I really enjoyed this book. It was a great overview of different fandoms. I have always enjoyed the various fandom-oriented books that Sam Maggs has written. I would recommend this book to anyone who considers themselves a 'fan' of some form of pop culture. I would also recommend it to those looking to broaden their horizons or learn more about all the various fandoms out there in the universe. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book!

Soooo, I thought that this book was going to be for me, and unfortunately, it was not.
I was expecting something that myself, as a fangirl/fanperson, would relate to, but instead it felt like a "how to BE a fangirl", which, kind of defeats the point of the book?
I was expecting a lot more from this one., and it let me down.

A lovely guide to the world through the lens of being a fangirl. Very enjoyable, and a good balance of advice and pop culture references

Is there nothing that Sam Maggs cannot do? I love this author so much not only because of her wit, but her ability to open up the world of geekish fun and fandoms across multiple "worlds". In THE FANGIRL'S GUIDE TO THE UNIVERSE, the interviews are such a wonderful treat.

Also, I have to say that the design of the book makes it completely enjoyable to bounce around and flip through. All in all, a fangirl's must-have.

For all geeks & Fangirls everywhere!!

it's such a great introduction to cosplaying, fandom and more! I found so much useful information throughout and found it such a great introduction to the fan world.

This book is for any girl age middle grade and up who loves the nerd life and wants to know more about it.

This will help you find your group of nerdy friends, write fan fiction, and defeat internet trolls who dare come to stomp on your posts.

After reading this, you'll be able to navigate comic cons and get a feminist take on a male dominated geekdom.


I received an ARC for an honest review.

The Fangirl’s Guide to the Universe: A Handbook for Girl Geeks written by Sam Maggs, and illustrated by Kat Goodloe, is an update on its previous iteration, The Fangirl’s Guide to the Galaxy, published in 2015. I can’t comment on the updates, as I’ve never read the previous version, so my review is starting with a clean slate, I suppose.

As a geek of the female persuasion myself, when I saw this book available on NetGalley, I requested a review copy straight away. The brilliant, colorful cover illustration drew me in, as did the title, due to its similarity (which I’m assuming was entirely intentional) to the title of one of my favorite books of all time, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. I was happy to notice many little references to iconic people, movies, shows, or books in geek culture throughout the book—a nod and a wink from the author to her intended audience.

I enjoyed the author’s breakdown of the various, more well-known fandoms in the first chapter—especially as Maggs also includes information on how to go about joining the fandoms. It’s not as if there are official membership requirements, of course, but it is nice to know which books, movies, or comics make a good introduction for a noob to a particular fandom. I also appreciated that she included the umbrella terms of “YA Book Nerds” and “Girls Who Game,” because I had never really stopped to consider that those groups are indeed fandoms. They aren’t quite as tight-knit as the more insular fandoms, but they are large groups of people who love the same types of things, which, when you boil it down, is all a fandom really is.

As I read on, I became confused as to the age group The Fangirl’s Guide is meant to be catering to. That might have something to do with Maggs’ lighthearted, witty writing style, which, while fun, can tend to read a bit juvenile. At one point she mentions university residences and workplaces, and even pub trivia nights. Up until seeing that, I was reading this as more of a guide for younger teens. (I was also reading it that way because younger teens are still ‘finding their niche,’ whereas older teens and young adults tend to know more about themselves and their likes and dislikes.

One of my main criticisms of this book isn’t even something the author had control over, however: There is a lot of talk of in-person meet-ups, and even an entire chapter dedicated to attending conventions. This book is being published in October of 2020, and well… you live in 2020, so you know. Now, I know publishing is a slow-moving beast, and this book was probably re-written and edited well before the pandemic really became a thing. But because it is a thing, the Year of Canceled Events has rendered most of that information useless, at least at this time. (God I hope we can have conventions and festivals and whatnot again either next year or the year after—I would love for the chapter on cons to be relevant, and for this quarantine nightmare to end).

Overall, I really enjoyed The Fangirl’s Guide to the Universe. Maggs’ witty, tongue-in-cheek prose is a good fit for the subject matter, even if does read a bit juvenile. By the end of the book, I wanted to be friends with the author, and I’m sure her writing will have a similar effect on others as well. This fangirl gives The Fangirl’s Guide to the Universe four shining stars.

