Book Binge -- Boy Band Girl Fan

I enjoy a good Netflix binge as much as the next person.  For me, that means watching 3-4 episodes of one show in a week.  I have a fantasy that one day I'll find a show that I'm so obsessed with that I'll start walking on the treadmill to justify watching more episodes.  For now though, any binge behavior takes place on the couch, usually while folding laundry. 

I listened to Goldy Moldavasky's Kill The Boy Band over a month ago.  It's a funny but DARK novel about a boy band, The Ruperts, and their fangirls.  I liked the sharp writing and insights into fangirl culture and female friendship.  I think it would be a great book club selection.  Quick read with lots to discuss.

Kill The Boy Band brought to mind two other novels that involve male performers and their female fans.

And so, I present to you, a new blog feature, the first-ever Book Binge ...

Allison Pearson's I Think I Love You is the story of Petra, a teenager from Wales, and her obsession with David Cassidy in the mid-70s.  This novel captures the old school fangirl (was this a word then?) playbook of fan magazines, letters, and clubs.  Like Kill The Boy Band, I Think I Love You is also a story of female friendship.

The Love Song of Jonny Valentine by Teddy Wayne is a novel for anyone who's ever wondered about Bieber Fever and the like.  This novel focuses on the boy fueling all those fangirl fantasies and made me feel compassion for its Bieberesque protagonist.

Kill The Boy Band by Goldy Moldavsky takes fan culture into the age of social media, evidencing the powerful influence of Twitter, blogs, and fan-sourced information.

Any college students in need of an essay topic?  Read these three books and have at it.