The story that inspired John Green’s, The Fault in Our Stars; a memoir of Esther Grace Earl explains how being a child with cancer affects more people than just family. Life for the Earl’s was turned upside down when their middle child, Esther Earl, was diagnosed with thyroid(throat) cancer at age 12. After Esther was diagnosed, Wayne, Esther’s father, made the decision to move back to the states, from France, for better treatment. Later, she has surgery to get rid of the tumors in her thyroid, but cancer comes back. The doctors tell Lori and Wayne, Esther’s parents, that cancer would most likely never go away, but they can start chemotherapy treatments to stop the growth of tumors, or even shrink the tumors. Esther Grace Earl is a unique person, looks at life in a different way. Writing is Esther’s passion; she spends many days in the hospital writing down her thoughts and feelings in her journals. As time passes, Esther’s journey contains many ups and downs but, she would not enjoy life as much as she does if she doesn’t have to fight to move forward.  Many say that Esther is the most caring and loving person they’ve ever met and that they felt they could’ve gone to her with any problem.

Throughout Esther’s life, she learns and teaches many lessons. She teaches her family that life is worth fighting for, happiness can help you through the hardest times in life, and doing what you love to do makes life more enjoyable. Esther learns that helping others is more rewarding than anything else in life because helping others feel good brightens everyone else’s life.

I learned that cancer is not only hard on the patient but also the patient’s family and friends. I believe that Esther’s family published this book to influence the lives of many people, and teach them that when life gets hard, you still need to look on the bright side and remain the happiest you can. The main focus of the story is about how much love Esther contains and how we can change the lives of others if we choose to help, and be there for them.

Personally, I loved this book! I enjoyed how I got sucked into the book and how I felt like I was a part of Esther’s life. I loved how blogs from the Earl’s were included, their blogs give readers insight into life with an illness, also Esther’s blogs show how hard cancer can be. Esther’s words and how other people characterize her inspire me to help others and to never take life for granted because others have it much worse than I could ever imagine.
If you enjoy books about children with illnesses, or if you enjoy reading about how families deal with illness, this is the book for you. Esther’s journal entries will make you ride a roller coaster of emotions. The blog entries written by Lori, Wayne, and Esther suck you into their life, making you feel like you are a part of their family, and experiencing alongside them.