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skybluespines's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
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I really enjoyed this book! It was very nostalgic, reminding me of what it feels like to be a teenager with a crush and dealing with big real life things. I loved all the music and comic references, even without being familiar with the specifics of the things referenced, haha. YA romance is a genre I tend to stay away from, but I'm really glad I read this one.
I really enjoyed this book! It was very nostalgic, reminding me of what it feels like to be a teenager with a crush and dealing with big real life things. I loved all the music and comic references, even without being familiar with the specifics of the things referenced, haha. YA romance is a genre I tend to stay away from, but I'm really glad I read this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Racism
thefarmwifereads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
3.0
This book is heavy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Body shaming, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
allingoodtime's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I went into this book just knowing I was going to love it, I’ve been meaning to read it for years. Unfortunately, after it was first published and everyone loved on it I didn’t pay attention to anything else that was said about this book. I didn’t want my expectations to be too high. But if I had looked into current views on this story I probably wouldn’t have read it. It’s so hard to review this book because, on the one hand, I loved the story, on the other hand, it is racist and fatphobic and hard to read in the year 2024 when we know so much more (yes, more than even a mere 12 years ago when it was originally published) about internalized racism, bullying, body image issues, etc.
As I was reading this book I kept thinking, “I cannot be the only one that finds this racist!” After I read the book I looked into it, after all, I am a white woman and maybe I was wrong. Nope. My feelings about it were spot on. Hopefully, I can explain this correctly. I understand there was racism in the mid/late 1980s in a rural area. Park’s family is the only Asian family around. Of course there is racism. I even understand Park having internalized racism when he has a white father who is looked up to in the community and who he looks nothing like. However, the racism and Park’s feelings about himself and his mom are never addressed. Neither is Eleanor’s internalized fatphobia. In fact, Park has some not-so-nice thoughts about Eleanor even after they are a couple.
Here’s the thing. This book could have been amazing, even by 2024 standards, without the racism. The core of the story, the friendship between Eleanor and Park and Eleanor’s struggle to do what is right for herself, is beautiful. There are good lessons in this book, but they are overshadowed by the bad lessons. This is why it’s so important to have a push for Own Voices stories. From what I can tell the author is a white woman and it shows. I’m not going to give this book a star rating because I just cannot figure out how to do so. This book really didn’t age well and makes it nearly impossible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Racism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Homophobia
falling4fandoms's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Bullying
lagray27's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Bullying, and Abandonment
autumnnleeaves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Bullying
mmaude2's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, and Bullying
lena1508's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, and Sexual harassment
angelofthetardis's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Eleanor wants to be invisible. But her flaming red hair and thrift store fashion make her stand out like a sore thumb. So when she steps onto the school bus and slides into the empty seat next to Park, she keeps herself to herself. Until he notices her reading over his shoulder. Issues of comics are exchanged before words are, but slowly they get to know each other through Marvel and mix tapes. With a less than harmonious home life and bullies terrorising her at school, she discovers the safety and comfort of friendship and first love... now she just has to keep it hidden.
This is a simple story of teen love, but is so effectively told. It completely draws you in, portraying beautifully that dream-like version of budding romance where you two are the only characters of consequence in the story. The people that surround you; friends, family, classmates and colleagues are there and interact with you, affect your life and continue in their roles, but your focus is continually drawn to that person you have feelings for. In this case, I found that it didn't matter that the secondary characters weren't necessarily drawn with that much depth; they just didn't need it as they weren't as important as this growing relationship.
That being said, Eleanor's background is horrifying and, as the story progresses, it's hard to understand why her mother remains loyal to her utterly disgusting step-father. He is the only character that perhaps could have been more starkly drawn. He is a nasty piece of work, but he doesn't quite come to life enough for me to inspire that burning hatred that other literary villains of a similar ilk do.
The writing style bounces back and forth between Eleanor and Park's POVs in fairly rapid succession, but in this case it works perfectly for the story being told. You get to see the development of their relationship and their wider lives from both perspectives simultaneously, which means the shifting balance of feelings is always evident.
I understand from the author's notes why the ending is the way that it is, but if I do have one criticism it's that the end does feel a bit rushed. The resolution of the slight 'mystery' element should have a greater impact than it does, and the emotional fallout for both Eleanor and Park deserves more page space... I'm not 100% sure how it could work myself, but it seemed to me that there was an entire potential third act within those last few pages. But I'm not going to complain about the last few lines. Perfectly pitched.
This book is more about the feelings it inspires in the reader rather than its literary merits. And I definitely have all the feels after that!
This is a simple story of teen love, but is so effectively told. It completely draws you in, portraying beautifully that dream-like version of budding romance where you two are the only characters of consequence in the story. The people that surround you; friends, family, classmates and colleagues are there and interact with you, affect your life and continue in their roles, but your focus is continually drawn to that person you have feelings for. In this case, I found that it didn't matter that the secondary characters weren't necessarily drawn with that much depth; they just didn't need it as they weren't as important as this growing relationship.
That being said, Eleanor's background is horrifying and, as the story progresses, it's hard to understand why her mother remains loyal to her utterly disgusting step-father. He is the only character that perhaps could have been more starkly drawn. He is a nasty piece of work, but he doesn't quite come to life enough for me to inspire that burning hatred that other literary villains of a similar ilk do.
The writing style bounces back and forth between Eleanor and Park's POVs in fairly rapid succession, but in this case it works perfectly for the story being told. You get to see the development of their relationship and their wider lives from both perspectives simultaneously, which means the shifting balance of feelings is always evident.
I understand from the author's notes why the ending is the way that it is, but if I do have one criticism it's that the end does feel a bit rushed. The resolution of the slight 'mystery' element should have a greater impact than it does, and the emotional fallout for both Eleanor and Park deserves more page space... I'm not 100% sure how it could work myself, but it seemed to me that there was an entire potential third act within those last few pages. But I'm not going to complain about the last few lines. Perfectly pitched.
This book is more about the feelings it inspires in the reader rather than its literary merits. And I definitely have all the feels after that!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Bullying, Cursing, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Child abuse, and Blood
katari636's review
challenging
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book had me in the edge of my seat the entire time! It is so much more than just a teen romance! I highly recommend!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Cursing, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, Addiction, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, and Bullying