Fangirl Book review

FanGirl By Rainbow Rowell

Pages: 434

Stand alone

5 out of 5 stars

Buy it here: Amazon
Description: 

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?
**** Please be warned this review will be spoiler heavy!****

So I have been wanting to read FanGirl for a while. Partly because I myself am a fangirl. And because the idea of a book about being one just screamed Read me. 

I picked up FanGirl and was dying to read it. I just needed the time and that finally came this month. 
I am new to Rainbow, this is my first book of hers and I will definitely be reading more.
Cath and her sister Wren are two very different girls. Cath is still obsessed with Simon Snow (the Harry Potter like character.) And Wren is ready to grow up. Cath also sufferers from anxiety ,I instantly connected with her.
Cath: “Drunk nerds aren’t my thing.” 

Wren: “You like nerds.”

Cath: ” Not nerds who join fraternities.” “That’s a whole subclass of nerds that I’m not interested in.” 
That happens on Page 31 by that point I was fully hooked. The humor of this book is unlike anything I’ve read in a while and its refreshing.
Cath has three boys she has to deal with in this book. And each one has his own level of jerk. But some end up being better than others. 
Guys!

Able: The boyfriend from back home. The “End Table” as Wren so lovingly calls him. I instantly hated him. Probably had something to do with the fact he dumped Cath over the phone. 
Levi: Okay he was a jerk for kissing Cath then kissing another girl. But he got off my crap list when he drove her to the hospital for her dad. Levi is who I always wanted her with and I’m so glad i got that in the end.
Nick: Okay this guy is a class A jerk. He gets Cath to write with him which seem so sweet and kind. Then he decides to turn in their story for his final paper. I mean aftr all she was only “Editing it for him.” No she co wrote that and you don’t deserve her in your life!

Friends
Okay Cath really only has one friend and that is
Reagan: she is Cath’s best friend and roommate. She is also Levi’s ex which made things a tad awkward to say the least. But she is a funny character and I loved her. She had me at “What the fuck is ‘the fandom’?” I love that she had no idea what that was, and poor Cath had to try and make herself not sound even weirder. 
Family.

This section is a bit tricky for me. 
So we have. 
Wren: Her twin sister, who Cath see as better than her. I can fully relate to parts of that. Wren has a drinking problem and it leads to her often hurting Cath. Including telling her that she is the “Wrong C” ( She had meant to text her friend Courtney.) Wren goes down a dark path, and she has no idea how to come back from it. Their father eventually steps in and helps her. Wren had to do a lot of growing up, some of it I know she did kicking and screaming but it was good for her in the end. 
Art (Their Father): Cath and Wren’s dad suffers from Manic Depression, and Bi Polar. These were too subjects I don’t often seen written about but that are very important. Cath worries about their dad constantly and shows up in the hospital when he needs them the most. Wren stays at school and parties. But like Wren he has to do a lot of growing up as well. He learns he has to see when hes going Manic and have someone there for him.
Laura (Their Mother): Okay my hate for this woman is strong. She abandons her children at the age of 8 because she never wanted to be a mother. When Wren is finally in the hospital she shows up and Cath finally has to see her again. When she tries to tell her mother how she feels Laura says “Don’t make this about me.” she picks to act like shes being attacked. Cath tells her mother she needs to get her act together and to try harder to be in their lives, something shes never done. I grew to hate her character more as the words spilled off the pages. This part hit very close to home I have issues with my own parents and I could just feel and understand Cath’s frustration. 

Relationships. 

I really only want to talk about Levi and Cath because their love is perfect. 
Levi: “It’s okay if you’re crazy.” 

Cath: “You don’t even know.

Levi: “I don’ have to know.” “I’m rooting for you.”
Cath’s Anxiety tries to get the better of her often, making her question her chance at a true relationship. She worries about trusting Levi, about letting him get to close, and about losing him. She afraid she will never be normal with him. 

And what I love about Levi is he understands that. He doesn’t push her, hes there when she needs him. 

He becomes her rock in everything. When her sister is in the hospital she tells him “You didn’t have to come.” 

He simply replies “Yeah I did.” he knew she needed him even when she didn’t. 
Cath had the habit that a lot of us with Anxiety have, she constantly apologizes for everything for fear of loosing the person you love. Levi would tell her she never had to be sorry again. 
She tells him her fears of being second best to Wren, even when it comes to him. And he tells her “I choose you over everyone.” he got it. He understood her insecurities and loved her through them.  

Final comments. 

This books was beautifully and brilliantly written. I love what Rainbow was able to do with the emotions everyone deals with but is too afraid to talk about. It has become and instant favorite and one I will turn to when I need a pick me up. FanGirl is a win for anyone who has ever felt bad about being in a Fandom. Don’t there are a lot of us out here and we are a family!