Name: Eleanor & Park
Rating: 3.719333333333333 (2250 reviews)
ISBN: 9781432850432

Rainbow Rowell

"Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits--smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try"--

Eleanor & Park

Eliza Sorensen

I think it discusses body issues in a healthy relationship but just was so teenage relationship coated

ikkychan

Young love has always been a fascinating concept to explore in literature. Countless stories have portrayed this fiery, intense, and passionate budding romance between two (or more) youngsters, often clueless as they experience this kind of emotional turmoil for the first time. Unfortunately, due to its popularity, teenage love has become ubiquitous and is often told in such a clichéd way that I tend to steer clear of the theme most of the time. That is, except for Rainbow Rowell’s “Eleanor &amp; Park,” which I found surprisingly and delightfully different from other YA romantic sagas. Eleanor “..Holding Eleanor’s hand was like holding a butterfly. Or a heartbeat. Like holding something complete, and completely alive.” Park “..There’s only one of him, she thought, and he’s right here. He knows I’ll like a song before I’ve heard it. He laughs before I even get to the punchline. There’s a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes me want to let him open doors for me. There’s only one of him.” Park Sheridan is in a bad mood. Not only does he have to endure another dreadful bus ride to school this morning, trying to stay under the radar of the school jock and bully, but he is also forced to tolerate the existence of the girl next to him, the clueless new student who is just begging to be targeted with her red curly hair and ‘sad, hobo clown’ attire. There is no way he would jeopardize the gray status quo he is in now, being half-Korean in an American school, but passably popular by association with the school's cool clique. But there’s something about this girl that leaves him unable to leave her alone, something he couldn’t explain yet, which ends up leading him to pull her to the empty seat next to him so she can stop being so hopelessly confused in the bus aisle. Eleanor Douglas is not liking her current life circumstances. Not one bit. She feels like her whole life has been one giant typhoon throwing her around uncontrollably, without a safe ground to stand on, and this morning’s school bus ride is no exception. After spending a year away from her family and being forced to live with an acquaintance (only because she was brave enough to stand up to her step-father Richie’s constant abuse), she finds that nothing has improved by the time she returns to her home in Omaha. She sees how her four siblings resigned to his presence and her mother still suffering his abuse. Under his oppressive rule, she and her siblings are confined to their room every day after school to avoid him. While he wastes money on alcohol, they lack basic necessities like toothbrushes, batteries for her Walkman, or properly fitting clothes. This is why she feels nothing but fearful anticipation for her new school, as her patched-up jeans and lumberjack shirt are not exactly a ‘dress to impress’ endeavor, which is a staple for surviving the rough, uncharitable ground known as high school. She is caught off-guard when a random emo Asian boy shows her an unexpected act of kindness by pulling her to his side. Over the course of one school year in 1986’s Omaha, we see how the relationship between these two star-crossed lovers bloomed, from furtive peeking and stolen glances in the school hallway to discreet hand-holding under the bus seat. We witness with hand-wringing and giddiness how these two displaced youngsters, who feel like they do not belong in their respective lives, find shelter and comfort in each other’s company. Though they are aware enough to understand that first love rarely endures, they are certainly bold enough to give it a chance. What sets this YA love story completely apart from other books is the way Rowell portrays her characters. She writes quite a vivid and realistic depiction of people in such a manner that you completely understand where they came from. The internal social commentary she constructs around them allows the reader to realize how much a child’s personality and way of thinking is shaped by their family environment. Take Eleanor by way of example, say, you can see how she is consistently tense, cautious, resentful, easily provoked, and wary of people precisely because it reflects how the people in her own home have made her feel about herself. In contrast, Park comes from a noticeably happy family, with parents who are affectionate with each other (you can detect it by how they slobber one another every time they meet, yes) and a normal sibling relationship. As he has a textbook nice family, he is calm and confident, inadvertently making it difficult for him to understand why Eleanor is such a nervous wreck all the time. In return, it is a rewarding experience to see how both of them overcome their differences; with Eleanor learning to rely on and trust Park more, and Park recognizing his own privileges and shortcomings. Learning about oneself is an essential aspect of YA literature, of course. However, there are some loose ends that remain unaddressed until the end of the book. Park’s relationship with his father, for one, faces a rift when he starts wearing eyeliner and is reprimanded by his father. In an argument, his father unknowingly reveals his inner feelings to Park, who then realizes that his father is disappointed that he doesn't take after him more than his mother. They give each other the silent treatment for a while, until the night Park decides to drive Eleanor to Minnesota and his father shows kindness and understanding by letting him use his car. While this occasion might seem to indicate an improvement in their relationship, his father's unmet expectations, underscored by a racist remark, remain unresolved. These discrepancies are also evident in the unexpected behavior of Eleanor’s bully, Tina, on the night she escapes from her house. When Eleanor discovers that it was Richie who has been writing unsavory messages in her textbook all along, indicating his sick intention to harm her sexually, she hastily makes a run for it by slipping through her bedroom window and running around in the dark without a clear destination, as this spontaneous getaway was not premeditated. Unknowingly, she reaches Steven’s house, Tina’s boyfriend, and the couple ushers her in while informing her of their knowledge of the situation and sheltering her while her step-father drives around searching for her. What prompted this sudden and unforeseen kindness exhibited by Steven and especially Tina remains unclear until the end. This honestly feels contrived and even back-handed on Rowell’s part as she uses the abrupt change in Tina’s actions, from stuffing Eleanor's clothes down the toilets and calling her ‘Big Red’ to demean her in front of others, to suddenly acting as a friend in need, as mere plot devices. I would also argue that the ending is rather ambiguous, as if the writer couldn’t quite decide between giving the story a realistic or a fairy tale ending, opting instead for something in between. Heartbreaking as it is, I would prefer the certainty of their breakup over the vague inclination of a reunion. Eleanor would be overwhelmed in her new environment, needing to focus all her energy on finding her footing in her uncle’s house (a detail disappointingly omitted from the book) and ensuring her family’s safety from Richie, a task likely to involve rather nasty dealings, I’m sure. I doubt there’s much room for Park in her new life, and their relationship could sour or even drift apart due to their inability to fulfill their romantic desires while apart. It would be interesting to see how they would work out their circumstances, but I guess it would be a completely different book set in a completely different time. Although flawed with several overlooked threads (such as the part where Eleanor’s friend, DeNice, is engaged to be married to Jonesy, who is several years older than her. They plan to get “married as soon as DeNice is legal,” which is rather unsettling as it involves early-age marriage and touches on the topics of poverty and systemic racism), I still love reading this. It was funny, sad, shocking, and true, deeply emotional for me, and I empathize with every girl who has felt so wrong and out of place throughout their life.

