Book Review – Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

I began this book on January first and finished it more two weeks later. Not because it was a huge, long read. My delaying was my own issue – I just couldn’t get myself to turn the pages. As I began reading Eleanor & Park, I had to stop so often because it was definitely not a jolly good teenage love story. There are darker issues dealt with in the book, and I must say that the cover is a deception that masks the plot masterfully.

Park is a high schooler with an American father and a Korean mother. There is a little confusion within himself about where he fits in amongst the two cultures. Eleanor is the new girl in Park’s bus. They are polar opposites and you know what they say about opposites! Being forced to sit next to each other on the bus, a friendship forms between Park and Eleanor. It is rather sweet, how it was wordless at first and then becomes one of the most important relationships in both their lives.

There are plenty of sweet things about this book, the emotions of young love, are captured wonderfully by Rainbow Rowell. So too are the other stuff. Abuse, neglect, bullying, the needling about being ‘masculine’… too many things. And the reader is left wondering how and why does Eleanor’s mother put up with the nonsense.

Bottom line, this is not a depressing book with all the issues it deals with. Neither is a feel-good book with the young love it showcases. It reads a bit slow as well.

You can find a copy of the Eleanor & Park here – Amazon, Kobo