Story in Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell | Inkwells & Images

Story in Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Story in Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell | Inkwells & Images

Oh, this book.

Reading it is like being 15 all over again. Rowell tells a simple, lovely story of falling in love but makes it so, so much bigger than a high school romance. This was our book club pick for September, and I was so happy to have an excuse to read it again. It was one of those books that I initially checked out from the library to see what all the hype was about and then instantly bought a hardcover copy of my own.

Eleanor is poor. She’s also chubby, wears all the wrong clothes, and has no way to listen to The Smiths.

Park is Korean-American. His family is firmly middle-class, he does taekwondo, and he has all the comics, batteries, and blank cassette tapes his heart desires.

And Eleanor can’t figure out why on earth Park cares about her.

And Park has no idea what Eleanor sees in him.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell is their story. From the first time Park slides his hand into hers (“Holding Eleanor’s hand felt like holding a butterfly.”) to their first and only date (“It was just that kind of night. Every time she looked at him, he was looking back at her.”), it’s a story that sticks in your head and your heart and makes you relive those full-color moments that only exist when falling in love for the first time.

Favorite Quotes:

“That’s a voice that arrives on a chariot drawn by dragons.” – p. 15

“Eleanor let her head fall over the box. It smelled like Chanel No. 5 and pencil shavings. She sighed.” – p. 20

“There was no room in that house to be a teenager.” – p. 35

“And when she handed it back to him the next morning, she always acted as if she were handling something fragile. Something precious.” – p. 42

“‘I just want to break that song into pieces,’ she said, ‘and love them all to death.’” – p. 59

“(All he really wanted to do was sit and talk to Eleanor.)” – p. 67

“Because if she was going to cry about something, it was going to be because her life was complete shit – not because some cool, cute guy didn’t like her like that.” – p. 70

“And Eleanor disintegrated.” – p. 71

“When he touched Eleanor’s hand, he recognized her. He knew.” – p. 72

“It was like he dumped all this treasure on her every morning without even thinking about it, without any sense of what it was worth.” – p. 99

“Because every second feels so important.” – p. 111

“It smelled like Irish Spring and a little bit like potpourri and like something she couldn’t describe any other way than boy.” – p. 132

“And when Eleanor smiled, something broke inside him.” – p. 163

“He couldn’t buy Eleanor a pen. Or a bookmark. He didn’t have bookmarklike feelings for her.” – p. 202

“Everything anybody ever said in this house was desperate.” – p. 227

“I’ve never really missed anybody but you.” – p. 232

“Eleanor tried one last time to be embarrassed.” – p. 248

“The world rebuilt itself into a better place around him.” – p. 269

“Everything true was too hard to write – he was too much to lose.” – p. 319

What made this a good story? 

Rowell writes top-notch YA Lit. She knows teenagers. And she’s not afraid to give them big feelings in her novels, feelings that are over-the-top and so, so teenager.  At the same time, she delivers characters that are smart, that you fall in love with: you can’t dismiss them as silly teenagers for all their emotional turmoil. She writes real people that you can see becoming real adults. Her characters lead big lives.

It is so hard not to read this all in one sitting. I did the first time, and it was equally hard to put it down the second time – the true tell of a book well-written.

What could have made it a better story?

I WANT AN ENDING.

Sequel, please, Ms. Rowell.

Have you read Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell? What did you think? Were you as thoroughly devastated as I?

We’re talking, Fault in Our Stars-level devastated.


Comments

9 responses to “Story in Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell”

  1. I’ve been putting this one off ever since I read Landline and was massively disappointed. Apparently I chose the wrong Rowell novel to start with. Reading your review makes me want to hop back on the absurdly long library wait list!

    1. You did start off with the wrong Rowell! I LOVE Attachements, Fangirl, and E&P – and I am pretending she never wrote Landline.

      If you like Harry Potter, definitely try Fangirl. It’s this sweet story about a girl named Cath who is obsessed with writing fan fiction about this wizard named Simon Snow. Cath is shy and smart and really unsure about meeting new people. When she goes off to college, her twin sister refuses to room with her because they’ve been sharing a room forEVER and it’s Cath’s story of how she learns to make friends and fall in love and follow her heart. Truly good.

