The characters are what really made this story resonate with me. I was pleasantly surprised that this format enhanced the story, rather than detracting from it. While I would have been obsessed with symmetry and the rhythm of the back and forth between the two characters if I’d tried to write something with this structure, the irregular length of each character’s passage and the short snippets punctuating longer sections really worked with this story. This simple technique made it easy to follow the story. I almost always hate alternating first person perspective, but since this was in third person, distinct voices weren’t necessary and I liked that every time POV switched it was marked with their name. I could have easily been annoyed by the back and forth between Eleanor and Park’s point of view. But the sparse, 50 or so words that open this story, bookended by the the heartbreaking sentence “He stopped trying to bring her back” hooked me and set the tone for the book. First off, I’m not generally a fan of prologues. There really isn’t anything braver than love, is there?Įleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell is a very brave book, one that takes chances with tone, subject matter, and format. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love -and just how hard it pulled you under. It’s 1986 and two star-crossed teens are smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. But one day this fall, I found a book that I thought must have been written just for me.
We often share them with the members of the teen book club who are voracious readers and love to read the newest thing. Even if they don’t appeal to me personally, I get a kick out of thumbing through them and getting a taste for what’s coming out in the upcoming months. Anytime I walk into the library and find a stack of shiny new ARCs on my desk, I am happy.
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