Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
I received an E-arc of this book from Netgalley in order to share my thoughts at Fiction state of Mind
PUBLISHER:
Saint Martins Press
She had me at the title. As I mentioned in my Fangirl summer kickoff post, I’ve had Fangirl on the brain for sometime now. When I read the synopsis of Rainbow’s new book releasing in September I requested it right away. Fangirl is a book that works on many levels. At it’s heart it portrays a woman of fandom who expresses her passion for the Simon Snow series of books (very similar to the adventures of a certain boy wizard named Harry). For Cath, Snow and his stories are the one touchstone in the shifting landscape of her life that makes sense and gives her peace.
Her sister Wren who once voraciously shared Cath’s passion has distanced herself from Cath. Wren is seeking new experiences. She changes her hair color, refuses to roommate with Cath and changes the topic whenever Cath brings up Simon.
A this point in the story the reader experiences Cath at her prickliest. For the first time she is truly alone. Her responses to this leave her even more unapproachable. As the days of her first semester of college drag on the only bright spot in her life is her creative writing class. Cath’s teacher challenges her to write a fiction set in a world Cath has never dared to explore: Her own.
I found this story very enjoyable, Cath really grew on me as a character. I also thought it was a very positive portrayal of a Fangirl :) This book also caught me by surprise because I thought I had it all “figured out”. Cath begins to come out of her shell a bit, she adapts to Wren’s need for independence and there is even a cute boy in the picture. That’s when Rowell throws in some plot twists that I didn’t see coming and genuinely loved.
A wonderful read, though I felt towards the end I wanted just a tad more time with Cath after her tremendous shifts, but other than that I was extremely satisfied with the book.
Comments
Angie