Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell Publisher: St Martin's Griffin (2013)
Hardcover (433 pages)
Rating:
Reading Challenges: 2016 Backlist Books, Read 2016
Synopsis
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 fanfiction, 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 that 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 fanfiction 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? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?
Find the book: Goodreads, Amazon, Book Depository
My Review
Where do I even start with this review? So many people love it and I … don’t. I expected a book that was going to focus on fandoms and instead it was a contemporary coming of age novel.
I guess I will start with the Simon Snow fandom. This seemed to take the place of the Harry Potter fandom, and yet Harry Potter was referenced. I did not get that.
Then I had some issues with the fanfiction aspect. Admittedly, I’m not super big on fanfiction. However, why would someone write fanfiction that makes the author’s heterosexual character homosexual? I really did not get that part at all. Seriously, why?
Oh, Cath also spent months eating granola bars because she was too afraid to ask someone where the cafeteria was. Really? All of the universities I have attended have the cafeteria marked on the map they give out at orientation. There are also signs on campus pointing to the cafeteria and the cafeteria has its own website telling you what is on the menu and how to find the cafeteria on campus! Seriously, the cafeteria isn’t going to be that hard to find.
Since I mentioned Cath, let’s talk about names. We have twins named Cather and Wren. Who has twins and is too lazy to think of a second name and so just breaks Catherine into two names? Really? I’m totally not buying that.
The only redeeming factor I could find was the Cath-Levi romance. I loved the way it developed even though I had serious issues with both characters. Their romance was cute though.
In all, this was definitely not the book for me. I don’t I’ll read any more Rainbow Rowell books either. However, maybe you will have (or have had) a different experience.
Sorry that you didn’t love this book. I would like to point out that there is a lot of fanfiction in the world that takes canonically hetro characters and makes them LGBTQ.
But here’s a quote and article that goes more indepth…
“Fandom is subversive. If a canonical worldview is entirely straight-white-male, then fans will actively resist it. Freeing homoerotic subtexts from restrictive source canons is a rebellion against heteronormative constraints.” http://www.dailydot.com/culture/beginners-guide-fandom-fanworks/
That is really interesting. I always thought that fanfiction just added to the world the author created. I didn’t realize it changes the author’s world.
Thanks for sharing the article.
I think I liked Fangirl more but I see your point of view as well. I liked Cath and Levi but I also thought the cafeteria thing was a bit much. I also thought the fanfiction thing was a bit forced, but that’s just me.
I’m glad you like Fangirl more than I. I know there are a lot of people who love it and it’s fine that I’m not one of them.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!