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?
Thoughts:
If you live on the Internet and belong to any fandom, YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! Fangirl caught my attention due to its very interesting premise. It is almost like I've been waiting for someone to write a book like this. (OFF TRACK) This is because I wrote Rurouni Kenshin fanfiction once and I was quite good at it. I mean, one of my stories kind of took off and I nominated for an award. So it makes sense why this book speaks so much to me.
Right let's talk about Rowell's style. I like her style. It's very secure. She's a reliable narrator (you'll get the reference if you read this book). She doesn't have much punch like Stephanie Perkins but I feel that is why her book seemed so real to me. I wouldn't go as far to say it is mundane, I mean Fangirl explores the shift in one's life stage to the other which one could argue is a mundane topic but I digress. Rowell discusses what it would be like to leave your family and adapt to a new environment through Cath's eyes. We've all been there and Rowell captures those emotions very well.
Let's talk about the characters (because I'm all about the CHARACTERS!). I'm not crazy about them like how I am about the cast of The Mortal Instruments (in the books not the movies) but they are characters that grow on you. I admit I was a bit like "Mehhh" at the start, I wasn't emotionally invested in them but by the 200th page or so, I basically hooked on them for dear life! I don't want to get into the characters in depth (because spoilers!) but I will talk about Cath and Wren.
The only reason why you might not get into the book is if you're a total extrovert. I feel you wouldn't be able to empathize much for Cath because she can seem like a Debbie Downer to you. She struggles to accept change especially in the dynamics of her relationship with Wren but the beauty of this novel is that you can see how she copes with these changes. You can even see how Wren deals with these changes as well. There are times that I hate Cath because I agree with Wren (or vice versa) but that could be because I see myself in both of them. I am very much like Cath where I need my own space--I revel in being alone to just indulge in a fictional world and just shut off. But then again, I'm just like Wren where I need to go out and meet people and just establish my position in society. I don't know if I'm making much sense but that's how I connect with these two.
I like how inconclusive Fangirl is. Rowell doesn't tie all the loose ends (ie: Did Cath finish the fanfiction in time?) but through her writing, you already get the gist what happened. She doesn't have to write it out for you and in my opinion, it wasn't frustrating for me at all. I was just left with a gooey feeling at the end and was very sad that the book ended.
THE COVER(!): How amazing is it?! The moment I recognized the art, I'm sold. It is designed by the amazing Noelle Stevenson of Gingerhaze.tumblr and I really do believe that she managed to capture the essence of Cath and Levi and the manner of their relationship. Ohhhhhh my god! This has to be my favourite book cover EVER.
Ultimately Rowell knows her subject matter very well. She understands how fans feel about fanfiction and how the fandom works. She's also very good at capturing how the common folk see fanfiction and fandom. To a certain extent, I feel like Fangirl is a homage to all the fandoms out there.
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Obsession Rating: 5 out of 5
