I feel like Rainbow Rowell submitted one of her fan fictions to a college prof only to get a shitty grade and wrote Fangirl as an alternate reality for herself

Kinda glad I never read Fangirl now, damn. "Social anxiety" and "dislike of other people" _reeeeally_ need to stop getting conflated, because they aren't the same. Social anxiety makes you act awkward, sure, but an important factor of that awkwardness is _desire to accommodate._ You're afraid you won't be accepted and liked as you are, so you end up constantly maneuvering around other people's feelings even if it means exposing yourself to discomfort. Within that context, calling a total stranger "kinda rapey" in a situation where we're completely alone and they're basically asking permission to get on with their usual routine? Genuinely unfathomable to me, someone with 28 years of social anxiety under my belt.

I loved Fangirl back in high school, damn. But thinking back, Cath is low key annoying. Like, she did NOT turn in fanfic for her writing class, WHAT. 😂

i feel like its cheaper to go on pinterest rather than buy milk and honey

When it came out, Miss Peregrine's was heavily mismarketed. It was marketed as horror and a dark, paranormal tale. It's absolutely not horror, not to say that it's a bad book, but damn people got duped.

"It was the hot shit, but while it definitely wasn't hot, it was shit." 😂😂

As someone who studied creative writing, I'm pretty sure writing any kind of fiction about characters you didn't create would be considered plagiarism from an academic point of view. Also if she wanted a career writing other people's ideas, then she could always become a ghost writer.

Older authors need teenage consultants when they’re trying to write from a teenage perspective.

A few years ago Rainbow Rowell was like the queen of YA, now everyone is looking back with wiser eyes and realizing her books were actually pretty dodgy.

I didn't understand why the story is called Fangirl. She doesn't even seem like a fan of the original story, just in love with her own fanfic.

This title is everything.

On one hand, I find the mother naming her children Cather and Wren dumb and unrealistic. But on the other hand, a parent named their child Little Sweetmeat in 2016 so 👀

I would have said "Im sorry I dont feel comfortable being alone with a guy in my room" instead of calling him "Rapey"

"If I offended you because of this video I actually don't care" I'm dead idk why but that made me laugh so hard

I just had a violent flashback to the time I turned in Johnlock fanfiction for a literature assignment in 10th grade, and when I got it back there was mo grade but several red question marks the teacher wrote on the top 😭😭😭😭

"My name is Cath." "Is that short for Catherine?" "No, Catheter."

I love that the main character of Fangirl had social anxiety but still had the AUDACITY to submit fanfiction for a grade, like what--

Okayyyyy, Lily with the hoops 😍

Never apologize for longer videos, I could listen to you go off for five hours, okay? I read Fangirl and E&P back in the day, but I realized I was only reading them because everyone else and their moms were and not because I was actually enjoying them. I DIDN'T, I HATED BOTH.

Eleanor and park and fangirl are two of the worst stand alone books I’ve ever read. I agree completely.

FINALLY someone who sees Milk & Honey for what it is. Reminded me of the 13 year old "deep" girl shit I used to post.

This was so therapeutic because my friend and I read Fangirl when it was so hyped, and we were soooo upset with it. Felt so alone thinking Cath was toxic and annoying af. Lily to the rescue!!🙏

As someone with social anxiety, I would have been so scared of rejecting the guy that I would have just let him in no matter how awkward it was going to be

idk if this trend is dead or not but i feel like you'd make the funniest tier ranking videos. i'd watch you rank crusty books or gelato flavors or literally anything

my biggest issue with Fangirl was that there was basically no plot. It really felt like the end was so hurried in order to tie up all the loose ends. Overall, it was absolute shit and i'm glad i'm not the only who thinks so haha

god the writing style in illuminae pissed me off so much i dnf’d. the chat logs were beyond cringe, and the guy (i don’t remember his name) couldn’t stop being horny in his PROFESSIONAL WORK REPORTS. it’s the only time i’ve been so annoyed at a book i felt compelled to annotate it lmao

