Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is one book that has been on my TBR since I was a teenager. Fortunately or unfortunately, I never got around to reading it until now. And ever since I read it, I’ve been dying to review it. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is a novel I fell in love with from start to finish.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is a story that begins with Cath and Wren, a pair of identical twins who do everything together. However, once they’re off to university, Wren decides she no longer wants to be one half of a pair. She wants independence from her twin sister. Cath dislikes her current situation. To deal with it, Cath immerses herself in reading and writing Fanfiction. In her writings, there is a romance far more intense than anything she has experienced in reality. 

I don’t know why I didn’t read Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell earlier because teenage me would have loved it and would have devoured this book in a day. I bought this book (along with seventeen others. Please don’t judge me) from an online book fair. If you’re residing in India and love buying second-hand books, I highly recommend this website: https://www.bookchor.com. 

I thought Fangirl was a romance novel about some celebrity falling in love with one of his fans. I was so wrong, and I loved it. The reason I love this book so much is the nostalgia. During our early teens, my friends and I loved reading Fanfiction. Back then, I didn’t have a laptop, nor did I have a phone. So I read all the fanfics on the PC until my neck hurt. That’s how dedicated I was to reading them. I’ll admit, I wrote a few fanfics but never had the guts to post them because they were terrible. Anyway, reading Fangirl brought back all these memories. And if a book can do that, it has done its job. I loved the writing as well. It’s simple, light-hearted, and not to mention funny. And the characters are the heart of the novel. I loved all of them, especially Levi. He might not be the main character, but he stole the show. Cath is a lovable protagonist. She’s quirky, thankfully within a limit. But without Levi, the book would not be complete. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is so much more than a story about twins navigating college life and falling in love. What I loved is that it brings up the discussion about the ethics of Fanfiction. The main question that it poses the reader is whether it is stealing when people write stories based on characters that already exist, characters created by someone else. I’ve never sat and thought about it until I read Fangirl. I might not read Fanfiction anymore, but it’s still an interesting question. Other themes that the book deals with are mental illness, friendships and strained family relationships. Rainbow Rowell paced this book well. Nothing feels rushed, and nothing feels dragged out. It was simply perfect.

I no longer read YA books because my experience has not been great. But I am so glad I gave Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell a chance. It’s a book that will brighten up your day. My rating for Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is a solid 5. I highly recommend reading it, and I’d love to know your opinion about the ethics of Fanfiction. Do you consider it stealing when someone writes stories based on characters that already exist, characters created by someone else? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below.