Book Review: Fangirl

I read 'Eleanor and Park' by Rainbow Rowell a few months back and the book was so good that it was a struggle to keep it down. And right then, I knew that Rainbow Rowell was someone to look out for. I looked her up and found out that she had another book called 'Fangirl' to her credit. I thought about reading it then, but the title sounded too superfluous, too girly and I skipped it. This summer I have had all the time in the world to read all the book meant for later. So, I read 'Fangirl', and here's what I thought of it...

The book follows Cath, a college Freshman, who writes fan fiction about Simon Snow (alternate universe Harry Potter). She's very dependent on her twin sister, Wren, who is entirely different to her in every aspect. She's more confident than Cath, more social, more charismatic and less nerdy. They were always a package deal until high school and did everything together but in college, life happens and they start slowly drifting apart. Wren's Friday night means going out to parties, socializing where as Cath stays at her dorm and weaves out Simon snow Fanfic. Finally she befriends her roommate Reagan and her always-there bestfriend, Levi.The semester unfolds and Cath, slowly but surely, begins to grow out of her shell. As the book goes on we see her find herself without relying on her sister, deal with her anything but normal family life, keep up with her fanfic, fall in love -all in the scary new world of College.

Cath is hesitant to trust others, reluctant to make friends, but once you get to know her, you can't help but feel she is amazing. She is a geek. A nerd. A bookworm. And I loved that about her. I loved how strong she remains in crisis, how caring and supportive she is of her father, how protective she is of Wren. Also, she knows the struggle that goes into reading/writing and obsessing over something fictional. She understands.And I can't stress this enough.

"That was the beauty in stacking words –they got cheaper, the more you had of them.” 

"Underneath this veneer of slightly crazy and mildly socially retarded, I’m a complete disaster." 

If I started to reference everything I liked, I may never stop. Just goes to show how Rainbow did a fantastic job in sculpting the character. My next favorite character has to be Levi who is Cath's love interest. He is not your typical knight in the shining armor. He is a knight though, just sans the armor.  Levi had no scarred past or traumatic childhood; in fact he is one of the good guys who does good things for others just because he can. He is not all tall, dark and handsome oozing sex appeal because he is more than just the sexy love interest. That just comes to show how perfect imperfections can be. First he is a nice person and then has more layers to him, which was so great to read about. He just feels very real.

Also, how many times have we read a book where some innocent girls falls in love with a bad-boy at first sight and the bad-boy falls back only to read through the sappy romance and too immense love confrontations. This is definitely not that book. There's a realistic pace to the romance angle. They keep it slow and steady. The start as friends and with every little thing they go through they become inseparable.But it's still appealing. You root for them no-questions-asked because it's impossible not to.

“What's the plan?' she asked.
He grinned. 'My plan is to do things that make you want to hang out with me again tomorrow. What's your plan?'
'I'm going to try not to make an ass of myself.'
He grinned. 'So we're all set.”

“You’re beautiful,” she said.
“That’s you.”

“Don’t argue with me. You’re beautiful.”

“Cath couldn't stop thinking about Levi and his ten thousand smiles.”

One word: Adorable.

 When I write stories, I end up making larger-than-life romantic heroes all the time. It's not something I can help because I've only known things to be this way . One of the few things you do right as a writer is change someone else's perspective. And Rainbow does it for me.

 All in all, the book is not your regular YA literature. Even as someone who doesn't read or write fanfic, it was a pleasurable read. The writing was genius. It was clever, unique and insightful with just the right touch of quirky. There is no over dramatization in the plot but you still stick through because the little things captivate you. Also, having read two of the books from the writer, I'd say, Rainbow's books are never about the destination. And with 'Fangirl',  she does make sure you have a gratifying journey. Happy reading!