Spoilery Book Reviews

I Was Born For This by Alice Oseman

Back of the book

For Angel, life is about one thing: The Ark – a pop-rock trio of teenage boys taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark's fandom has given her everything she loves – her friend Juliet, her dreams, her place in the world.

Jimmy owes everything to The Ark. He's their frontman – and playing in a and with his mates is all he ever dreamed of doing.

But dreams don't always turn out the way you think, and when Jimmy and Angel are unexpectedly thrust together they find out how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.

My thoughts

Internet friends, fandom culture and anxiety. Alice Oseman captures a particular subset of teenagers, dedicated fans, and portrays it so accurately it feels as if I am re-entering my 14 year old consciousness. Oseman is a young writer which is how I believe she is able to write about the teenage experience so vividly. I'm sure her stories will age out of relevance as her "modern-ness" ages the story (for one, Twitter's name change). The morals of friendship and humanising your idols will still be important no matter future culture shifts.

Angel (Fereshteh) Rahimi

As much as a fandom can become a community and basis for connections and friendships, it is also mentioned how it can isolate you. That none of her school friends love The Ark, and that she can be judged or looked down upon for what she likes. I wish we could cultivate a culture that celebrates peoples' interests instead of judging and bashing them depending on how it fits with pop culture.

I feel it important to mention, since Yellowface brought racism to the front of my mind, that Angel is Muslim, and wears a hijab. Angels' culture has zero sway or impact on the narrative. I like the idea that people that don't look like you or have different cultural backgrounds, are actually just like you. I guess I would expect the experience of Angel to be different to the experience I'd expect from a white counterpart. Shows my lack of exposure. I just know that Alice Oseman is a white British writer and although I cannot pinpoint anything problematic in the story telling, it doesn't mean it's not there.

That blip aside, I liked the lesson told through this story, to save some love for yourself instead of using external hobbies to distract from your own life.

Jimmy Kaga-Ricci

I feel we never really get a conclusion on his story. Angel's story follows a clear arc and hopeful resolution. There is a focus on his anxiety and deteriorating mental health but it is Lister who has a make-or-break moment and gets the finale focus. The ending is hopeful for the band but I would have preferred to see Jimmy get some form of help for everything he has faced.

I enjoyed the battle between how fandom culture is seen from both sides of the coin, asking the question how far is too far? I can clearly see both sides, and there is no black and white answer. Learning to humanise your idols, and treat them as you would respectfully treat any other person, is a good rule of thumb. Fandoms are such living things when you are a part of them. There are good and bad aspects to fandom culture but it will ultimately come down to personal responsibility.

Lastly, Angel and Juliets' relationship would have been over if the circumstances didn't force them together. These books about friendship tales that the friends make up in the end...real life that feels less likely. You just walk away because you are a person scared of confrontation and would prefer to lose a friend than face the awkward or uncomfortable situation.

As a fan of One Direction through high school, this book really spoke to my teenage self and I feel it can be relatable to anyone who has dipped their toe into fandom culture. It contains beautiful morals about friendship, learning to talk about real things, and humanising your idols. I promise this is the last comparison to Solitaire, but I would recommend all of Alice Osemans' works to read bar that one.

TL:DR

Basically a book about being in the One Direction fandom, realising they're just normal lads, and learning that you are escaping your own life by loving them whole-heartedly. And maybe making a friendship along the way.