Title: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Published: September 10, 2014
Format Read/Pages: HB/438
How I Acquired It: ALA Midwinter ‘14
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?
Writing her own stories? Open her heart to someone? Or will she just go on
living inside somebody else’s fiction?
Where to even begin with this book? I loved it. The
characters were so down to earth and relatable that it was scary at times because
I would be reading and picturing people I know with mannerisms that match. The fact
that they were not all perfect, how often does our leading man have a receding
hairline?, is what really makes the story. To me, this is why Rainbow Rowell
has such a following, she writes
characters and situations that are so believable that it makes it easy to
become invested in the their lives.
My first semester of college went much like Wren’s, partying
all the time trying to break out of the mold that my life has always been. In
reality I am Cath. Sub fan fiction with books and we are the same person. This
allowed me to really connect with both of these strong, in their own way,
females. I have had the experiences they have and know the thoughts that were going
through their heads in these different situations.
The pacing of the story was great, not too rushed and it did
not drag. It is quite interesting that people complain about the fact they
Simon Snow is so much like Harry Potter. Honestly what other recent series has had
as big of an impact on so many young readers as Harry Potter did. That fandom
is one of the biggest there will ever be and I loved that the Simon Snow fandom
had the same feel. I would totally read the Simon Snow stories and they would
probably share a shelf with my Harry Potter books.
The only qualm I have with the story, like so many, was the
ending. Not because I did not like it, but because it left me wanting so much
more. All in all, I cannot say how much I loved this book. I really don’t have
much to say about it because it was perfect. I will forever be a fan of Rowell’s.
5 Stars
