Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Title: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Pages: 433

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 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?


Rainbow Rowell has been one of those authors that I kept hearing good things about.  Fangirl and Eleanor & Park were getting pretty popular, and I was interested in them (plus I love their covers). I saw quite a few reviews for this book where, the word "cute" popped up a lot. Many people claimed that this was a "cute" read, which I did not really understand until I read it.

The story is about or  main character, Cath, who was  relate-able on so many levels. She goes to college and the story is basically about her experiences. She rarely went out to parties or to bars and she loved writing fanfiction for Simon Snow (similar to Harry Potter). I love the way Cath cares and how much she loves those characters  in Simon Snow. Her fangirling situations are  really familiar feeling with me. I also loved how in the beginning of the story, she thought about living off of protein bars and peanut butter because she couldn't find the dining hall. 

This book had amazing characters and I loved all of the characters so much. The only characters that I didn't love were Nick and Laura.
At first when I read about Nick, I was okay with him. He and Cath both seemed to be working well together in writing and I thought I saw what could be a real relationship. But as the story continued, we got to see Levi a lot more than Nick. ( I preferred Levi from the start and still do). Eventually, it is revealed that Nick basically used her and that made me look at him in disgust. 

Laura, Cath's mother, wasn't someone we got to see much. The story behind the Avery family was very realistic and normal for families nowadays. I completely understood how Cath felt about her mother, and how she wanted nothing to do with her since her mother left her family when she was only 8.

Although I didn't love Nick and Laura, doesn't mean I didn't like them as a character.
The rest of the characters in the book were so lovable and amazing. 

Cath and Wren (her twin sister) had a very realistic relationship  and other than their love for Simon Snow, they were like opposites, which was interesting. ( I think both of their names are very creative Cath+Wren=Catherine).  Wren once was a crazy fangirl over Simon Snow, but as she got older, she stopped, unlike Cath. I also loved their dad who was very realistic and crazy (in a good way).

Cath's roommate, Reagan, was another favorite of mine.  At first, I thought we weren't going to see much of her, but I was very glad that we did. I loved her personality and the dialogue she shared with Cath. (I also love how she always kicks the door open.) At first it seemed that Cath and Reagan weren't going to be interacting a lot, but they did, which I loved. I think she played an important role in the story, especially with her relationship with Levi.

Levi had an amazing charm to him and he was a great character that I instantly liked from page 1. I loved how often it was mentioned that he smiles, which makes me smile. In the beginning of the book, I had a good feeling about him already! He was funny and sweet, and I loved scenes where he and Cath were in her dorm, reading or just talking. I loved picturing those scenes and imagining that they were right there in front of me.

My Rating:
✰✰✰✰✰

I was very surprised by how much I loved this book. I really enjoyed it and it was so fun to read! This book had no parts that were slow, or boring, like most books.  It did not feel rushed, or slow, it was just an amazing coming of age story. Rainbow's writing was great; I loved her dialogue and character development. I usually don't read books written in third point of view and past tense, but I had no problem in this case. I also think the little snippets of Simon Snow were good. Reading this book made me happy, and when it ended, I just wanted more and more. If I had to pick a book, from all of the books I've read that could get 5 stars, this would be it.

My overall thought: A flawless coming of age story with loving characters.