Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

It's 1986 and two awkward teenagers fall in love on the school bus. It's not love at first sight - far from it - but an act of kindness on behalf of Park, a half-Korean kid who doesn't conform to his father's ideals of masculinity, allows the pair to discover some common ground. Eleanor, a large girl with unruly red curls and dreadful clothes isn't used to kindness: she's an easy target for bullies, and

for her abusive step-father.


Through a shared passion for music and Alan Moore's The Watchmen, Eleanor and Park grow closer and closer, in spite of the pressures exerted on them by their peers and their families (and these people's views on what is 'normal' and acceptable). Rowell uses her cast of characters to explore gender roles, identity and race, and what it means to be a family. There's a really good balance between her portrayal of the positive experiences of teenagers - the excitement of first love, making mix-tapes etc - and the heartbreakingly negative ones - domestic violence, child abuse, bullying.


This could have been a really depressing read, but fortunately, once our pair finally admit and accept their attraction to each other, they become a force to be reckoned with. That said, if you're thinking of picking this book up and getting the 'happily ever after' ending, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed. This isn't a childish love story, it's a book that shows the damage that some people can inflict on others, and how they in turn can survive it. At times the drama can seem a little OTT and melodramatic, but there's something about it that still strikes a chord, and I definitely had a lump in my throat reading several emotional scenes.

Fave bit of dialogue:
"I love you," he said.
She looked up at him, her eyes shiny and black, then looked away. "I know," she said.
...

“You know?" he repeated. She smiled, so he kissed her. "You're not the Han Solo in this relationship, you know."
"I'm totally the Han Solo," she whispered. It was good to hear her. It was good to remember it was Eleanor under all this new flesh.
"Well, I'm not the Princess Leia," he said.
"Don't get so hung up on gender roles," Eleanor said.”
...

“You can be Han Solo," he said, kissing her throat. "And I'll be Boba Fett. I'll cross the sky for you.”


Rowell may not be hung up on gender roles, but if I'm honest, this is a book for the girls. There's plenty of pop culture references in there that would appeal to both 'typical' males and females, but I'm not sure if boys would really get/be interested in the popular girls' bitching and bullying of Eleanor, Eleanor's hang ups with her appearance or her relationships with her mother and her younger siblings. Also, this is a YA novel that means just that: young ADULT - there is plenty of swearing, abusive and threatening notes of a sexual nature, references to drug and alcohol abuse, and teenage pregnancy. None of this is done gratuitously, but I would definitely suggest that this is a 14+ book.