Jill

Eleanor is a misfit, sure. But she is also like a dog waiting around and begging to be kicked. And when someone does, she pouts and cries like she didn't deserve it. 

Maureen

Amazing! This love story is all about reality. Not about rainbows and butterflies, but just two teenagers trying to survive the waves.

Anna 

Sice jsem od této knížky měla vyšší očekávání, ale i tak jsem si její čtení užila. Líbila se mi komplikovaná rodina Eleanor, líbilo se mi, že je byla jiná, než většina holek, než většina hlavních hrdinek coming-of-age knih. Eleanor a její tvář posetou pihami, její vytahané džíny a pánské košile si budu pamatovat asi ještě hodně dlouho.
Park už pro mě nebyl tak zajímavý, ale i přesto mi byl sympatický. Obě postavy jsem měla svým způsobem ráda a fandila jsem jim, ale i přes to všechno mi v srdci nenechali nějakou větší stopu. Jejich příběh ve mně nezpůsobil žádné větší emoce, žádný smutek nebo neskutečnou radost.
Kdyby nebylo konce knihy, bohužel musím přiznat, že bych celý příběh hodnotila ještě hůř. Konec knihy to naštěstí zpestřil, ukázal nám, že existují tisíce verzí konce, a že ne vždy musí být jen konec šťastný. A za to jsem ráda, toho si na příběhu cením.
✩
3,5*/5*
Lepší průměr, stojí za přečtení, ale nečekejte nic přelomového.

Shannon C

ugh this book was perfect. but that ending :(

Mercy Jepchirchir Barno

This book was okay but I still felt ish-ish about it. The writing, there are times I felt that it was a bit sloppy. Whenever I read a book, and I hope I'm not the only reader here, where the plot could be good, but the characters are better, from the start of that book till the last page, there's a character development. With this book, I didn't see any of that. There are moments where I did laugh. I absolutely loved Parks' parents, especially his mum. I hated Eleanor's mum and the stepdad so much, honestly. How Eleanor and Park ended, I'm not really sure I liked how it ended.

