Book review: Eleanor and Park

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Description from Amazon (below) can be found here, and more reviews can be found on Goodreads. Add me on Goodreads!

Bono met his wife in high school, Park says.
So did Jerry Lee Lewis, Eleanor answers.
I’m not kidding, he says.
You should be, she says, we’re 16.
What about Romeo and Juliet?
Shallow, confused, then dead.
I love you, Park says.
Wherefore art thou, Eleanor answers.
I’m not kidding, he says.
You should be.

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love—and just how hard it pulled you under.

I loved this book, and I think the reason I loved it immediately is because it is (at least starts as) a VERY realistic high school love story.

The characters are not supernatural, super beautiful, or a nerd lusting after the most popular (or vice versa).

They don't love each other immediately. (They don't even like each other immediately.)

The plot is, for the most part, filled with extremely plausible events that could and actually would happen.

But still, I found myself so swept up in this story. It had me feeling all the feelings and thinking about the book even when I wasn't reading it. 

I highly recommend Eleanor and Park! I gave it four stars and put Rainbow Rowell's book Fangirl on hold at the library immediately after I finished reading E&P.

PS - I listened to Eleanor and Park on audio and I LOVED it. I'm sure it's good in book form too -- and to be honest, Park's voice was just OK, but Eleanor's voice reminded me of slam poetry. It was beautifully read. Good one if you're looking to start listening to audio!

EDITED TO ADD. Since reading E&P the first time, I have stumbled on some commentary regarding the way Park and his mother are written and the racial implications. You can see an example here, although that is not the only discussion I have read.

This is problematic enough to temper my view of the book. I am privileged in ways that meant the way race is described in E&P didn't resonate with me initially. I'm lucky in that I stumbled on posts from thoughtful, intelligent people who could help me understand their feelings when reading about Park and his mother. I can't imagine reading the book if I had identified more with Park's struggles with his racial identity. I still believe this is a realistic love story, and it still made me have lots of feelings. But there is something problematic in the way Park and his mother's race and their relationship to others in light of their race is handled, and I don't think that should go unacknowledged.

Have any of you read Eleanor and Park? What did you think?

Book review: Wild

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews. Add me on Goodreads!

At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life: to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State—and to do it alone. She had no experience as a long-distance hiker, and the trail was little more than “an idea, vague and outlandish and full of promise.” But it was a promise of piecing back together a life that had come undone.

Strayed faces down rattlesnakes and black bears, intense heat and record snowfalls, and both the beauty and loneliness of the trail. Told with great suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild vividly captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

Thoughts on Wild, list style:

ONE. Wild is super honest -- sometimes almost too honest? From her crazy grief over her mother's death, to her brief fling with heroin, to her sexual encounters and failed marriage, Cheryl Strayed doesn't seem to hold much back. But I'm not sure it could be done any other way. Knowing what she was thinking at each point gives understanding into why she's doing what she's doing, and helps you feel connected to her.

TWO. You can read this even if you're not a hiker. As I just mentioned, it talks on a lot of broad themes: grief, believing in yourself, accomplishing something you'd never thought possible, getting over the damage you've caused to yourself and others. There's probably something in here for everyone.

THREE. Buuut she does go into a lot of detail about her daily challenges with hiking. Sometimes it seemed repetitive, but that is the basis of this story -- her hike on the PCT. So know that you are going to read a lot about the actual hike.

FOUR. It's being made into a movie starring Reese Witherspoon! I'm excited about that, but also scared because the audio version is so well done and the voice is so different from Reese Witherspoon that my brain might explode if I watch the movie.

It got a little long -- I think mostly because I got tired of the hiking parts and because there isn't a super strong plot line to keep you going -- and there were some parts that made me pretty uncomfortable (for the love of Jim, just SKIP the WHOLE CHAPTER about putting down her mom's horse!!!!). But all in all, I liked it. 

Have any of you read Wild? What did you think?

Book review: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Description from Amazon (below, because the Goodreads description sucked) can be found here along with other reviews. Add me on Goodreads!

Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he thought he was destined to live.

I heard of this book from the best of sources -- all the Young Adult (YA) authors I follow on twitter were tweeting about this book. Then, I started my master's program with a woman who went to a tribal college and learned more about Native Americans, who recommended the book. Plus, I knew it had won a billion awards (approximately). So, all good things.

