.  This could have easily been pulled in with the drug dealing that was happening in his neighborhood.  I also think that there should have been more focus on Slam's education.  I think that with him being an African American character many kids reading this book will connect with him.  They will see that he was struggling with school and never really got help, and they will think that life will work out for them too if they just focus on sports and never improve their grades.  I think that Myers had a lot of opportunities to write a character that could be looked up to, but I also feel he wrote a very realistic character who just believes that everything will work out and he can ride a basketball scholarship to fame and fortune.

This book does have a few sexual references.  I'm not entirely sure that a fifth- or sixth-grader would pick up on them, but an upper middle school and high school student absolutely would.  The book is very dated as it brings up HIV/AIDs multiple times and talks about video cameras and VCRs.  In the 90s these were all big things, but in 2020 not so much. 

Overall, this wasn't my type of book.  It is packed with basketball terms and references and I was beyond lost.  I think it could have had a stronger message and plot.  I give it 1 star.  It is on the Coretta Scott King award list so I was going to have to read it sooner or later.  I think boys, especially those who play basketball, would really enjoy this book.  

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

From Goodreads, 

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.

Goodreads - The Fault in Our Stars

Awards and Nominations:

• Buxtehuder Bulle (2012)
• The Inky Awards for Silver Inky (2012)
• Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction (2012)
• The Inky Awards Shortlist for Silver Inky (2012)
• Premio El Templo de las Mil Puertas for Mejor novela extranjera independiante (2012)
• Odyssey Award (2013)
• Georgia Peach Book Award (2013)
• Audie Award for Teens (2013)
• West Australian Young Readers' Book Award (WAYRBA) for Older Readers (2013)
• Pennsylvania Young Readers' Choice Award for Young Adults (2013)
• Milwaukee County Teen Book Award (2013)
• Indies Choice Book Award for Young Adult (2013)
• Deutscher Jugendileraturpreis for Preis der Jugendjury (2013)
• Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award (2013)
• Dioraphte Jongerenliteratuurprijs for vertaald boek en publieksprijs (2013)
• Alabama Author Award for Young Adult (2013)
• FAB Award Nominee (2014)
• Rhode Island Teen Book Award (2014)
• Soaring Eagle Book Award (2014)
• Lincoln Award (2014)
• Green Mountain Book Award (2014)
• Luisterboek Award (2015)
• Evergreen Teen Book Award (2015)
• California Young Readers Medal for Young Adult (2015)
• Louisiana Teen Readers' Choice (2015)
• Missouri Gateway Readers Award (2015)
• Oklahoma Sequoyah Award for High School (2015)
• Goodreads Nominee for Best of the Best (2018)

I remember the first time I read this book.  I tore through it in less than 24 hours.  I also remember stopping at a very specific point in the book and crying because I knew what was going to happen.  I saw everything that was happening and emotionally broke down.  This was the second time I've read this book.  And while a lot of emotion was still there, and I read it very quickly, I didn't cry.  Upon finishing the book I also rewatched the movie. 

Hazel is just your average teenager, except she has stage IV cancer.  Her lungs don't work like they should, but her parents want her to have a normal life and practically force her to go to support group.  She begrudgingly goes and meets a boy named Augustus Waters.  Augustus, a survivor, lost his leg due to his battle with cancer.  Hazel and Augustus soon become inseparable and bond over Hazel's love of a book that ends in the middle of a sentence.  Augustus decides to use his wish to fly them both to Amsterdam to meet the author and get their questions answered.  On this trip, one of them learns that the other is extremely sick.  

I absolutely loved rereading this book and I am now questioning why I've never put it in my top 5 books.  I'm a huge fan of illness books.  Should that be cancer, a rare disease, or mental illness, I'm a fan of it.  I loved that Hazel talked about all the medical of it, but spoke as a kid explaining it not as a doctor.  I feel like so many illness books talk in medical jargon that takes some exploring and researching to determine what it means.  Hazel told the story from her point of view and she really "dumbed it down" for us.  I also feel like there was so much emotion in Hazel and she had a wonderful character arc from being a pent up frustrated teenager to having fallen in love with Augustus.  His character was a constant throughout the book and he never really wavered from that.  There was one moment where he broke down emotionally, but other than that he kept the same humor and life throughout the book.  I just love that both of these characters were able to find each other and fall in love despite all that they were facing.  

While I had no complaints about the book itself, I did have a complaint about the movie.  We all know that Hazel is on oxygen and struggles to breathe at times.  When she goes up or down stairs her lungs have to work harder to keep up.  In the movie, there is a scene where she wakes up in the middle of the night unable to breathe and screaming for her parents.  Out her door we see a light come on as her parents run down a set of stairs and up a set of stairs to reach her.  Why do they live in a house with so many stairs if she struggles to breathe while climbing them!?  I feel like that is the worst thing you could do to someone on oxygen.  I understand if their fictional family had fictional memories, but they seriously needed a one-story house instead of one with a labyrinth of stairs.  

I have to officially say that this book goes into my top 5.  It is a fast read for me because it is so good, even though I know what is going to happen.  It has a wonderful story and they fall in love which makes everything more "magical".  I give this 5 stars.  I definitely recommend reading the book before watching the movie.