Thursday, November 24, 2011

Review of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl

My review of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga is based on a hardcover copy of the book that I borrowed from my local library. The following review is my honest opinion of the work.

Goodreads Summary: "Fanboy has never had it good, but lately his sophomore year is turning out to be its own special hell. The bullies have made him their favorite target, his best (and only) friend seems headed for the dark side (sports and popularity), and his pregnant mother and the step-fascist are eagerly awaiting the birth of the alien life form known as Fanboy’s new little brother or sister.

Fanboy, though, has a secret: a graphic novel he’s been working on without telling anyone, a graphic novel that he is convinced will lead to publication, fame, and—most important of all—a way out of the crappy little town he lives in and all the people that make it hell for him.

When Fanboy meets Kyra, a.k.a. Goth Girl, he finds an outrageous, cynical girl who shares his love of comics as well as his hatred for jocks and bullies. Fanboy can’t resist someone who actually seems to understand him, and soon he finds himself willing to heed her advice—to ignore or crush anyone who stands in his way.
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I really wanted to like this book a lot more than I ultimately did. What kept me reading was the premise that it was going to get better but for me it never surpassed just being okay. I was initially captivated by the title of the book; to me it read as if it had a lot of potential so I had to discover whether or not it lived up to it.

Having played both roles in school, both a goth girl and a total fangirl of all that is nerd-dom, I thought this book would be right up my alley. I liked parts of it and found others to be too stereotypical. What bugged me was the fact that so many of the characters fit right into a perfect two-dimensional niche and I wanted more from them. Of course eventually Fanboy does find his way, and there's hope for Goth Girl but it seems like the other characters might have just been lost in the dust.

I'm giving The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga a two out of five stars review. It was an okay read but it never really lit a fire under me.

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