The story starts when Junior realizes that his school, which is on a Native American reservation (the res), is still using science books from when his mother went through school. Through a series of events, he ends up leaving the res to go to a suburban school -- a primarily white suburban school -- a primarily white suburban school in the wealthiest part of town whose mascot is an Indian.

Obviously, life gets a little rough for Junior. He's the Other in his new school (as in, us against them), and folks back at the res don't take too kindly to him leaving the res for a white school. The book follows Junior as he tries to make a better life for himself than the one he had always expected.

All in all, this was an eye-opening, entertaining, hopeful and sad book. I highly recommend it.

Have any of you read this one? What did you think?

PS - I've heard that the physical book is illustrated, but I listened on audio, which was narrated by Sherman Alexie, and it was wonderful.

Book review: Blood Red Road

Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews.

Saba lives in Silverlake, a wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms where her family scavenge from landfills left by the long-gone Wrecker civilization. After four cloaked horsemen kidnap her beloved twin brother Lugh, she teams up with daredevil Jack and the Free Hawks, a girl gang of Revolutionaries.

Saba learns that she is a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Saba and her new friends stage a showdown that change the course of her civilization.

I loved this book.

Blood Red Road is in the future -- a future in which no society seems to exist, really. Saba, her twin Lugh and their little sister Emmy grow up in isolation, knowing only each other, their father, and neighbors that stop by from time to time. Saba and Lugh are 18 years old and have never been more than a day's walk away from home.

That all changes when Lugh is kidnapped by men who have come, just for him. And Saba takes off after him.

I've read a lot of dystopian/futuristic books, and this one ranks high among them. Young did an amazing job world-building -- making us believe the world that she's created, that Saba has to navigate. It all seems real.

The characters are also wonderful. Saba is stubborn and funny and hard to understand sometimes. That's a pretty good description for Jack and Emmy too, come to think of it. But add "charming" to Jack's list and "feisty" and "determined" to Emmy's.

In Blood Red Road, you believe in the characters. You get attached to them and root for them and you can't stop reading until you know how it all ends.

Loved it.

Have any of you read Blood Red Road? I highly recommend it. 

P.S. The audio version was also quite exceptionally read -- a great one if you've been wanting to try audio!

Book review: Shine

Shine by Lauren Myracle

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews. Linking up with Blonde... Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday.

When her best guy friend falls victim to a vicious hate crime, sixteen-year-old Cat sets out to discover who in her small town did it. Richly atmospheric, this daring mystery mines the secrets of a tightly knit Southern community and examines the strength of will it takes to go against everyone you know in the name of justice.

Against a backdrop of poverty, clannishness, drugs, and intolerance, Myracle has crafted a harrowing coming-of-age tale couched in a deeply intelligent mystery. Smart, fearless, and compassionate, this is an unforgettable work from a beloved author.


Shine deals with some very serious subjects: hate crimes, sexual abuse, substance abuse and more. Although it is a Young Adult novel, I can't recommend it to younger audiences without stressing the need for some conversations to happen. If my little sister decides to read it -- which I'm not saying you shouldn't, Anna, if you're reading -- I would recommend my mom check in with her now and then. Because Shine gets a little dark.

Cat is an awesome character. She has spent the last few years hiding her personality, her life, from people who once were her friends. But when her former BFF Patrick is attacked, Cat comes out of hiding and decides to find the culprit, risking her own safety in the process.

A lot of books seem to lack character development -- they skate by on awesome plots alone. This is not one of those books. I love when Cat realizes she can be fierce, she can stand up for herself. And I love that the way she views everyone around her shifts through the course of the book.

This book has really dynamic, powerful characters. I think it will stick with me for a while. There are some light moments here and there, but overall it is a very dark book. Know that going in.

There's also, obviously, a really strong hook in the plot. Cat is on a mission. I figured out the shocker before I was supposed to, I think. But I still read constantly to find out how it would all go down.

I gave it four stars. And I'll be thinking about it a lot for a long time.

Also, I really enjoyed the audio version of this one. It was read really well. Good one for any fellow audio-ers out there. :)

Have any of you read Shine? What did you think? Be careful of spoilers in the comments, please. :)

Book review: The Chosen One

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews. Linking up with Blonde... Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday.

