john green books Archives

I don’t do the whole post-book hangover thing well.

I finished this book last year and stared off into space for a good 30 minutes before I could process that it was over. I kept thinking about it day after day, looking up from my computer screen to remember a funny line and laughing like a lunatic to myself. I started asking friends and family if they’d ever heard of Guernsey, and wouldn’t it be nice to take a family vacation there?

I also seriously considered taking up letter-writing so that my future grandkids would have something physical to hold of my daily life. (“Dear Future Grandkids, Today I got up and went to work. I had a coffee while I answered emails.” Can’t you just hear the snoozing!?)

But I was just so gut-wrenched that I couldn’t live in the world of that book anymore.

Heartbreak over lost book worlds is real, and I know I’m not the only one who roams the house, kicking the pillows, glaring at the plants, and feeling annoyed that I’m not, in fact, living a magical character’s life in a magical place.

I know a lot of people felt this way after they read John Green’s The Fault in Your Stars–has there ever been such a heartbreaking and collective book hangover? And the bad news is, we still have to wait two more months for Turtles All the Way Down, John Green’s first book after The Fault in Your Stars phenomenon.

Two. Whole. Months.

Is eternity stretching before you yet?

Luckily, I came up with a handy coping mechanism for you: Step 1: lock self in house. Step 2: burrow into bed. Step 3: take a nap for the next 1,440 hours.

OR.

Just in case you’re more of a read-to-pass-the-time type (and something tells me you are), I have a back-up plan. It goes like this:

Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a way to fill the next two months with books that would bring us back to the glory days of first reading The Fault in Our Stars? Books that would remind us of the thrill and heartbreak we felt when we first met Augustus and Hazel? Books that would reignite our John Green fandom and fill The Fault in Our Stars sized hole in our hearts?

If only there were FIVE such books. Because after all, two months is a long time, and our next John Green inspired YA reads are going to whiz right by.

IF ONLY.

You know I’ve got your back, right? Well, more specifically, our wonderful Stonesong intern, Lydia DuBois, has our backs! Here’s Lydia with the YA book recommendations you need to tide you over until Turtles All the Way Down releases:

5 YA books to read if you love John Green

I was scrolling through my daily Publisher’s Weekly a few weeks ago when I spotted the news: John Green is writing a new book called Turtles All the Way Down, and it will be published by Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Random House, on October 10th.

Cue the fan fare! 🎉🎉🎉

Within days of the announcement, Turtles All the Way Down shot up the Amazon bestseller list, and it’s now keeping it’s spot as the #5 bestseller out of all books. John Green is beloved by millions of readers, and he’s the kind of novelist every literary agent and publisher would dream of having on their list. But I’ve always been curious about what makes John Green so successful, other than his writing (because having a great book is always Step 1, but it’s no guarantee your book will breakout.) So how did John Green get to have a fan club of millions of readers, a whole world of fan fiction surrounding his books, and such impressive accolades for his writing?

If you want to excel at anything, watch the people who are already excelling. But if you want to really get deep and understand what separates the bestselling authors from the struggling authors, you need to talk to their readers.

So today I’m thrilled to have Lydia DuBois on the blog to talk about the 4 things writers can do to build a massive and loyal fan base and readership like John Green. Lydia is a sophomore at the University of Richmond (my alma mater!) and a summer intern at Stonesong, and she’s been working behind-the-scenes to spot great manuscripts in the submissions inbox, scout potential new authors, and learn everything she can about what makes books work. She’s smart as a whip, an avid reader, and a close watcher of the John Green craze of the past few years.

Tag: john green books

5 YA books to read if you love John Green

5 YA books to read if you love John Green

How John Green won millions of fans (and 4 ways you can build a fanbase, too)

So enough from me–here’s Lydia on what younger readers really think of John Green:

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