Book Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is one of those books that I think I will remember for a long time. I found myself relating to a lot of the characters, especially Cath the main character. She has grown up being almost inseparable from her twin sister Wren, but when they move to college Wren decides that she doesn't want to share a room with Cath anymore. Cath struggles to be apart from Wren for so much time and not be able to share certain experiences with her. She cuts herself off from many people around her and spends most of her time writing fanfiction for her favourite series of books.

Throughout this story Cath learns how she must live her life not being so attached to her sister and not have it revolve around her fanfiction. Along the way she falls for a guy who is so unlike her in many ways - but this is a good thing.

I had my doubts when I started reading this book because I wasn't sure if I would be able to relate to anything in it. I did not move away to go to university and I don't really know that much about any kind of fanfiction. But I saw a lot of myself in Cath since we're both fairly reserved and struggle in most social situations. I understood how she felt when she fell for a guy very different to her.

This book helped me reflect on how I often act towards people and how I sometimes shut myself away from them. I really enjoyed reading it because it felt so real, the story wasn't as far fetched as some can be. The end of each chapter contained extracts from the Simon Snow books (Cath's favourite books ever), and I wasn't too sure how relevant these were to the story. Sometimes I found myself skimming over them just to get the main ideas. However, the stories and fanfiction mean a lot to Cath and play a big part in this story so it is good to try to understand the references they make to certain characters and major plotlines.

I really enjoyed this book and I'm looking forward to reading more books by Rainbow Rowell. This is the first of hers that I have read. This is definitely a book any shy girl should read because for me it really encouraged me to open up more and do more things.

If you have read it or are thinking of reading it please let me know! I'd love to know what you think. Leave a comment or tweet me at @WaffleDreamland

Beth xx

Random Word: Annoying

Every few days I am going to go on a random word generator website and write a post about that word. It could be anything, I know, but I think it'll be fun to write about super random topics. I'm not quite sure how often I'll do it but for now I'm going to do it fairly regularly. I promise I will always write about the first random word I see, unless it is an extremely controversial topic.

Today's random word is 'annoying'.

It's funny how we all find different things annoying. Some people are easily annoyed and others are so laid back it's scary. I guess I'd say I am somewhere in between. I find that I get annoyed easily at some times but not so much at other times. It all depends on my mood.

If I'm in a bad mood I quickly get annoyed when people talk with their mouths full. I struggle to keep myself from telling them to shut up and swallow. This sort of thing annoys me more with members of my family - but I guess many people would agree with me that our families seem a hundred times more annoying when we are in bad moods.

A bad wifi connection is probably the most annoying thing ever. It usually happens when I'm in the middle of a really good conversation or have something super important to do. You know something bad is going to happen with your wifi connection at the worst possible time, I'm sure my wifi does it to me on purpose just to make me mad.

My neighbour is also pretty annoying. She is the kind of person who watches tv with the volume turned up as high as possible when I'm trying to sleep. Her tv never seems to be on at any other time - it's just when I desperately need sleep. Plus if you run into her in the street you can guarantee she'll keep you talking for about half an hour.

Anyway that's just a few things that I find annoying. It's a shame the random word generator gave me such a negative word today. Always remember to look at the positives, no matter how annoying something is. Let me know what things you find annoying :)

Lots of love
Beth xx

I Waffle A Lot

Hey guys! I've been thinking for a while about starting a blog but never knew exactly what I wanted to talk about. I have decided that I'm going to talk about anything I like, whether that's beauty, books, films or just my life in general.

I have never been a good writer and I know that I have a tendency to waffle a lot. Sometimes I go off on a tangent and don't even make much sense. But I enjoy it, so this blog is going to be dedicated to my love of waffling.

When I turned 21 a few months ago I realised that I have missed out on a lot of experiences many people have by this age. I've never been a very confident person so I feel that has held me back a lot. But lately I've started to change things a little, I've done things I wouldn't normally do. I'm learning a lot along the way and I still have lots to learn, but if there is anything I can say in this blog that will help anyone who reads it then I will be extremely happy.

I love to know that I have done something to help another person or just make them smile. If I somehow help you in any way or make you smile please let me know - you would make my day. And if you have any questions or would like me to post about anything in particular, again please let me know.

Who knows how this will turn out, but I am excited to see what happens. My life is getting more interesting, and I can't wait to share it with you.

Lots of love,
Beth xx