Thirteen-year-old Kyra has grown up in an isolated community without questioning the fact that her father has three wives and she has twenty brothers and sisters, with two more on the way. That is, without questioning them much---if you don’t count her secret visits to the Mobile Library on Wheels to read forbidden books, or her meetings with Joshua, the boy she hopes to choose for herself instead of having a man chosen for her.

But when the Prophet decrees that she must marry her sixty-year-old uncle---who already has six wives---Kyra must make a desperate choice in the face of violence and her own fears of losing her family forever.


1. Carol Lynch Williams does a great job portraying the community. What I mean by this: she shows the good, too, not just the bad. As soon as Kyra is "chosen" to marry her uncle, as a reader you immediately start rooting for Kyra to get the aych-ee-double-hockey-sticks outta there. But the author does a great job demonstrating why exactly that's a difficult choice for Kyra.

2. I got really invested in this story. It's really easy to put yourself in the shoes of most of the characters (the non-bad guys, anyway) and wonder what you'd do in their situation. I wanted everyone to get their happy ending. I was thinking about it when I wasn't listening to it. Which covers two of the biggest most important things for me to really like a book: I have to care about the characters, and I know it's good if I can't stop thinking about it.

3. I want to know what happens next. Also a good sign.

4. For any audio-bookers out there, I think this one was particularly well read. Although they pronounced her name "Kee-rah" and I would have said "Kiy-rah."

5. I just find the whole environment and subject fascinating. A really cool peek into someone else's world that might not be real but totally could be. A very different way of living life. And a ticking time bomb of potentially having to marry an old man in your family. Yeesh.


Overall, I really liked this book. It's an easy read -- written in the voice of a 13 year old -- and a quick one. I recommend it!

Have any of you read The Chosen One? What did you think?

Book review: The Book Thief

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews. Linking up with Blonde... Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday.

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.

I loved this book.

I loved loved loved loved loved this book.

But I'm having a hard time reviewing it. So, here are some thoughts:

1. This book does better than maybe any other book I've ever read of showing how meaningful everyday interactions really are. Yes, there are huge things going on, like, you know, World War II and book burnings and Jews being marched through town. But it's all shown through Liesel's everyday life, the relationships she builds, and the way people treat each other.

2. The Book Thief also has some of the most excellent characters I've ever read. I think I fell in love with every one of them. Even the bad guys are so well written that you love them while you hate them.

3. This is not a quick read. Or, it wasn't for me. It is a long book and not overly full of action. But there is a steady, driving desire to know what happens. Make sure that when you pick this up, you have some time to invest in it.

4. I've never read a WWII book told from this perspective before -- just an average German girl. Not a soldier or a  Jew in hiding. Just a girl. I liked it.

5.One thing I wasn't sure I liked was that it often gives away things that will happen several chapters ahead of time. Heck, some of the stuff that happens in the end of the book, it tells you in the preface. I'm not sure I liked knowing what was going to happen.

6. The voice is very unique -- the story is told by Death. This caused the first chapter/preface (not sure which it was) to be confusing for me, and I had to listen to it a couple times. I know I say this a lot, but I'm not sure I've ever meant it more -- push through it. Give this book a full hundred, maybe hundred and fifty, pages before you put it down. Because these characters and this story are worth it.


Have any of you read The Book Thief? I gave it 5 stars and highly recommend it. Loved it. What did you think?

Book review: Delirium

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews. Linking up with Blonde... Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday.

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

I really, really liked this this book. I'm listening to the next book, Pandemonium, right now! I'm doing another list of thoughts because I'm not sure I can articulate likes and dislikes. Ready, set, GO!

1. I can't decide how I feel about Lena, the protagonist. She's very slow to move. I think I've become used to BAMF main characters in dystopian books who see that something is wrong and are like WE MUST CHANGE THIS.

But Lena isn't like that. Because of things that happened in her family and the inescapable influence of the society in which she's raised, she has been completely brainwashed. She drank the kool-aid. And even when she falls in love, even when she begins to dread the date of the procedure that will make her incapable of love instead of looking forward to it, she doesn't do anything but whine about how close it is. It pissed me off that she was so passive...

but it was maybe more realistic to have the main character be scared than the protagonists who are ready and eager to change things. It took time for her to see the light and change her mind. I was just impatient and ready for action way before it happened.

