Fangirl is a popular YA novel about a girl named Cath who writes fan fiction for a fictional series called Simon Snow (imagine HP, but with vampires). Cath has just started her first year of college, and is having a hard time adjusting without her twin sister Wren, who's decided she wants to do college on her own, without having Cath attached to her hip.
It's essentially a coming-of-age, as Cath sort of finds herself as an individual, and learns to accept herself as more than just a fangirl. She meets new friends like her edgy roommate, Reagan, and Levi, a super cute guy she reads her fan fiction aloud to. She also learns to cope with her dad's bipolar disorder.
It's a really cute, light read that does deal with some heavy stuff. Certainly easy to get through. I also love that Rainbow can write a fierce female character being okay with her insecurities. I mean, not every girl who writes fan fiction and wears glasses is a cool hipster chick, and she recognizes that. Cath is definitely relatable to anyone who's ever nerd-ed out on something, or felt a little bit like the new kid in school.
Another cool thing I really liked about the book, was that each chapter was introduced by either an excerpt of Simon Snow, or an excerpt of Cath's Simon Snow fan fiction, Carry On. By the end of the book, I was actually really into Simon Snow and Carry On.
Not what I would normally read, but it was super fun to get into. There were some minor things that I didn't like about the plot, (like how Cath's professor gave her a whole extra semester to write her story.. I mean, when does that ever happen?) but I found everything else really enjoyable, and it brought me back to when I was a teenager writing fanfics about my favourite books.
That being said, I'm giving Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell:
Four out of five stars!
Want to know what I'm reading next? Check me out on Goodreads!
I was a bit curious about this book before but now I am definitely going to read it. Fan ficton has always been a curiousity to me. I know it's out there but I have never really run into it before. Maybe because I wasn't looking. I should though, I think. Thanks for the review.
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