      And now I’m realizing I need to write a review for that one. :)

      Let me know what you think if you do read it? I love to hear other people’s perspectives on my favorites!

  2. This is such a delightful book, one of my favorites. But I wholeheartedly agree with you – the ending was NOT an ending, and I am still dying to know what happened. Thanks for reminding me that I’m due for a reread soon with this one!

    1. This one will always be re-read. Always.

  3. This. Book. Killed. Me. I couldn’t handle it. Ugly tears sobbing on the drive home from my honeymoon. I was a wreck. But, man, this book was a breath of fresh air. So well written!

    1. This would be a tough one to read on a honeymoon! So many things going so wrong when your story is going just right. I would be a wreck, too.

  4. […] “If you don’t start visiting more… we’ll be forced to go postal and start making semi-stalkerish trips to your home. Please don’t make me a wanted criminal before twenty-five.” “It smelled like incense and whatever hope was made out of.” “Wendy felt light. And she wanted to hold onto that lightness, like a delicate bubble threatening to pop.” “She could paint anything she wanted to, any and all memories, but she would not repeat another painting. She wouldn’t repeat anything at all.” “She’s all, I’m happy, let me spread some sunshine into your bleeding wounds.” “When he hurt, he cut deep enough for only her to see.” “If I die in a theme park because of a boy, then I probably deserve it.” “She looked at him, and he looked at her the way you look your favorite thing in the world, like he absolutely, decidedly could not get enough of her.” “Women did not watch Saturday cartoons and drink their coffee out of Disney princess mugs.” “The more they fought, the less of a voice she had.” “For Simon, everything started with a decision. For Wendy, everything started with a feeling. He decided to be with her. She wanted to be with him. He decided to love her. She just did.” “Minds were easy to change. They were like dough, one minute balled up and the next pressed flat. But what about hearts? Those couldn’t be that malleable, could they?” “She wasn’t going anywhere, but she liked knowing she could. Someday.” “It was real. But real doesn’t make it permanent.” “He wasn’t in any photos. He’d never seen this furniture before. They were two different people, leading completely separate lives.” “She loved him the way that you love your favorite part of yourself.” “You’re really brave.” “Why? For cutting someone out of my life who had no business being there? That’s not bravery. That’s common sense.” “Love is a decision. It is not an emotion that we see on movie screens or read about in books. It isn’t the dramatic crescendo that leads to happily ever after. Love is hard work. It’s the decision you make, knowing your differences, knowing your flaws, but choosing anyway, because you can’t imagine life without the other person.” “Being afraid is never stupid. Not acting is the stupid part.” What made this a great story? I loved how perfectly average the lives of all the characters were. So often, we get stories about people leading exceptional lives, but its hard to relate to those. I like that Wendy and her friends were just trying to figure life out, and acknowledged that it is messy and hard and uncertain. I also loved that the main characters weren’t perfect: they were imperfect characters who fell in love and had to work through those faults. Bravo did an excellent job at tipping the story from light to dark and back again, adding just enough comic relief to balance the weighty material of first loves and heartbreak and learning that people let you down. What could have made it a better story? I wanted a little more “oomph” to the characters. I wanted to know a little more of who Wendy and Simon were before they entered each other’s lives: what were there hobbies? Their personalities separate from one another? I’d also love to know why Wendy and Vivian are friends now that they are all grown up. What are Vivian’s redeeming qualities? Why does she still have a place in Wendy’s life after all these years? I know Bravo has a sequel in the works, so I’m hoping we learn some of these answers then! Have you read These Are the Moments by Jenny Bravo? If so, what did you think? Do you have a book suggestion for me that you’d think I’d like? Let me know and I’ll add it to my list! P.S. If you liked this, you’ll probably like Eleanor & Park!  […]

  5. […] P.S. If you liked this book, you’ll probably enjoy Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell.  […]

  6. […] can teach you kindness and grace. To be more gentle. To know the story you’ve been told is not the only […]

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