Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
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?
And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?
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Okay, I'm sitting here at exactly 12.14am at night typing up this review and I'm still reeling from that book. Seriously.
When I first began Fangirl, I was very doubtful. I was so sure that it was going to be one of those icky, cliche teen love stories that I would hate instantly but instead I found myself falling in love with the book as I turned each page.
How to start? One of the biggest reasons I love Fangirl is because it's not just about how a girl falls in love with a boy as she struggles through colleges and goes through her ups and downs; it's about the love between a family, relationships, about growing up, about how sometimes you have to go through the tough bits and grit your teeth just to make it out.The book develops the relationship between each and every person so beautifully, and it's honest and realistic, and frankly, just what I was looking for. I loved how the relationship between the twins wasn't just all sunshine and rainbows, and the anger and resentment between Cath and Laura. The story has so much more meaning than you would think a book titled Fangirl would have! The plot of the story, while very simple, really drew me in.
Another thing I loved about the book: the characters. Each character was well and fully developed, not to mention realistic and relatable, and I felt like a personally knew each and every character inside out by the end of the book. Not one character was redundant, boring or flat - every character had it's own unique style, it's own unique characteristics that made it stick in your head. The only minor problem I had with the book was that it was too focused on the developing of the characters- I feel like for a good first half of the book, it was all about describing the characters! I mean, taking so long to describe the characters in such depth draws you much deeper into the book, it's just that it took up too much of the story. I swear at one point of the book, when Levi and Cath were together, I started to tear up because it was just goddamn beautiful. The plot may not have been so solid but the relationship between the characters was just perfect. It was honest, realistic and hit all the spots for me.
My favourite character would probably Levi. I absolutely freaking adored him. He's the cutest, sweetest and most charming boy and if he was real I'd grab him right away.
“I miss you."
"That's stupid," she said. "I saw you this morning."
"It's not the time," Levi said, and she could hear that he was smiling." It's the distance.”
Levi's pretty much the epitome of a perfect boyfriend in my book.
In conclusion, while Fangirl may not have a perfect plot, it certainly makes up in the way that it was written, and the way the characters were developed. I loved every bit of it and I'd definitely recommend it if you're looking for a coming-of-age/romance-ish novel!
