A collection of the journals, fiction, letters, and sketches of the late Esther Grace Earl, who passed away in 2010 at the age of 16. Photographs and essays by family and friends will help to tell Esther’s story along with an introduction by award-winning author John Green who dedicated his #1 bestselling novel The Fault in Our Stars to her.
I'm not going to rate this book, because that would only demean it. While I could tell you the aspects I liked and disliked about the book, it honestly would not make a difference. I'm not here to criticize and review Ester's story, but rather to use it as an opportunity to reflect on my own life.
My favorite part of this whole collection was Ester's own writing. Her own raw, gritty updates on her life. Her confessions of laziness and misery is what makes her a real person, not the seemingly picture-perfect letters and notes from her friends and doctors.
I loved her small group of Catitude friends. As someone who spends so much of her time online, I can only aspire to have friends as close-knit as the ones in Catitude. I initially picked up this book eager to read more behind the person who inspired the ever famous TFIOS, but as I learned about Ester and grew a friendship with her, she was no longer "the cancer girl that John Green wrote about" but rather a completely different person. In fact, halfway through I forgot John Green was even associated with her.
Life is short. Ester taught me that. But the opportunities within it are endless. Ester taught me that too.
No comments:
Post a Comment