YA Book Review: Fangirl

Cover: St. Martin's Griffin

One of the most aptly named books about books is Nancy Pearl’s Book Crush, which offers reading suggestions for children and young adults. The idea of having a crush on a book might sound a little crazy to non-readers, but it is certainly something that most readers and bibliophiles can relate to. While I read a lot, I don’t often develop book crushes. This is likely due to the nature of the books I tend to read; I enjoy reading about curriculum and pedagogy, but these books don’t typically inspire the swoony, happy feelings associated with crushes. However, I’m this summer I officially got my first book crush in a long time after reading Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl.

Fangirl follows Cath during her first year of college at the University of Nebraska. Unlike her twin sister, Wren, Cath is hesitant about throwing herself into the college experience. Besides being more introverted than her twin, she is also dealing with the fact that, for the first time in their lives, she and her sister aren’t a matched set since Wren opts to room with another girl, leaving Cath to share her dorm room with Reagan, an acerbic upperclassman. Cath is so intimidated by her roommate and college in general that she spends the first month eating energy bars and peanut butter in her room because she doesn’t know where the cafeteria is and doesn’t want to ask anyone. However, despite her reticence in person, Cath cultivates an online following by writing fanfiction about the Simon Snow characters. Throughout Fangirl, we not only get to see Cath slowly and tentatively find her place in the university but we also get to read excerpts of the Simon Snow books and Cath’s Simon Snow fanfiction.

I realize that this synopsis is rather dry, but I really wanted to get through it so I could get to the unabashed squeeing and about the book. Fangirl is the best fiction book I’ve read in a long time, and is definitely the best book I’ve read all year. It makes a worthy follow-up to Eleanor & Park, Rowell’s earlier YA book, and while I enjoyed Eleanor & Park, I preferred Fangirl because of the characters. Rowell does an excellent job making the characters well-rounded and flawed while maintaining their likability. Cath’s shyness is a little maddening, but it is also understandable, and I’m sure that many readers can relate to her love of fictional worlds and the desire to continue or change stories even after a book is over. What’s more, Cath has enough likable and interesting traits to make the reader understand why her romantic interest is interested in her. Unlike other books, where the reader is told over and over again that the heroine is desirable and funny and smart, Rowell shows these traits, making the romantic plot that comes up in the book seem organic if somewhat idealized.

Additionally, Fangirl strikes the right balance between light and dark topics and never becomes too broad in its treatment of the plots or characters. While Cath’s flailing during her first few months of college could devolve into slapstick style comedy or pathetic bathos, Rowell has a light touch with this plot. Other weighty subjects, such as parental abandonment, mental illness, and binge drinking, are tackled in a thoughtful manner without taking over the story or becoming too heavy handed.

If you are looking for a book that will inspire you to develop a book crush and you like fanfiction, geek culture, and coming of age stories, Fangirl might be the book you’ve been waiting for. Just be warned: This book can cause some sleepless nights because you’ll want to get through it as quickly as possible to find out what happens to Cath, Wren, and the other characters that inhabit it.