FINALLY! "if I hurt your feelings during this video I actually don't care" - your closing statement is so refreshing like... if people don't wanted to hear someone that had a different opinion as them on books (a harmless opinion) then they can just not watch a video about it. (and it's great to not hear a 2 minute long disclaimer that I've heard a thousand times before) I don't understand being hurt by another person's opinion on a piece of media and I think it's because a lot of people feel that the quality of or their opinion of a novel or piece of literature is threatened if not everyone has the exact same feelings about it. Personally, I love hearing contrasting reviews on books that I love and that I hate because everyone reads with a slightly different focus and it's cool to form a more rounded and nuanced understanding of a book based on each person's unique lens that they read from. Also it's fun to hear someone roast a bad book... there's also that

"that gets white girl wasted every weekend" is the best thing I've ever heard

i'm gonna be honest. so i bought fangirl right, opened the first page, reached the part where she called the situation with the dude "kinda rapey", closed the book and put it back into my bookshelf where it has been left to rot for 4 years already👍🏼

The one detail of Fangirl that still makes me so mad is that Cath was eating granola bars for every meal because she didn't know where the dining hall was and was too anxious to ask anyone....google a map?? like as someone with social anxiety, I get it but like....this was just so stupid, there were so many things she could have done other than just "¯\_(ツ)_/¯ guess I'll eat granola bars"

It's the italian in you emerging, Lily. Let those hands fly

I highly recommend Eliza and Her Monsters! I feel like it deals with fandoms and fan fiction and a character with anxiety much better than Fangirl did. It’s been a while since I read it but I remember thoroughly enjoying it

I hated fangirl too, and I skipped the fanfic part cause I didn’t care about it

"So the cancel gods don't come and strike down on me" best line laughed out loud 😂

2:45 "I don't know what it WUZ" Lily has been compromised.

The way you look like a Bratz doll in this video🤩

I remember reading fangirl when i was around 15/16 and i didnt like but felt so alone cuz everyone else loved. Also i skipped the fanfic 🥴

Ahh Fangirl is still one of my absolute favourite books. I completely understand why people don't like the book though. I first read the book 7 years ago and since then I've made an effort to reread it at least once every single year. Still going strong and still one of my absolute favourites 😇

i'm so happy to see fangirl in the thumbnail lmaoo I've owned it for like 6 years and i just read it last year. biggest waste of my life. i literally had to SKIP those fanfic pages because oh god not the terrible writing AND small font

PLEASE bring back quoting receipts from books like you did with Anna and the French Kiss. I was hoping for Fangirl to get wreeecked 😂

“If I offended you in any way in this video, I honestly don’t care” made me actually bust out laughing! Omfgggg

yeah milk and honey was trash and years ago i heard that some of the writing was stolen

I read Peregrine's when it was a trilogy and reread the first book recently. I had most of the same gripes but for me, because the characters ultimately were just reduced to their powers, I saw no point in the photos being there except for a cool gimmick of what they were supposed to look like, if that makes sense? Like, as the characters feel so unimportant, the photos in consequence also feel unimportant. I think this problem is more prominent in the following books(the cover with the girl having a hole in her stomach) because she was only there for a rather pointless sequence in my opinion. She never appears in in the books again after that so it comes off more like the story was written or forced around the photos

The editing comments to get ahead of being canceled is f*cking hilarious

Read both ‘Fangirl’ and ‘Milk and Honey’ ... agree 100%. Lost count how much I rolled my eyes in both.

Look at you posting semi regularly 😌😌😌 also ready to hear you absolutely torch milk and honey

I did not like Fangirl. I related to the main character when it came to dealing with people freshmen year in college, but I did not like the book. I didn’t like Illuminae, so I’m not continuing the trilogy.

I’d definitely recommend continuing the Ms. Peregrine’s Home series, the other books are really good!

16:39 "Another one can float" -puts the kid from IT OMG Lily!

