Fangirl: The Manga by Rainbow Rowell, Sam Maggs and Gabi Nam || book review

Hi Everyone!

If you've been with me for a while, you may remember that during summer 2021, I wrote a series called the summer diaries, in which I shared what I was doing, and what I was reading. I really enjoyed writing these posts and it was a really good way to track what I was reading, and I still look back on them now.

One of the books I read that summer, was Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I really enjoyed it, and I believe rated it five stars, even though I think that may have been a little generous for what I thought of it then, although I would totally rate it that now! I went on to read a book associated with it, Carry On, at the end of last year, followed by Wayward Son this year. I fell in love with this world, and recently found Fangirl: The Manga, and couldn't resist buying! 

Fangirl is the story of Cath, who goes to college for the first time (American college, UK uni). She has a twin sister, Wren, but she soon realises that their visions for college are very different. Wren decides to not room with Cath, and instead meet someone new. Cath ends up sharing with Reagan - and by default often also her (very handsome) boyfriend. While Wren is out drinking and partying, all Cath wants to do is write her successful fanfiction for the Simon Snow Series. 

Seeing this story transformed into manga/graphic novel form, is something truly magical. There's something so special in experiencing a story in a different way, and this book is absolutely phenomenal. From the way the characters are drawn and the art, to the flashes of Simon and Baz (the main characters of the Simon Snow Series), to the way Cath's emotions are laid bare. It all just comes together so wonderfully to form such an incredible book. 

I've never been a fan of graphic novels, but since reading Heartstopper, have perhaps been a bit more open to it, and every graphic novel/manga that I read just proves my initial thoughts wrong! I'm really learning to appreciate these stories and the way that they are told.

Cath is so much like me, it's a little scary. I'm definitely not the type to be out partying, and I am also just a little bit in love with my laptop! Her Snowbaz obsession is reflected in my Heartstopper addiction and I aspire to have her sense of "academia style"!  

I love the way we really see inside Cath's head, what she's thinking, feeling, noticing....it makes the manga a lot more faithful to the novel, because she definitely overthinks a lot in the novel. The way she interacts with the characters is also true to the original novel, and reading this almost made me fall back in love with the original story, because as I read the Carry On series, I think I came to love that more! 

What I've come to realise, is that I love these characters and this world so, so much. 

I am very impatient, and the fact that I have not yet got the second book in the trilogy is tearing me apart - I just want to carry on reading it! But I am now having to pace myself, which is probably no bad thing! I absolutely CAN'T WAIT to get my hands on the following books, although only Volume 2 is out, and Volume 3 is expected to be published in 2023!

Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy life to join me and be here once again to support me. I hope that you are all well, and that you are reading some amazing books. Happy reading!

Have you read this book? Do you want to? Have you read any other Rainbow Rowell books? What did you think of them? What do you think about turning novels into graphic novels?

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p.s. casual magic of the day:

(If you are new here and have no idea what I'm on about, click here to find out more)

I was scrolling through the images that I have uploaded to my blog, and I just had this moment when I came to realise how much of my life is captured here. Through these posts, I can relive what I was feeling, reading, how my writing style has changed....it's such a special place and I really have you all to thank for it, for always supporting me, because without that I truly wouldn't have carried on with it. So THANK YOU.