So, my husband reads probably more than I do - which is already a lot. He reads all kinds of magazines - the "articles" in Playboy and Maxim, he gets workout pointers from Men's Health, and stays up to date with articles in Cure Magazine, among others. He reads a large smattering of websites - TMZ, ESPN, and various news and entertainment sites. He likes to stay current with the people he follows on Instagram and FaceBook.
And, he loves books - all kinds of books. Every week on our grocery shopping trip to Costco, we have to stop by the book section to see if there is anything we want - there usually is. He also makes good use of his Amazon Prime account. Our bookcases are overflowing (literally) with books. I'm to the point where I want to reinstate my Library Card rule - get a library card and check out books rather than buying them so we don't have to find more room to store them. I'm not (yet) into buying books for an e-reader. I treasure the feel of an actual book with actual pages in my hand. I'm not sure that will ever fade.
A while back, he read The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green. I asked him what it was about, and gave me a brief synopsis. It didn't immediately peak my interest. One day when he was close to finishing it, I observed him wiping his eyes. He wasn't crying, he insists. He just had something in his eye. A lot of somethings. When he did finish the book, he gave it to me and asked me to read it. I said, "Yeah, yeah..." and put it in my pile by my night stand, and moved on to another book.Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I had just finished a Jack Reacher book (by Lee Child) and wanted the next in the series. Husband said he would give it to me after I read The Fault in Our Stars. Somewhat unenthusiastically, I picked it up and started it that night. And about a week later finished it. IT WAS SO GOOD! I absolutely loved it.
The characters are rich and layered and seemed entirely relatable and real. Now, I'm not going to spoil the book for those who want to read it, but this book is about young adults with cancer. My husband is a 3-time cancer survivor and is a stereotypical man who doesn't talk about "stuff" pretty much ever. I have to drag information out of him on some topics. He wanted me to read this book because he said it would provide some insight into him and what he has been through in life.
I'm so glad he made me read it. Not only did it provide insight into him, but it was also a beautiful book. Win-win. It isn't all doom and gloom cancer. Yes, cancer plays a key role in the book. But it is also about friends, relationships, love, and adventure.
I generally read before going to sleep - it helps turn my mind off from all of the things that occupy it during the day and gives me something else to focus on to put me to sleep. Sometimes I can only get through a few pages before I do the head-nodding, book-dropping, read-the-same-page-3-times thing before I put the bookmark in, turn off the light, and actually go to sleep. Other times, I can't put the book down and find myself still voraciously reading until the wee hours of the night (or morning).
That happened with this book. I was nearing the end, and just couldn't put it down. Instead of lulling me to sleep, this book had me wide awake reading and turning pages as fast as I could to find out what happened. I think it was probably around 2am when I finished, with tears in my eyes, loving the book, and having an even deeper appreciation for my husband whom I love dearly. I put the book down, turned off the light, wiped my tears, and kissed my sleeping husband.
A few weeks later, I saw an article on BuzzFeed about books that have been made into movies that are coming out soon - The Fault In Our Stars is one of them. I CANNOT WAIT to see it.
Check out the movie trailer here.
Here is one passage (among many) that I absolutely loved from the book:
"Okay," I said, and we clinked glasses. I took a sip. The tiny bubbles melted in my mouth and journeyed northward into my brain. Sweet. Crisp. Delicious. "That is really good," I said. "I've never drunk champagne."
A Sturdy young waiter with wavy blond hair appeared. He was maybe even taller than Augustus. "Do you know," he asked in a delicious accent, "what Dom Pérignon said after inventing champagne?"
"No," I said.
"He called out to his fellow monks, 'Come quickly: I am tasting the stars.'"...
"Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book." --John Green
Read this book - you'll love it!
