Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Title: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Publication date: September 10th 2013
Pages: 459 (paperback)
Source: own it








Cath and Wren are identical twins, and until recently they did absolutely everything together. Now they're off to university and Wren's decided she doesn't want to be one half of a pair any more - she wants to dance, meet boys, go to parties and let loose. It's not so easy for Cath. She would rather bury herself in the fanfiction she writes where there's romance far more intense than anything she's experienced in real life. 

Now Cath has to decide whether she's ready to open her hear to new people and new experiences, and she's realizing that there's more to learn about love than she ever though possible. 

A tale of fanfiction, family, and first love.

Goodreads

Earlier this year I read Eleanor & Park and I absolutely adored that book. So I wanted to read more by Rainbow Rowell.

I always had put off reading Fangirl; I just found that it sounded a bit weird for some reason. I think that it was the whole fanfiction writing that put me off. Not that I find Fanfiction weird, I used to read quite a lot of it a couple of years ago. But just a story about a fangirl did not sound that appealing to me. But after reading Eleanor & Park and seeing how awesome Rainbow Rowell is I had to pick this book up and I am so glad that I did. This book is truly amazing!

Fangirl is a book that everyone should read when they are about to go to college. I wish I would have read it back. Well I wished it had been out back then actually, since it even did not exist when I started college. Some of the things that Rainbow Rowell described where so recognizable to me. Like avoiding the dining hall because you just did not know how it worked and you did not want to come across as the weird one. As well as feeling out of place sometimes. I think that a lot of students struggle with some of these things when they first start college and recognize themselves in Cath. I could definitely relate to Cath, I am an introvert myself. And I get how much energy some simple tasks can seem to take. Sometimes it is too easy to stay in your own comfort zone and the author portrays that so accurately. And I loved that she showed that it can be rewarding sometimes to step out of your comfort zone and to take risks.

I absolutely loved Cath, she is a vulnerable character but at the same time she is really headstrong. And the girl has an amazing sense of humor as well. It is no wonder that she knows how to charm people even though she does not want to do that at all. And she had charmed me within the very first pages of the book.  Levi was such a great character as well; I loved how happy he seemed to be all the time. I believe that we all need a person like him in our lives. Who is always there for us no matter what and who hardly ever seems to be down. And in so many ways he completed Cath so well. He had just such a warm personality that you cannot help but love him.

Another thing that I really liked about this book was that Cath’s parents took an active role in this book. Or at least her dad and that Rowell was not afraid to portray him with his own faults. He is a great dad but live is just a bit more difficult for Cath and Wren thanks to his mental illness. But people need to realize that a mental illness does not define someone’s life. Cath’s father might not have been perfect but he would do anything for his daughters.

I really loved this book and again I cannot believe how long I put off reading it. This book is just so amazing, from the storyline to the characters. It is just one amazing read and I was genuinely upset when I had finished reading it because I did not want it to end!

Elien