2. I mentioned this when I started reading it but for any audiobook friends out there, this one is read by Sarah Drew, an actress from Grey's Anatomy. She is stellar. She sounds young enough to be Lena and really emotes well.

3. I've heard other people say they thought it started slow, but I was really hooked all the way through from the beginning. And there are more and more surprises throughout the book.

That's all I've got for now. I'm starting to wonder what I usually say in these lists. Idk. I don't have a lot to say. But I highly recommend this book, especially if you like dystopians. (Anban, if you're out there, read this!)

Have any of you read it? What do you think?

Book review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

It seems like a few of you are reading this right now, so I thought it would be a good time to post my review! Let me know what you think if you've read this or once you've finished! Also, I'll post my review for the other books next week. :) Happy reading!

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Description from Goodreads (below) can be found here along with other reviews.

Once you start The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, there's no turning back. This debut thriller--the first in a trilogy from the late Stieg Larsson--is a serious page-turner rivaling the best of Charlie Huston and Michael Connelly. Mikael Blomkvist, a once-respected financial journalist, watches his professional life rapidly crumble around him. Prospects appear bleak until an unexpected (and unsettling) offer to resurrect his name is extended by an old-school titan of Swedish industry. The catch--and there's always a catch--is that Blomkvist must first spend a year researching a mysterious disappearance that has remained unsolved for nearly four decades. With few other options, he accepts and enlists the help of investigator Lisbeth Salander, a misunderstood genius with a cache of authority issues. Little is as it seems in Larsson's novel, but there is at least one constant: you really don't want to mess with the girl with the dragon tattoo.
--Dave Callanan

I have been having trouble trying to verbalize, or even figure out, my feelings about this book.

First of all, I disagree with the review above in that this book was not a page-turner for me from the beginning. I started it and didn't even get through the first 30 pages before returning it to the library. The first 30 pages are incredibly boring. But the book had gotten SO much hype, and my best friend and boyfriend had both read and loved it, so I tried again with the audio book.

I ended up really enjoying the book. It gets way more exciting and there is quite a bit of action, suspense, and mystery toward the end.

Things I liked:
     Lisbeth Salander is a very interesting protagonist and I enjoyed looking inside her head. Her chapters/sections were probably my favorite. She's a BAMF.
     The different kinds of relationships in this book. Mikael is hired by a very dysfunctional family, in which many cousins, brothers, mothers, members hate each other and alliances are everywhere. Mikael also has an open relationship with a married woman and has relationships with other women throughout the book. All of this was very interesting in that it was completely normal for the characters--it was a fly on the wall sort of thing, a train wreck you can't look away from.
     This won't be something everyone experiences, but I looooved the person who read for the audiobook. He did the women's voices and everything, and he has a lovely British accent.
     The mystery Blomkvist is hired to solve. It seems like such a dead end that you get sucked in and start really caring for Blomkvist and hoping for his success.

Things I didn't like:
     There were more boring chunks, even after I pushed through the first 30 pages, where I just wanted to get back to the action.
     There is a lot a lot a lot of stuff shoved into this one book. Blomkvist's professional struggles, mentioned in the summary above, are merely a frame and explanation for why he would ever agree to try to solve the mystery, but they still take up hundreds of pages at the beginning and end. Then there's the mystery, Blomkvist's many relationships, Salander's many relationships... As I progressed in the book, and as I've continued to the next book, I realized it is all necessary. But there sure is a lot going on in this book.
     The page-turning action I was promised doesn't start until the last third or fourth of the book. The suspense does build up to that point, but come oooooon. Everyone made such a big deal out of how they couldn't put it down, but you have to read a lot before you care that much.

I also feel obligated to warn anyone who hasn't yet heard--there is a rape scene. It's rather graphic. I feel like its effect was diluted for me since I was listening to it, rather than reading it, and could kind of just zone out a bit. But you should know ahead of time, I think.

As I mentioned, I did continue on with the second book, and I liked it a lot more. So I think the first book is worth a read--because I ended up liking it, and because I enjoyed the rest of the series.