EBN A Young Adult Book: Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

I must have really needed a good teenage romance novel, because I just devoured this book. I was driving to Utah to visit my family and needed a book to listen to on the way since it was going to be just me and the kids. I picked a YA book on CD thinking it couldn't possibly have anything too bad in it. It was meant for teenagers, right? They don't put naughty stuff in teenage books, do they? I am apparently loosing touch with my teenage self because they definitely do. Actually, there really wasn't anything very bad in this book, but the language was a bit too "mature" for my 7 year-old's ears. I listened to it anyway, that is how badly I got wrapped up in this book.

So, either I had friends who just seldom swore around me or high schoolers don't cuss as much as the ones portrayed in this book. Maybe I just hung out with a different crowd. Maybe we were those straight laced kids who only swore when the emotions merited extreme language. I didn't think we were, but maybe we were. Over half of us graduated with our virginities still in tact so we must have been. Either way, I was surprised at the language, but everything else was great... sappy, but great.

The basic break down is relatively ordinary boy falls in love with a weird new girl who is going through hell at home. That is this book in a nut shell, but Rowell pulls you through all the emotional intensity of these characters relationship so effectively it feels like there is an eternity inside that tiny nutshell. There is one scene in the book where they are in English class and the teacher asks Eleanor why Romeo and Juliet has remained such a beloved love story for so long. She says she doesn't think Shakespeare is glorifying their love story at all; he is actually making fun of it and showing how stupid their young infatuation with each other is. I've got to say, a small piece of her is right. Romeo and Juliet are stupid. Their love is foolhardy, impulsive, and so devastatingly stupid. But is also is intense, passionate, and blind-siding. There is a reason why, even though you know they will die in the end, you spend the whole play desperately praying that they will. We admire and crave stupid love, even though it is often not good for us. Eleanor and Park's love carries with it the same desirable passion.

One more thing, there is a point where Park says there is no such thing as a hot Asian guy. Who's ever thought that! Everyone has their preferences, but I for one find Asian guys very attractive. I am not married to one, but that doesn't change the fact that I think they are often totally hott.