Fangirl

Fangirl
by Rainbow Rowell

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? (Description from Goodreads.com) 

As a fangirl, myself...though I don't write fanfiction...I really loved and connected to Cath.  Not only did I love her geeking out and feeling compelled to be an active part of the fandom, but I also really connected to her as I remembered what it was like to start college.  Thank goodness I met my friends, now my best friends, in the dorms in the first few months, and just like Raegan pulled Cath out of her room and made her interact, my friends encouraged me to do the same.  Without them, my college experience could have been totally different. Quiet, full of nothing but homework, boring... 

This is actually the first Rainbow Rowell book that I've read and I really enjoyed it.  It was sweet and well done in its own right and then had all these nods to fandoms that added an extra layer of fun.  My only complaints were that A - We don't actually get to read "Carry On, Simon" now and B - That even though the fictitious author makes a slight nod to Cath's fanfiction in basically refuting it, there wasn't a more direct sort of acknowledgment of all her hard work.  I know it's not realistic, but honestly I would have loved if Gemma had actually acknowledged Cath in some fashion... 

Now, I REALLY need to read Eleanor and Park, which I've heard is EVEN better! 

Full disclosure: Audio Book borrowed from my Library, eBook purchased for my Nook