It is hard to review this book. I am going to take it one piece at a time.

First, the writing. John Green does not get enough respect for his craft. He is seriously a fantastic writer. There were moments in this book where his prose turned to poetry. There were lines in the book that expressed a feeling in a metaphor so simple and clean that there was no way for me to imagine a more effective way to express it. I really admire it.

Second, the themes. Obviously mental health is the main theme in the book. It is expressed in so profound a way as to dwarf any treatment of that theme in any other book that I have read. I was so drawn into Aza's world that I had to sit back and seriously consider my own mental health. This book is not for the feint of heart. It will make you take an uncomfortable look at your ideas on mental illness, and your interactions with the mentally ill. Green is able to twine the theme of spiraling thoughts into ever facet of the book. The characters names, what they see, what they say. It is in everything, but it is not in your face. It would be possible not to notice it, if you were casually reading this book (something that you should not do [if it is even possible]).

Third, the characters. Aza is an astonishing character. She is strong, and yet weak. Smart, and yet foolish. Beautiful, and profoundly ugly. She is so complete a character that one does not care, or even notice, that the main action and conflict in the book happen entirely in her head. The other characters are good enough that they could be the protagonists of other, lesser, novels.

If you, like me, have avoided Green's novels in the past, because of their unfortunate connection with teen-girls and you imagine that they must be vapid, I urge you to move past that impression, and form a new one. This book is easily the best novel on mental illness I have ever read. Green captures the desperation, horror, and triumphs of mental illness in such a real and convincing way that it could be required reading for any abnormal psych class. Please read this book, and think about it when you have interactions with loved ones, or strangers, who are suffering with mental illness.