Author: Rainbow Rowell
Genre: Young Adult
Published: 2013
Rating: 8.5/10
Review: I read a very positive review of Eleanor and Park, so when I needed to pick up something to read on a flight, I decided to give it a try. I was very glad I did, because the flight went by so fast and I didn't even realize we were about to touch the ground until the plane hit the tarmac. That might be attributed to good piloting too, but regardless.
Reading this book made me think about all the trigger warning discussions that were happening recently. Not because there's anything graphic in the book, but because it just jolted me into my high school years so hard that I was shocked. There's just this mentality that I could relate to so well that I felt transported back in time. And I think it'll resonate with people who don't think that high schools years were the best time of their lives.
Park is taking a bus to school every morning. He is not unpopular, but he's also not one of the really popular kids. He is the only Asian kid in school and he's smart, but he mostly keeps to himself. Eleanor is new to the school and sits down next to him on the bus. She is chubby and dresses weirdly and hence she is immediately picked on. Slowly, but steadily, Eleanor and Park get to know each other, fall in love, and start dating.
This is a short book and I finished most of it on the plane, but it was cute and heartfelt and fun while it lasted. Not a particularly action-oriented book, but its magic was in how well it brought forth the idea of falling in love for the first time. I enjoyed it thoroughly.
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