Her Star Will Never Go Out

*by Kasey Cox, written Jan. 9th, 2012

This week marks the release of one of the most widely-anticipated young adult books of the last year or more – John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars. Green’s writing hasn’t yet received the traditional press coverage of some authors, though his fans number in the tens of thousands already. For those of us late to the party, Green’s new book is an incredible place to begin to appreciate a literary and creative career whose star will only keep rising.

The phenomenon created by brothers John and Hank Green is an energetic, idealistic, powerful, organic force to be reckoned with, but may be more or less invisible to those who (a) are not well-versed in all the possibilities of youtube and “the interwebs”, (b)aren’t currently spending a lot of time with a teen who is enamoured of said ‘interwebs’, and/or (c)have yet to spend a great deal of time alone, surfing the internet and delving into all the connections that exist amongst the many new forms of social media.

The Green Brothers have garnered an enormous following over the past four years, inviting people to join them in an open, worldwide, online community who have become known as “Nerdfighters.” This all began in 2007 when the brothers challenged themselves to communicate for one year via youtube videos, posting them as “the Vlog Brothers” [Vlog = video blog, or video web log]. The year-long challenge inspired a growing fan base, who responded enthusiastically to the combination of silliness and smart which these brothers share. Their community of fans have been inspired to “fight worldsuck” by doing things as small as pledging not to be mean and things as large as raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity in their yearly “Project for Awesome.”

As someone whose main form of entertainment, distraction, and education has always been reading, and whose philosophies lean more toward Luddite, I’ll confess, I’ve alternately rolled my eyes and scorned the young adults I know who, it seems, might as well get it over with and have the wetware installed in their brains now. To me, technology is a useful tool. A cell phone is a PHONE. I occasionally watch a funny video on youtube, and I use my facebook page to spread business news for free and to connect with old friends. Listening to a tech-savvy teenager wax enthusiastic about “vlogs” and tumblr posts is a great way to feel old before I’ve hit my fortieth birthday.

I have to admit, though, I’ve seen the ways that various forms of social media are connecting people who might otherwise remain quite isolated. Sure, we can criticize those people who seem to spend so much of their lives on the computer, especially when we stereotype “those teens” who don’t read any more, or who should be spending time outside, or playing sports, “like we did when we were young.” But what if you’re a teen who lives in a very rural area? What if you don’t have a parent who can chauffeur you to a bunch of extra-curricular activities? What if you have a chronic illness that keeps you close to home, or limits your physical and social activities?

Many in the “Nerdfighteria” community became inspired by a young woman in just that situation. Esther Earl was diagnosed with an aggressive thyroid cancer at the age of 12, with extensive tumors already metastasized into her lungs. As she endured years worth of all kinds of treatments, Esther found her way into a creative, active social life through a growing community of online friends. First connecting with other proud, self-proclaimed “nerds” through the Harry Potter Alliance, then tapping into the “Nerdfighteria”, Esther kept herself fulfilled through these social connections and charitable causes. The internet was a venue that worked for her, and she, like John Green and Hank Green, found ways to use, for good, all the power and creativity possible there.

The Fault in Our Stars gives the reader the story of Hazel Lancaster, age 17, dying of cancer, who meets an interesting, attractive new guy at her support group for kids with cancer. Suddenly, everything is that much more bittersweet and weird and difficult and angst-ridden and exciting. Author Jodi Picoult explains how this book “takes a spin on universal themes – Will I be loved? Will I be remembered? Will I leave a mark on this world? – by dramatically raising the stakes for the characters who are asking.”

Inspired by knowing Esther, all through her fight with cancer, John Green penned The Fault in Our Stars, which, while dedicated to Esther Earl, is, he insists, a fiction novel. The book is not about Esther. It is FOR Esther, and for the thousands of children like her, who find themselves trying to simultaneously live a “normal” life while coming to terms, earlier than most, with the vulnerability and mortality that is an inevitable part of being human.