Eleanor & Park

This storyline is not your typical fluffy YA contemporary novel. Themes within this book span from bullying, forbidden love, interracial love and abuse. The developing romance between the two main characters Elenor and Park is also effectively drawn and nurtured throughout the book. Parts of this story I enjoyed. However the overall effect of the book; structure, character development, plot line and overall ending just didn't do enough to captivate me. Maybe it's because YA remains a genre I cannot connect emotionally with. I enjoyed Elenor and Park as characters but not enough to invest in their story or to be concerned about them throughout the story. For YA lovers I would highly recommend this book as a unique take on YA contemporary fiction that takes on underrepresented people and storylines in YA fiction. However unfortunately for me this was a cutesy but overall underwhelming read for me.