Same thoughts with Fangirl. Never tried any of her books again because of it...

about your point on rupi kaur: milk and honey was essentially released around the time that these easily digestible, instagram poetry was on the rise. hence why when you said that they seemed cliche, it is because that is purpose of the her poems: to grab the attention of those who are scrolling through whatever app and then go about their day without having to worry about getting into the nitty-gritty meaning behind each line or word choice. almost like, “relatable poetry,” banking on others’ similar experiences to easily understand what she’s getting at. some of the poems might be good enough to get people into poetry but definitely not up to par with other contemporary poets out there. if you do end up reading more poetry, i recommend ada limon and ocean vuong!

miss girl, you look glowingg

i just adore your channel, ur so chill and i can legit listen to u for hoursss

*So very much* agree with your criticism of Milk and Honey. And while I also agree that it's possible for people to connect with poetry, even if it's not good, that doesn't make the poetry good poetry.

I just realized how C R I N G Y was fangirl wow

2015 tumblr wet dream is truly BARS.

the georgie insert for "another one can float" took me right out 😂

I haven't watched you in years but watching this makes me realise why I marathoned every single one of the videos you posted in like one day back then lmao I love u

Title already has me hyped

I love that you can make fun of the upload schedule it's the best it's like when friends dont talk but there best friends

I absolutely ADOREEEE Illuminae and Gemina ahhh😭😭

ur accent when you say "shit" is the most adorable!! lmao i never realized how bad fangirl was until your rant

I miss you and these videos!!!😭 love it 💗

salt. by Nayyirah Waheed (who some people think Rupi Kaur copied her style from) is a poetry collection in that same minimalist style that tackles a lot of ideas about love, race, and feminism and I think it’s much better than “milk and honey.” You can find screenshots of the poems if you Google her name and read some of those before you decide to read it, but I think you’d enjoy it.

If you think I'm staying up at 1:30AM with no regrets to watch Lily, you're right :) xD

Loved the longer video! Also all your critique was good and relevant. I basically agree with everything you said. I feel like the things you pointed out for each book kind of highlight ongoing problems we have in publishing, and with writer's works in general. I'm a Creative Writing graduate and yes, everything you said about Milk and Honey is relevant, it's infuriating. Things get published more in relation to trends than if it's actually written with skill or not. Been a long time fan, keep it up :-)

Crusty is the perfect word for these books

loved this video, i missed ur reviews!!

Hey I love your videos and your personality. Keep it up u rock!

So glad I'm not alone with all these book opinions! I have read Fangirl, Illuminae and Miss Peregrine's years ago and I didn't really like them. I was frustrated with myself because the booktubers I watched back then was raving about these books constantly. As I grew older I realised how actually underwhelming these books are and that the booktubers I watched before are just hyping it up and jumping on the bandwagon of popularity. Thanks for the vid!

She lowkey reminds me of Maeve Wiley. BADASS.

My sister and I both hate Fangirl with the rage of a thousand suns. I agree with your thoughts about it.

those hoops look great! and i love the ranting as always 😂

Carry On and the sequel are my guilty pleasure- i just like simon and baz 😭😭

The outro omg ahahaha I love your sincerity, Lily

I actually read Fangirl (again) this January! I hated it lol. It really annoys me that Cath got a second chance from her professor; like I get what she could have lost had she failed, but Cath deserved to fail the class and Wren deserved to be sent back home. Also, I am still wondering what happened to Wren at the party with Courtney that soured the friendship, it never says.

Stop apologizing for making long videos like we won’t devour them happily! ☺️☺️

I HATED CATH WHEN I FIRST READ FANGIRL but all of my friends who read the book loved it a lot so I thought there was like something wrong with me lmao.

i could listen to you talk about books for hours i've never read any of these but now i know what to avoid ( -fangirl- )

Lily, i am SO relieved you mentioned that one spoiler in Miss Peregrine's! I couldn't get over it, the rest of the book was meh but that concept was so pathetic and sad to me that it just killed my enthusiasm. Especially by how clear they made that he was an "inferior" replacement!!

Hard agree about your Milk and Honey review and the RuPaul catchphrases 😭 so glad to see you posting!! Thank you

Rainbow Rowell's books are all terrible, I genuinely don't understand where the hype came from - even Carry On (that everyone RAVES about) is just bad Draco/Harry fanfic (it also just makes her look like she's someone who fetishises gay relationships, considering Rowell is a straight woman in her 40s).

