1.　During a disagreement regarding Hazel’s attendance at Support Group, her mother tells her, "Hazel, you deserve a life." Consider the irony of this statement. Why is Hazel so resistant to attending her Support Group? Though she doesn’t acknowledge it, what might be some of the benefits of her attending?

2.　In what ways does Augustus’s introduction to Hazel’s world complicate matters for her? How does their relationship profoundly change her life?

3.　Augustus inquires about Hazel’s background and tells her, "Don’t tell me you’re one of those people who becomes their disease." In what ways do Augustus, Hazel, and Isaac fight to keep cancer from defining who they are? How do they work to prevent it from consuming all aspects of them?

4.　Though they are intended to inspire and motivate, why does Augustus find humor in his family’s posted "Encouragements"? What can readers glean about him based on his reaction?

5.　Though her all-time favorite book is AN IMPERIAL AFFLICTION, Hazel shares that she doesn’t like telling people about it because "there are books so special and rare and yours that advertising your affection feels like a betrayal." What do you believe she means by this statement? Do you agree? Have you ever had a personal connection with a work of art? If so, what was it about the work that "spoke" to you?

6.　Hazel shares that through his novel, Peter Van Houten is the only person who understands what it’s like to be dying and not have died. What is it about his perspective that makes Hazel feel so connected to this author?

7.　Why does Hazel feel so desperate to find out what happens beyond the ending of AN IMPERIAL AFFLICTION. What does this indicate about her need for understanding about what comes "after"?

8.　Compare the parent/child relationships in the story: Hazel and her parents and Augustus and his parents. To what extent are the relationships of these characters shaped by the world around them? To what extent do their relationships shape that world?

9.　After hearing Augustus state that he fears oblivion, Hazel tells him, "...even if we survive the collapse of our sun, we will not survive forever." How does her pragmatic understanding of the frailty of humanity help her remain grounded?

10.　Considering Hazel’s and Augustus’s perspectives, in what ways is THE FAULT IN OUR STARS　a story about things that have been lost? What does each of them find along the way?