The End
I read a book lately that has stuck with me. It wasn’t the kind of book I normally read, but there had been so much talk about it that I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Plus, the movie looks good.
The book? The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. If you haven’t read it and are planning on, stop reading this post now. Spoiler alert. You have been warned.
The book is sad. Full stop. Which is exactly why I hadn’t read it before. But that isn’t a fault, that is purely a personal choice. I was drawn into the book, I had to know how it ended.
And then it ended. Like, it figuratively and literally just ended (Like what I did there? Augustus Waters would.). There was no explanation about what happened to the character, her family, or anyone else. I tried to imagine how I would have ended the book (which is what I do to all books that are open ended or end not as I’d like).
And what did I come up with? Nothing. How do you end a book like that? Hazel was dying of cancer. It wasn’t like she could suddenly be miraculously cured and live happily ever after. The book was a flinch worthy account of what it’s like to have cancer. To have tied up the end like a fairy tale would have been wrong. The end really was the appropriate end.
The sadness has lingered with me. Cancer is sad, when it’s in children it’s just that bit sadder. My heart goes out to anyone in that situation and I pray it can be a disease of the past one day.
So, for anyone who has read it, I’m sure you’ll understand my melancholy. One thing is for sure, however, that I will never be Peter Van Houten. If you want to know anything about my books, including what happens after The End, just email me. I am infinitely less grumpy than he is.
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