I read the first edition of this book back in 2015 and loved it, so I was curious to see how it had been updated/changed. I ended up really liking it!

First of all, don’t try to read this on a Kindle paper white. I made that mistake at first, and it looked SO much better on the computer/another kind of tablet. The book is beautifully designed, so def choose a (full-color) format that will let that shine through.

Sam Maggs has done a great job of updating this book so it feels fresh and up-to-date. I love her tone, which really feels like a friend is inducting you into her favorite fandoms. I took down some notes of recs of comics & books, too!

I particularly like how she incorporates criticism/issues in a sort of relatable and tongue-in-cheek way (like saying that one of the Harry Potter fandom’s defining/key characteristics is “a mute for J.K. Rowling’s Twitter account”).

I don't know if you *need* to check this out if you already read the first edition, as they are mostly the same, but if you haven't, and you're a new-ish fan or thinking of getting into a fandom but feeling intimidated, I'd def recommend it.

This book was a lot of fun! It’s a simple but informative introduction to the world of fandom, conventions, cosplay and fan fiction. It wasn’t overly detailed so this would only work as a base introduction for someone with very little knowledge of the topics and is clearly aimed at teens, although older fangirls may enjoy it also.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This is a REALLY good book about what it means to be a fangirl and all the different things that come with it. I was a bit uncertain when I requested it since I was worried that it would be very stereotypical or cringy. Luckily, it was neither of those things. This manages to capture the true essence of what it means to be a Fangirl, and it is SO positive and comes up with so many helpful tips and tricks to every theme it introduces. It also has such cute art, and I loved the helpful resources throughout the book AND at the end of it. Also a special thanks to the women that were interviewed for this!
When covid-19 calms down a bit I will go to a bookstore near me and buy a physical copy of this!!!

AHHH LOVED THIS BOOK! I really enjoyed reading about the different types of fandoms, and this novel gave me the confidence I needed about being a true fangirl. I love the messages about being passionate for the things you love, and never having to worry about what others think. When staying true to oneself, the right friends will come. Definitely a wonderful read! GEEK GIRLS RULE!

I adore Sam Maggs’ writing and full disclosure, worked with her as a consultant on a different book. She is a caring and inclusive feminist. This book was fun and lovely. For newcomers to fandom, there’s a lot of useful entryways to the world of fan culture and how to connect with it. I think if you are a long timer to fandom, there won’t be too much new here, but if there is even one area of fandom life that you are wanting to break into, skipping to that bit will teach you things you didn’t know. It also includes an interesting 101 look at the way fangirl culture interacts with feminism and inclusivity that I loved. I would have liked some nuance in places during this section, but it’s an effective primer.
Overall, really sweet and interesting book, good for entry level discussions.

This was such a comprehensive and entertaining guide into all things geeky and fandom. I really loved everything it included from the diverse illustrations, the interviews between authors, actresses, and different creators, to all of the recommendations for new conventions and media! There was also the running theme of female empowerment as most women are looked down on when expressing their enjoyment for different media. Overall, it was a great read and the perfect guide for any fangirl, old or new.

Such a great book and one I definitely needed as a teen! Now as a seasoned con attender and fan girl for over a decade I can still get excited about reading about the life I’ve come to know and love

I neither loved nor hated this book. It was okay. I was expecting something that mirrored the outside and the inside was just really clinical. All that bold badassery on the cover just didn’t jump out to me on the pages. I would have loved it more if there were illustrations that matched.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I am a fangirl and I must say that I really enjoyed reading this guide. I found myself in it, laughed a lot, and found it to be a very useful introduction to the fandom world.

It´s a well-done introduction full of information, tips, ideas, and encouragement to be exactly who you want to be... to be a fangirl with all your heart.

I can really recommend this!

