Skip to main content

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!



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Blank Canvas

Clarissa stared at the blank Canvas. It was the umpteenth time she had tried drawing that day and every time she had failed miserably. Heaps of scrunched white paper laid beneath her feet but even so, she wasn't done with the assignment yet. Art class that afternoon had been immensely enlightening. "Art comes from you heart and not your head. It unfolds the mystery of your sub-conscious. You may pretend things to be otherwise, but always remember that a piece of art is the window to your soul. It never lies", he'd said. And She had nodded, to herself more than anyone else. At the end of the class he had told everyone to draw something that made them smile, without reason and in the most turbulent of times. The pencil she'd been holding fell from her grasp and she bounced back from her reverie. She brainstormed again and again. She picked up the pencil and thought of various ways it could go. What was the thing she lived for ? She thought of the place sh...

Things and Places- II

Photo credit: Tumblr.com This is the second part of the story I wrote a couple months back. You can click on this link " Things and Places- I " to read the first part. Also, these stories are based on a real events. I'm kidding! Maybe :P Sameer It'd been two weeks since I'd been talking to Sneha over the email. And our conversations had only gotten more amusing. Like a few days back they had argued over their least favorite/favorite Book-to-Movie adaptation and I hadn't laughed like that in ages. Dear Sneha, Don't judge me. But my least favorite book-to-movie adaptation is ....... Twilight series. Yes, I've read them.  And watched ALL the movies. Yes, all five of them. Sue me. -Sameer Dear Sameer, Judge you ? what ? I respect you more because It takes guts to accept you've read Twilight series in today's world. :D Let me let you in on a secret, I've read Twilight series twice. lol -Sneha Dear Sneha, Haha, For Real?...

Romanticism

I wanted to hold your hand Amidst the crashing waves But I never seemed to understand the conditions to our affection Why could we fall apart onto each other sometimes, blind to everything else; Other times, I couldn’t even ask you to hold me, Why was I so afraid of rejection?   Did I romanticize your flimsy behavior? Or was I just a liar; Making up scenarios to downplay the extent of my emotions Because I keep choosing hurt over emptiness Delusion over reality; It does make me sometimes wonder Do I want affection or an excuse to not go seeking it?  

The Knowing

Hey folks,, What's up with you guys? As of me I'm super busy with the assignments and home-works !! No matter how much effort I put....there's always another pile of assignments to complete! (sighs) Anyways.....this time I'm going to post a story I wrote ....Immature you may tell me but I seriously am improving day by day... :) ....Here's goes the story... Aryaa looked stunning in the red gown. Her face was gleaming. He couldn’t help watching her. She was moving so abruptly and graciously towards him that he nearly fainted. She looked ravishing and the pretty girl was now standing by his side. She looked at him with her big sparkly eyes. Her alluring fragrance was lifting him off his feet. She gestured him to tell him something in his ear. He absent-mindedly moved towards her. “Wake Up, Rahul” was what she said. For once he couldn’t make out what she was referring to and the next moment he opened his eyes. Rahul was already so late for college yet his mom insi...

Things and Places - I

Hello everyone, This month I've decided to do a series kind of thing. This is the first part of the story. And I'll be completing the story in the months to come. I might post something else in between but I'll definitely finish this one. Hope you like it :) Sameer She was browsing through the fiction section at a book store. She looked thoroughly engrossed yet was consciously glancing sideways. I suddenly looked away, embarrassed. As I glanced back at her general direction after a while, she was nervously taking out 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' from the shelf. I smiled. After that she disappeared once more  into the stacks and stacks of books. I picked up the book I was looking for and lazily made my way to the counter. Just when I handed over the money, she came along carrying 'The Great Gatsby', a Sidney Sheldon book  along with Harry Potter which was on the bottom of the bunch. Taking a cue from the universe about her meticulous timing...

Unabashedly Nepali

Credit: nepalitypo.blogspot.com The week between Game of Thrones episode for me is always the time for incessant theory-searching. I read hundreds of articles, watch hundreds of videos every week not just to gain an unpopular intel on the plot but honestly, just to stay sane through the wait. So last night when I was satiating my inquisitiveness via Youtube, I stumbled onto a video regarding some scenes from the show which didn't make the final cut. The video mentioned an actress named something "Acharya" whose character had died a horrible death in Season 2. "Hmmm....That sounds vaguely like a Nepali name" I thought to myself and immediately googled her. Imagine my surprise when I found out that the actress who played one of Danaerys' helper is a Nepali girl named Amrita Acharia. I was beyond excited. A Nepali person was not only present on the sets of Game of Thrones but also played a moderately important character. There were two things running ...

How I Met Your Mother vs Friends

Photo:Pinterest I watched How I Met Your Mother for the first time when I was in 7 th  grade. At that time, the jokes most likely went right over my head and I probably didn’t understand the context to many things but still something about Ted Mosby resonated with me, even then. I have always struggled with keeping my love in check like him which has led to various failings throughout the years but Ted’s always had my back by being one step ahead. For these reasons and more, I whole-heartedly love the show. On the other hand, I watched F.R.I.E.N.D.S. a couple years later and thought it was mostly nice. I’d all but forgotten about it until last year when, for some reason, everyone started talking about it. I, by no means, thought it was a bad show but I couldn’t fathom why everyone liked it  so much . People started labelling it superior to HIMYM which didn’t sit well with me. So I decided to re-watch F.R.I.E.N.D.S to gain perspective which led me to the conclusio...

Onsra

Onsra: (Serbian; A bittersweet feeling that a love won't last)  I write our story in pencil  Making bold scratches under forever Not knowing if its fate that i'm convincing  or myself. We make plans together  you cancel them,  I feign indifference  because fighting will split us apart  or bring us together  And i'm not sure we're ready for either. But as I lay intertwined in your arms  all issues remain distant  there's you and me Your lips my shoulders  Your eyes  my composure  bursting into flames  with every breath we take together. But truth remains in goodbyes Because we aren't as subtle as autumnal leaves  that change colors into winter every October Each time you say goodbye I don't know if it's forever Sometimes, hoping it is Most nights praying it's not  Because as much as we don't want each other,  we need each other. I ...

Sensations

PC: lovethispic.com He isn't cute. Cute doesn't even begin to describe half the person that he is. Cute is momentary, flimsy. And he is the furthest from flimsy as one can get. He is beautiful. His voice is beautiful, his laugh is beautiful and the way he looks at me, he makes me feel like I'm the most beautiful girl he's ever laid his eyes upon. He is a blazing flame. And I am but a mere moth. I'll get burnt, I know it. He doesn't promise me otherwise, either. Deciding it will be worth it has made all the difference. I could say I love him, but those three words can never justify the kaleidoscope of sensations I feel when I'm with him. He is all colors in one, at full brightness.

Forever ?

I ,personally, feel that forever is very overrated. Overrated in the sense that , people vastly use it without thinking of the clauses that comes with it  The real meaning of  'forever' seems to have lost its essence along the way. 'Friends forever', 'I'll be with you forever' ...e.t.c are the most common ones that falls upon my ears. But in fact, there is no such thing as forever. All the promises and the effect of the words fade away with time. Change is inevitable. It can neither be postponed, nor can it be sent back once it has arrived. It just comes as a strong wind, which gusts away all the promises and hopes of forever. If nothing lasts forever, why is 'forever' even used by the people who can't subside by its meaning? Why take all the trouble of even mentioning it, if you can't act upon your own words? Why promise of it, if you have no idea if you are going to live the next moment or die away ? Why bother ?  ~