Book: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Page Count: 448 pages
Age Rating: young adult (12+)
Star Review: 4/5 stars
Summary: 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 the 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 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?
Memorable Quote: "The whole point of fanfiction is that you get to play inside somebody else's universe. Rewrite the rules. Or bend them. The story doesn't have to end. You can stay in this world, this world you love, as long as you want, as long as you keep thinking of new stories."
I'm probably not the first to say I didn't really expect to like this book. It's not that it looked cheesy or anything, I was just wondering how the author was going to write a good story surrounding this book. It felt a bit odd that I was reading a book surrounding fanfiction. But of course, I had to buy it since Simon Snow is heavily based off Harry Potter and anyone who knows me personally knows how much I love Harry Potter.
So first off, I was in love with the characters. Cath was interesting and complex, Levi was adorable and fun, an Cath's dad was hilarious. I loved watching the character development, especially Wren's even if she wasn't the main character. I found her character development crazy for such a minor characters. And Cath herself changed a lot, someone wouldn't even know it was the same character because of how much her core hopes and beliefs change (in a good way). But my favorite character was probably Levi. I always wanted more of him. I kinda want a whole book just about Levi because he's just SO CUTE and fun to read about.
And the plot was everchanging, which is something I actually really like in a book. I need a lot going on or else I get bored, so if the book doesn't have a lot of subplots the best option is to make it a constantly changing plot which this book did remarkably well. It didn't get boring and I was able to stay engaged and loving it. I loved reading Cath's stories, which makes me really want to go pick up Carry On, since that was published!! Especially because of the announcement of Wayward Son (the sequel). I enjoyed also how the book spanned over a whole year and not just a few weeks like many contemporaries end up doing. This was also longer than most contemporaries I've read which turned out better than I thought.
My biggest issue in this book was maybe the last two pages. It ended with her reading the eighth Simon Snow book and I didn't like that. I would have preferred a proper ending and not just reading. That kinda bothered me, but overall I was able to tolerate it since it wasn't awful I guess. It wasn't bad and it lowkey made me want Rainbow Rowell to write the Simon Snow series in physical book form but I don't like it when books end like that. It always bothers me. Endings are hard, so I don't blame Rowell and the book was already long so I guess I see why she didn't go on, but it could have been handled better.
Would I recommend? 100%
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?
Memorable Quote: "The whole point of fanfiction is that you get to play inside somebody else's universe. Rewrite the rules. Or bend them. The story doesn't have to end. You can stay in this world, this world you love, as long as you want, as long as you keep thinking of new stories."
I'm probably not the first to say I didn't really expect to like this book. It's not that it looked cheesy or anything, I was just wondering how the author was going to write a good story surrounding this book. It felt a bit odd that I was reading a book surrounding fanfiction. But of course, I had to buy it since Simon Snow is heavily based off Harry Potter and anyone who knows me personally knows how much I love Harry Potter.
So first off, I was in love with the characters. Cath was interesting and complex, Levi was adorable and fun, an Cath's dad was hilarious. I loved watching the character development, especially Wren's even if she wasn't the main character. I found her character development crazy for such a minor characters. And Cath herself changed a lot, someone wouldn't even know it was the same character because of how much her core hopes and beliefs change (in a good way). But my favorite character was probably Levi. I always wanted more of him. I kinda want a whole book just about Levi because he's just SO CUTE and fun to read about.
And the plot was everchanging, which is something I actually really like in a book. I need a lot going on or else I get bored, so if the book doesn't have a lot of subplots the best option is to make it a constantly changing plot which this book did remarkably well. It didn't get boring and I was able to stay engaged and loving it. I loved reading Cath's stories, which makes me really want to go pick up Carry On, since that was published!! Especially because of the announcement of Wayward Son (the sequel). I enjoyed also how the book spanned over a whole year and not just a few weeks like many contemporaries end up doing. This was also longer than most contemporaries I've read which turned out better than I thought.
My biggest issue in this book was maybe the last two pages. It ended with her reading the eighth Simon Snow book and I didn't like that. I would have preferred a proper ending and not just reading. That kinda bothered me, but overall I was able to tolerate it since it wasn't awful I guess. It wasn't bad and it lowkey made me want Rainbow Rowell to write the Simon Snow series in physical book form but I don't like it when books end like that. It always bothers me. Endings are hard, so I don't blame Rowell and the book was already long so I guess I see why she didn't go on, but it could have been handled better.
Would I recommend? 100%
Comments
Post a Comment