FanGirl Review

Title: FanGirl
Author Rainbow Rowell
Publication Date: September 10th 2013
Pages:433












Summary:
In Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl, Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.
Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

A New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of 2013


Review:

I actually haven’t heard of this book until I saw it on the bookshelf at the bookstore. The cover was so cute and it jumped out at me. I was glad I picked it up because I absolutely adore this book. The synopsis sounded promising and when I looked at other people’s reviews and the first thing I saw was how everybody loved Levi.

I actually have to disagree with them. Levi seemed geeky and awkward from the beginning of the book. I couldn’t quite get the description of him in my head. Too me he was a greasy haired lanky boy who worked at Starbucks and who occasionally hooked up with other girls. I’m not saying I didn’t like his character, he was just a little too perfect for me with his goofy smiles all the time and him never being in a bad mood. I was just hoping that Levi had some inner turmoil that he was dealing with or some past that he was hiding from Cath.

After completely ripping on Levi’s character, I did actually love this book, I thought about coming home and reading it all the time. It was the only thing I did in my spare time. I did like how cute and awkward Cath and Levi’s relationship was. Cath was a twin and she was the shy quiet one who stayed in her room and wrote fanfiction for a huge fan base, while her twin was portrayed as the wild partying girl who hooked up with random guys.

I could actually relate with the main character, I don’t write fanfiction, but I do love to write and somehow her shy awkward personality related to me. I’m glad I got to hide in the world of “FanGirl” for a few hours. I only wish it was longer! I can’t wait to read “Eleanor and Park”.

 

4/5 stars