June 2019 Sandalone BOTM - Fangirl, by Rainbow Rowell

[Felicia]

From the author of the New York Times bestseller Eleanor & Park. 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?

[Jennifer]

Ch 10 - (view spoiler)[ I love that Cath is starting to figure things out at college. I wonder if Levi is really her roommate's boyfriend. He seems really sweet. I don't like her sister, especially now with this stuff with her mother. She seems so disloyal. (hide spoiler)]
Ch 17 - (view spoiler)[ I feel for Cath right now.

So if it wasn't the other BOTM this month, I would have no idea that Rainbow Rowell put Carry On in book form. I SO want to read it now too! (hide spoiler)]
Ch 25 - (view spoiler)[ Levi is so freaking sweet! I'm glad they finally communicated and worked things out. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - I loved this book!!! (view spoiler)[ I think what I loved best is that it never tried to be too edgy - no one was abused, no one was raped. In fact, I really liked how neither of Cath's boyfriends pressured her for sex. It was refreshing. And the darkness present in Cath's life was from somewhat normal things. Sure, her dad has a mental illness, but she stays so loyal to him because she loves him. And the thing with her mom - she's your run of the mill bad mom - not abusive, not a drug addict, not a con artist, not a floozy. She just left, that was her big crime. Again, refreshing. I also love how Cath stubbornly held onto writing her fan fiction until she was at the point where she could let it go. (hide spoiler)]

This is one of the best coming of age books I've read this year. For some reason, I've read a lot lately. This one is getting 5 stars from me.