http://lampbane.livejournal.com/593050.html

"The story of a boy, his comic, and the crazy girl he meets one day. [...] There's something faintly hilarious about his goal to meet Brian Michael Bendis, mostly because we know something that the main character does not. Sure, we all dream of meeting our favorite writer/artist/actor/director/etc. and totally hit if off with them because hey, we have so much in common and we appreciate their work like no other. But we also know it's never going to happen. And that's both the good and bad of this book—you know this will not end well, but it's still a great ride anyway. And there's still a bit of surprise in there, too.

High school life, as presented in this book, is pretty much the same as we've always seen it—the in-crowd and the outcasts, overseen by uncaring or misunderstanding teachers. Oh, it's accurate at times, but still a cliché in others. Toward the end it kind of redeems itself as our hero comes out of his shell to discover that not everything *is* a cliché, and I appreciate the bildungsroman aspects of that.

[...]

The comic book aspects were for the most part, accurate and funny. There were a few glitches here and there—the main character doesn't recognize Gwen Stacy, improbable even for a 15-year-old; and he spots "the writer who brought back Phoenix" even though at this time, the character is still quite dead. It's interesting that the protagonist dislikes single-issue comics and prefers trades, though it's never addressed exactly how he pays for them.

His interactions with Kyra were fun to read even if all she seems to do is scowl and growl a lot; I appreciated a female character who didn't always overreact to a guy being a guy, even if she ended up doing that by the end anyway. " ( )

I have to admit before I picked up The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl I didn't know much about it. In fact I really didn't know much about the author. It wasn't until I went to Book Expo America last May and had the good fortune to go to a part for the book anthology, Geektastic. It was at this party that met Barry Lyga and became interested in his books so shortly after returning home I picked up The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl. Sadly though my Mt TBR is huge and it wasn't moving up very far so I was very excited when I saw the audio version sitting on the shelf of my local library. I popped in the first disc before leaving the parking and soon found myself taking the long way home.

The narrator, Scott Bick, was AMAZING in bringing to life all the characters...and what characters! Fan Boy, or Donny as called by his mom, is this awkward loaner with a huge chip on his shoulder. He assumes no one will like him for him and so he refuses to even try and so then isn't shocked when that is just what happens. In many ways, Donny prefers to exist on the fringes of High School society because then life is easier. As it tends to be easier to hate someone then to like them and there is a lot less chance of getting hurt. So, things are going well for Donny in that aspect until the day he meets Kyra, another soul that exists on the fringes. Together these two form a strange bond over their shared love of comic books, social status, and just general angst at the world around them. They are these two delightfully messed up people that with every page turn (well in my case change of the CD) you just want to know more. You want to know what makes Kyra tick and why Fan Boy has such a chip on his shoulder. Its a powerful story about what it means to be a friends and the treacherous waters known as high school. Lyga has a unique writing style and is a gifted story teller. He doesn't tell light and fluffy stories and he doesn't hold anything. He is one of the few adults that seems to remember what its like to be an awkward teen who doesn't fit into the mainstream waters of high school which just adds layers of realism to the story. He's an author that I'm glad to have met in person and I can't wait to read more by him. ( )

Reviewed by Karin Perry for TeensReadToo.com

Barry Lyga explodes into the teen literature world with his unique debut novel. THE ASTONISHING ADVENTURES OF FANBOY AND GOTH GIRL is a novel about one young man's journey through confidence development.

Fanboy, a sophomore in high school, floats through life hoping to remain invisible since he has, more than once, fallen victim to bullies. His life is a lonely life. His parents have been divorced for six years, his mother is remarried and pregnant, visits with his father are becoming less frequent due to his father's increased social life, and he doesn't relate to his stepfather at all.

Fanboy has been compiling a list for quite some time. The list includes people that have "pissed" him off for no particular reason. Once you are on the list, you never get off. This includes the jock jerks and girls from the cliques that seem to dismiss him as if he has no business even attending school with them.

One bright spot in Fanboy's day is visiting with his friend Cal. Cal is a jock jerk, but also has a passion for comic books, and the two often debate, in depth, about different issues in the comic book universe. The problem with being friends with Cal is, since he is a jock jerk, he doesn't act like much of a friend at school. Fanboy knows to back off when Cal's teammates approach them at school. Most of their conversations take place on the weekends or at night through instant messages.

Fanboy's life begins to change when he receives an instant message from an unknown person. Fearing it is another trick to humiliate him, he doesn't respond. After several messages and an email, he learns that it is a girl from his gym class. Kyra has been witnessing his torment the entire year. She has taken pictures of a bully hitting him in the arm while the teachers do nothing. After this initial contact through instant messaging, they agree to meet and Fanboy's life will never be the same.

The biggest secret in Fanboy's life, which he hasn't even shared with Cal, is the graphic novel he is creating. Schemata takes up all of his free time and he can't stop himself from sharing it with Kyra. She becomes a huge supporter and inspiration for the graphic novel. Fanboy is planning to attend a comic book convention where Michael Bendis himself is going to be signing autographs. Fanboy intends to show Bendis his work and truly believes it will be the break he needs to get Schemata published. Surprising and disastrous events at the convention lead Fanboy to worry about Kyra's well-being. While things don't work out exactly as he plans, Fanboy realizes confidence is the key to his problems. After many uncharacteristic behaviors, he manages to come to terms with some of the issues in his life and makes plans for the future. He even takes someone off "the list."

THE ASTONISHING ADVENTURES OF FANBOY AND GOTH GIRL will be enjoyed by readers who enjoy teenage problem novels. Comic book fans will enjoy the graphic novel references, especially the cameo appearance by Michael Bendis. While the ending left me slightly unsatisfied, it didn't take away from my overall enjoyment of this novel. This will be a great addition to any collection. ( )

Full review at http://yannabe.com/2009/06/30/review-...

Summary: Fanboy gets picked on at school, he has only one friend who happens to be embarrassed by him, and his mom’s pregnant with his neanderthal stepdad’s kid. The only thing keeping him going is his dream of publishing his graphic novel, but then he meets Kyra, who turns his world upside down.

Review: I had fun reading about a kid who loves comics and graphic novels, since I’m just dipping my toes into that world now. And the climax of the story had me zipping through the pages to find out what would happen.

This part opened my eyes to the process of creating a comic book or graphic novel, which I never really thought about before:

"This is actually the toughest part: not the writing or the drawing, but the lettering. Figuring out where to put the word balloons. Trying not to obscure too much art, or too much of anything important, at least. Making sure that the balloons are placed so that the dialogue flows naturally and leads the reader’s eye correctly. Prose writers have it easy: Everything starts in the upper-left-hand corner of the page and goes downhill from there. In a comic book, you start in the upper-left-hand corner, but from there you can go right, down, diagonal, whatever. You can have panel borders, or none. You can have word balloons that are connected, disconnected, broken. You can have characters speak from off-panel, or in voice-over captions. You have to decide if the words are important enough to cover up the artwork that’s telling half the story."

Overall, I enjoyed this story, but it didn’t stand out to me. ( )

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. ( )