Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Genre: YA Contemporary
Published: September 10, 2013 by St. Martin’s Press
Length: 433 pages
Source: bought

“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 fanfiction, 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 that 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 fanfiction 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?”

Honestly, I was scared to read this book because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to relate to the story since I don’t fangirl. This book definitely lived up to the hype though! Fangirl is an amazing book about a girl named Cath who enjoys writing Simon Snow fanfiction. What I loved about this book besides the funny and likable characters, swoony romance, and family relationships is that it really inspired me to write. I have NEVER thought about writing; I’ve always thought I was a reader and not a writer. The fact that Rainbow Rowell’s writing influenced me to probably also major in English means that her writing is very powerful. She made me realize through Cath how writing is an amazing journey; it might have its downs like getting a writer’s block etc. but being able to create these amazing characters and have readers craving for more is an awesome feeling.

I really liked Cath. I haven’t read a book with a memorable character for quite some time now so I’m happy to say she’s one of the fictional characters I’ll never forget. She’s funny, awkward, smart, and responsible. She has a twin named Wren and between them, Wren is more outgoing, careless, irresponsible, and independent. I actually like how the author thought of their names – Catherine (Cather & Wren) GET IT!? I thought that was epic *mindblown*. I also like Cath’s roomate, Reagan. She was hilarious and she’s not afraid to say her opinion on things. There is also family involved which I liked!

For the romance, I loved it. That’s all I’m going to say. You have to find out how the romance builds on because it’s really cute!

Although it’s a 400 pgs. book, it’s a really quick read because of the witty characters and great writing style. The only thing I didn’t like is how during the last page of each chapter, there is a snippet of either Cath’s fanfiction or the actual Simon Snow story. I didn’t like it because I couldn’t relate to either Simon or Baz (the main characters in Cath’s fanfiction) since random scenes were dropped from the story.

I thought the ending was such a cliffhanger! When I saw the acknowledgements page, I was like “NO!? IT’S OVER!?”. Overall this book is a great read if you’re looking for something light. I definitely recommend it especially if you’re going into college since Cath is telling the story when she’s in her first year in university (both fall and spring semester).