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

As someone who personally identifies as a fangirl, I was very excited to get my hand on this.
It truly is what it says it is. A guide to a Fangirls universe- it's all about fangirl vocab, conventions, and how to come out of your shell. This book ranges on topics from fandoms to feminism. While at times things confused me (You are telling me Star Wars fans call themselves Star Warriors? what?!)
While she still mentions workplaces, university, and even pub trivia, this book definitely was targeted towards younger readers. Maggs' writing style is very lighthearted and fun even harder/older topics are easy to glide by.
Overall I didn't really have any strong opinions on this. While I enjoyed it, I don't think I'd pick it up ( So definitely for a younger audience)

Many Thanks to NetGalley for this arc.

This was a really interesting guide book to various fandoms for girls. I learned a bit about the lingo and other aspects, and had a good time doing so.

Love, love, love this book. Every fangirl needs to read this now!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

ARC was provided by NetGalley and Quirk Books in exchange for an honest review.

This review is being published after the release date (October 27th, 2020)


Content/Trigger Warnings: Talk of harassment, talk of sexual harassment, talk of cyber bullying, talk of misogyn, themes of misandry


I’ll be honest, I’ve been dreading writing this review and have been putting this off for far too long. I really wanted to love this book and there were some things that I found really helpful, informative even, especially because I’ve been in various nerdy communities for such a long time, but I find that my opinion is going to be of the minority when it comes to this book. So take my review with a grain of salt. However, if you’re a reader who’s looking for some opposing thoughts on a lot of the content that’s talked about in this book then I can’t recommend enough checking out these following videos: HERE, HERE, and if you’re looking for statics about online harassment then I recommend checking this article out!

Let me take a moment to talk about the good of this book. This book is true to what it is; a guide book, a self-help book, however you want to view it. I really loved how this book talked about the different types of conventions, navigating the conventions, budgeting and expenses, and even things to pack. Despite the fact that I’ve gone to various conventions, events, etc… for almost fourteen years, I still find this kind of information helpful and good for referencing. There’s even an ‘after the convention’ list that I would’ve loved to have had after all of these years. There’s also interviews in this book with various women in the industry who have worked on a plethora of nerdy, geeky things such as anime, DC and Marvel, etc… that I enjoyed reading, despite the repetitiveness and the awkwardness of some of the interviews. Also, this is a super quick read and most sections are very brief, easy to fly through.

Despite the few good things I found within this book, they weren’t enough to prevent the issues I had with a lot of the content within this book. One of the biggest things being the continued theme of misandry throughout this book. This is a huge issue for me especially when no one wants to talk about how this book is set up to convince you men are terrible and do nothing but terrible things. Throughout this book, the author continuously references how we’re all in this community together, how we’re supposed to be supportive of one another, no matter the gender, for about one to two pages, and then will spend the next three or four pages talking about how horrible men are and how their actions are always terrible towards women in nerdy communities. There’s actually a whole entire section based around ‘internet trolls’ that’s based in the context of assuming they’re all male. Even when the author talks about sexual harassment and assault in the cosplaying community, it’s always in the context of a man doing these actions. I can’t speak for everyone in the community, but basing my opinion on my own experiences and things I have witnessed as a cosplayer and LARPer, I’ve experienced and witnessed more female/female and male/male harassment and sexual assault than I have any situations that are male/female related. That’s not to say it doesn’t happen, but what I’m saying is we need to make sure we’re accurately talking about what really happens instead of assuming/creating a certain narrative to fit our own views. And when you continuously place these narratives of one side being innocent/good and the other being guilty/evil, then you’re continuing to cause rifts and issues within communities instead of helping it grow and make it a more positive community to be in.

Overall, this book was exhausting to read and writing this review has been something I’ve been dreading for a long time now, for a plethora of reasons. I don’t have the energy or time to list the multiple references to a lot of the things that were inaccurately talked about throughout this book (do your own research, listen to those who talk about the facts), point out everything little thing that was wrong with this book, or even try to continuously explain to people how misandry is just as bad an misogyny no matter what community it is. If you can’t see the problematic issues within this book then I don’t know what else to say expect to check out the links I provided up above if you want to hear opposing opinions about a lot of the things that were talked about in this book. I wish so many things would have been handled in a different light especially since this is an introductory book, a guide/self help book and I know there are going to be young readers who will pick this book up and be influenced by this book. With the knowledge and experience I have, I can’t recommend this book because of the narrative this book takes on and I can’t support a book that inaccurately talks about a plethora of things.