Chick flicks and romantic novels are present on the shelves, dime a dozen. Therefore, mostly I walk past them without as much as a glance. The last time I read, and thoroughly enjoyed, a modern day romantic novel was Erich Segal's Love Story. And it remains a favourite till date.
Recently, another book has been making a lot of noise - The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. As is becoming the norm with most books, this one too is gaining popularity because of the soon to be released movie adaptation. So before I saw the film, I decided to read the book.
On a lazy Friday evening, after work, I walked into a book store and bought the book. Since I was skeptical, I bought it on sale; no point wasting much money.
And I spent the entire weekend reading.
To my utter surprise, I could not put the book down, and read it straight through the two days. No romance has kept me hooked in this manner since Oliver & Jenny. And here were Hazel & Augustus making me laugh, cry, and fall in love.
Although dealing with cancer patients, Green does not romanticize or sympathize with the ailment or the patients. They could very well have been Tsunami victims and still make you feel warm inside. It is not as much about the fight against the disease as it is about a fight against time. It made me sit up and think about all the people who mattered to me, and how much time I had spent with them lately. It made me re-think my priorities. It is not to say that holding on to a job and paying bills isn't important. But once in a while we need to break free of the routine and spend some time laughing and dreaming.
Hazel and Augustus retaught me a lesson long forgotten - it is the right people in your life who make life worth everything. And you better take notice of them before life decides to spring a surprise and it is too late.
The Fault In Our Stars is definitely up on my list of modern day romances after Love Story. Go read it, or simply watch it once it is released. Either way, be sure to have a tissue box handy.