Omg I just finished milk and honey yesterday and I felt the same, also was it just me or I didnt even know how to read the damn book. It kinda felt like This book was just a Sentence with random spaces Between the words Or I maybe don't know how to Read a book anymore

"some tiny little bitch in a bottle" when i tell you I choked on my water 💀

The illuminae files are all the same books but with different characters and I will die on this hill

As a middle schooler and early high school I LOVED Fangirl, but as I grew up I realized how Cath was kind of the female equivalent to the infamous John Green male protagonists. Simon and Baz/Carry On are definitely the best results of Fangirl.

I forced myself through all the first 3 Miss Peregrine's books. I don't know, I also like the vibe and they looked so good on the shelf but the beginning was always so slow and it always took me forever to get into the story. I feel like the thing with the forced story and the pictures gets worse in the later books.

If you like Rainbow Rowell’s writing, I suggest the Simon Snow series: Carry On and Wayward Son (+Any Way The Wind Blows that’s coming out this summer). I really love the way it explores the idea of the Chosen One and what it’s like to be one and what it feels like to have fulfilled your destiny at a very young age. Also it deals with how traumatic experiences influence our behaviour in romantic relationships and our sense of self worth. And the magic system is so cool! Personally, the Simon Snow bits were the only ones I liked about Fangirl anyway

The funniest part about Fangirl is that somehow it had garnered enough popularity for a manga adaptation (ngl the art looks nice but I'm not sure how it holds up with the lack of story)

i only bought milk & honey because i loved the cover and heard so many good things about it and i was so disappointed, i absolutely hated it but felt like i wasn’t even allowed to hate it because everyone praised it so fuxking much

I've only read fangirl and milk and honey, but I hate them both. I read fangirl when I was about 14 and the only thing I genuinely liked was THE COVER. Milk and honey on the other hand was the first poetry book I read and It was supposed to get me into poetry, but I don't really think it's poetry but just pretty drawings and lines

You described my feelings toward Miss Peregrine’s perfectly! The story and atmosphere was great, but the characters had zero qualities that stood out to me. I plan to read the sequel in the hopes that they’ll get more development, but we’ll see.

as soon as you described Fangirl as 'crusty'...i subscribed

Okay also the characters Cath is writing abt in fangirl have their own book by rainbow rowell (carry on) and from memory it’s legit a good ass book

I read Fangirl way back in high school when it first came out and, to me, was a comfort book that 'normalized' fanfiction writers. Looking back on it now, I'd be the person who tries to send Cath and her family to some much needed therapy. I'd also like to have a very long talk with their mother, if given the chance. Thinking back on the setting, it didn't stand out as much. All I could get was a single flavor from Cath's perspective; which was dryer that some old Thanksgiving turkey in the dorm's laundry room. As for the characters, they weren't all that bad, but I probably wouldn't associate myself with them. One of the things I liked was when the book would give little inserts of the story Cath was writing.

i loved miss peregrine’s home for peculiar children as a kid 🥺 it was very formative for me tbh

Could not agree more about Milk and Honey! Some of the poems are great, but I totally agree that the majority are just the same over and over. Legit bought a copy when it first came out and returned it the next day, I just couldn’t do it 😂😬🤦🏻‍♀️

hi queen! this is another great video!

She really said grandpa code lmao. I stumbled upon your Anna and the french kiss video back in the day after I read it and it was so cathartic bc I Hated It. It’s ok if you don’t ‘pull out receipts’, your breakdown of these books was really good and I trust your taste so much honestly. Milk and honey was recommended to me last year to practice reading in english bc the language was accesible, but I’m glad I never gave it a go since everything I’m hearing about it lately is not so good.

Milk and Honey was incredible when it first came out. It reminds me of how E.E Cummings' poetry was impactful for it's time because it was so experimental. Rupi Kaur really just set the standard for a bunch of aesthetic/indie niche people but since then it's been so overdone that it's not as quirky or special as it used to be