Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Hey Everyone!
So the semester has officially started, so I'm back at work and school! Reading time has unfortunately been cut down again a bit, but it's okay, I'm still attempting to make as much time as possible for reading this year! Book three for 2015 is done (Review for book #2 is coming soon!)!
This time around, I read a book, I've had sitting on my shelf for almost a year, and have been wanting to read since I finished one of this author's novels last year, around this time.
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.
From Goodreads:
From the author of the New York Times bestseller Eleanor & Park.
A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.
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?
"Touching and utterly real." — Publisher's Weekly
My Thoughts:
Wow. Rainbow Rowell has once again impressed me with her words.
I reviewed Eleanor and Park exactly one year and one day ago. It was right after I had gotten back from Florida with my boyfriend. Which is funny, because we are actually going back next week again for our ten day vacation!!!!
Anyway, just like Eleanor and Park, I absolutely truly enjoyed reading Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.
Rowell has this way of writing so realistically, with so much power behind her words, that I, as a reader, found myself holding on to every single word I was devouring.
Cath, while at times extremely frustrating, turned out to be someone I found myself in. I was very similar to Cath my first year of college. I was a hermit. I preferred to stay in my room. Not hang out with people. And my head was always in a book (Cath's is always in her laptop, writing her story).
Another thing I could really relate to was how Cath kept her authorship of Carry On a secret from the outside world. No one but her sister, father, and later Levi know that she writes it. Tens of thousands of people read each and every single one of her fan-fiction chapters of her take on a famous childhood story, yet no one knows it is a lonely freshman girl writing in her dorm room, lonely. Even her sister won't talk to her!
When I first started The Romance Bookie, back in 2010, NO ONE but my mom knew I had a blog. I was honestly embarrassed. My friends already found it annoying how much I talked about the books I read, so I just didn't want to have to explain myself, on why I had started something I truly enjoyed doing, but no one understood.
It wasn't until almost two years later, that I sort of mentioned it to a friend, off handedly, and she was super impressed! In fact, she brought up in one of friends' group events, and all my friends were super interested in what I was doing!
That was when I realized there was absolutely nothing to be ashamed about, when I was doing something I enjoyed. No one could take that away from me! The Romance Bookie is mine, I created her, and she is a huge part of my life!
And that is what Carry On, is to Cath.
I loved it!
Levi, Cath's roommates ex-boyfriend was a great character too! I loved his secret when it came out, because it made me realize and appreciate my love for books even more, because some people just don't get that luxury!
Overall rating:
I loved this book. It had a great story, interesting characters, and so many great details that I found myself constantly wanting to get back to reading, when sadly I wasn't allowed to, due to work or homework. My only problem I have is I would have loved a little more from the ending, but that's only because I wanted Cath to reach her goal. But that's okay, because in a way she did. She achieved what in the end was the right thing for her to do.
Can't wait to see what's next from Rainbow Rowell!
So the semester has officially started, so I'm back at work and school! Reading time has unfortunately been cut down again a bit, but it's okay, I'm still attempting to make as much time as possible for reading this year! Book three for 2015 is done (Review for book #2 is coming soon!)!
This time around, I read a book, I've had sitting on my shelf for almost a year, and have been wanting to read since I finished one of this author's novels last year, around this time.
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.
From Goodreads:
From the author of the New York Times bestseller Eleanor & Park.
A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.
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?
"Touching and utterly real." — Publisher's Weekly
My Thoughts:
Wow. Rainbow Rowell has once again impressed me with her words.
I reviewed Eleanor and Park exactly one year and one day ago. It was right after I had gotten back from Florida with my boyfriend. Which is funny, because we are actually going back next week again for our ten day vacation!!!!
Anyway, just like Eleanor and Park, I absolutely truly enjoyed reading Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.
Rowell has this way of writing so realistically, with so much power behind her words, that I, as a reader, found myself holding on to every single word I was devouring.
Cath, while at times extremely frustrating, turned out to be someone I found myself in. I was very similar to Cath my first year of college. I was a hermit. I preferred to stay in my room. Not hang out with people. And my head was always in a book (Cath's is always in her laptop, writing her story).
Another thing I could really relate to was how Cath kept her authorship of Carry On a secret from the outside world. No one but her sister, father, and later Levi know that she writes it. Tens of thousands of people read each and every single one of her fan-fiction chapters of her take on a famous childhood story, yet no one knows it is a lonely freshman girl writing in her dorm room, lonely. Even her sister won't talk to her!
When I first started The Romance Bookie, back in 2010, NO ONE but my mom knew I had a blog. I was honestly embarrassed. My friends already found it annoying how much I talked about the books I read, so I just didn't want to have to explain myself, on why I had started something I truly enjoyed doing, but no one understood.
It wasn't until almost two years later, that I sort of mentioned it to a friend, off handedly, and she was super impressed! In fact, she brought up in one of friends' group events, and all my friends were super interested in what I was doing!
That was when I realized there was absolutely nothing to be ashamed about, when I was doing something I enjoyed. No one could take that away from me! The Romance Bookie is mine, I created her, and she is a huge part of my life!
And that is what Carry On, is to Cath.
I loved it!
Levi, Cath's roommates ex-boyfriend was a great character too! I loved his secret when it came out, because it made me realize and appreciate my love for books even more, because some people just don't get that luxury!
Overall rating:
Can't wait to see what's next from Rainbow Rowell!
The Romance Bookie :)
I related too, because I wrote fan fiction for many years before people started to pay me to write. That was pre-Internet. One of my students is on Wattpad and was thrilled to overhear a classmate who didn't she was writing say something enthusiastic about her fiction, like that scene in Fangirl. And like Cath, she keeps it secret. Well, I know about it, but she won't tell me her username because she's scared to have her fiction read by someone who knows who it is. Sound familiar? :-) Not much use to her once she starts trying to sell her work, and she has signed up to do Creative Writing with me this year.
ReplyDeleteGreat book! You should read Landline too, that's her newest.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked it!!
ReplyDeleteI was and still am a lot like Cath - I don't like leaving my room all that much, even though I have to for work every day *mumbles about 7:30 am classes* but nvm that.
I loved how Cath had to struggle to find who she was in college without being the other half to her sister. Levi was really sweet and I loved Reagan!! :D