#1 New York Times Best Seller! "Eleanor & Park reminded me not just what it's like to be young and in love with a girl, but also what it's like to be young and in love with a book."-John Green, The New York Times Book Review Bono met his wife in high school, Park says. So did Jerry Lee Lewis, Eleanor answers. I'm not kidding, he says. You should be, she says, we're 16. What about Romeo and Juliet? Shallow, confused, then dead. I love you, Park says. Wherefore art thou, Eleanor answers. I'm not kidding, he says. You should be. Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits-smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you'll remember your own first love-and just how hard it pulled you under. A New York Times Best Seller! A 2014 Michael L. Printz Honor Book for Excellence in Young Adult Literature Eleanor & Park is the winner of the 2013 Boston Globe Horn Book Award for Best Fiction Book. A Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of 2013 A New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of 2013 A Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book of 2013 An NPR Best Book of 2013

Kattia

This hasn’t aged well and maybe if I read it as a teenager, I would’ve enjoyed it?

Ali Angco

reminds me of line from betty by taylor swift, “i’m only seventeen, i don’t know anything but i know i missed you.”

Sarah Sammis

chloe rae

I don't know about anyone else, but my to-be-read pile is getting a little out of control. REALLY out of control. So I promised myself recently 'no new books!' and then put all my unread books into the order I'd read them. It seemed like a good plan. I'd stay away from book stores and try to get excited about all the amazing books I had left to read.
Then this book happened.
And let me tell you, this book wasn't on my to-be-read pile. It wasn't anywhere near it. I'd only barely just heard of it. But then, one day a few weeks ago, through a string of (not so) unfortunate events, I ended up stranded at my local Barnes and Noble for two hours, waiting for my brother to get off work. I figured I'd pick up a random book, read a few pages for the time being, and if I liked it enough I could come back and buy it later. I'd already made a promise to not buy books but that didn't mean I couldn't look around, right? I mean, what else is there to do to pass the time in a BOOK STORE? It'd be stupid NOT to read. I looked around for a bit, and lucky me, picked up this lovely novel. I'd read the sample on my kindle a while back and thought I'd see what else it had to offer.
Uh oh.
As soon as I got about 50 pages in, I was hooked. The two hours flew by and next thing I know, I'm telling my brother to wait 5 minutes so I can finish 'this one chapter' and then buy the book. I broke my promise to myself. But hey, some promises are meant to be broken, right? Or is that about rules?
Oh, whatever.
My point is, this book is ridiculously amazing. I couldn't get enough of it. Of the characters, of the love story. It just felt so REAL to me. The musical reference were AMAZING. And the timeline of the romance was perfect. Nothing felt rushed or fabricated. Eleanor and Park's relationship was so raw and honest, adorable and intense. All the characters were perfectly constructed, and I felt like I knew all of them even if they only showed up a few times. The story is just incredibly beautiful and I'm so glad I randomly decided to pick it up.
On the back of the book there's a review from Publishers Weekly that states: "Rowell keeps things surprising, and the solution maintains the novel's delicate balance of light and dark." That's such a great way to describe this book. It's light and romantic and funny, but it deals with some heavy stuff. And you may think this back-and-forth switching would cause whiplash but it's SO well done. I didn't even notice it.
And there are some surprises in this book, especially with the ending. The ending kind of leaves you hanging but personally, I loved it. It leaves the reader up to decide. I also loved the switching POV's. I never once felt like I missed anything, or got bored of one POV. It was natural.
Overall, I know this book will be one I always remember. So quit reading this and go buy it.
You can thank me later ;D

Reya Estrella

"you can't go wrong with cliché stories" is definitely not something I'd say for this. The story felt underdeveloped and written for the sake of your typical teenage romance. Whilst I'm not denying my love for your average boy meets girl romances, this felt underwhelming... lackluster I should say. I felt sympathy towards Eleanor as a character, but even so, both Park and her were too unrealistic to make the overall story interesting. I enjoyed Rowell's other novel, Fangirl. But this, unfortunately, was not worth the read.

Maui S.

Gracie Marsden

Cute, but hollow. There were scenes and snippets I liked, but the ending seemed rushed and the overall story seemed contrived. More of a brain-candy book, doesn’t leave much to be analyzed.

I hate this book so bad. The author is good at writing, I can tell. She can but why did she have to write like this? This book is frustrating that I want to cry. And the plot does not even make any sense, she wrote this book like an unfinished wattpad story, a draft even. I can't believe I chose this book because of the cute book cover :*( 

Annika Arguemore

I loved how real it all felt. It was all well-written and the plot well-formed. One of the best books about puppy-love to ever grace the world of literature, alongside Flipped. Perfection.

★★ // filed under everyone-liked-but-me.

Eleanor & Park

Reviews

Highlights