Book Review: Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

This is my first book review and expect that this would be long because I would be pouring out all my feelings.

It all started in Fully Booked since me and my friend Shobe, saw this book. And when we visited the place once again, after my birthday, I've seen it again: Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell. I was stuck on what to buy: Statistical Probability of Love At First Sight, This Is What Happy Looks Like both by Jennifer Smith or The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider (no, not Rob Schneider!). After what seems like a lifetime of two hours of thinking and researching (Thank God there's goodreaders.com) I finally ended up with this book I wasn't sure about. I trusted my instincts because it has the "New York Times Bestseller" on the cover, and I promised myself never to buy anything that doesn't have those letter printed on the cover. And make sure that it's not "Author of the New Times Bestseller blah blah", I mean I want the legitimately accepted bestseller. I got a little phobia for reading The Soul Seekers, I just finished the first book and I have no intentions of pushing through the whole series.

Anyway, I really don't have high expectation for this book, which is good considering my standards. I want something that would make me feel like I don't want to go to work and is eager to turn to the next page and know what would happen next; something that would make me feel one with the story. Well, I got it with this book.

I can relate much to Eleanor because I am a woman of 20's that have a lot of insecurities. And we weren't even sure if whatever flowery words guys tell us is true. There would always be a negative thought behind the pleasing words. Having not found my Park Sheridan yet, well, Im sure he's out there somewhere, (I guess I just want to say that) which leads us to... The "anyway" word...

Anyway, I really adore Park's feelings to Eleanor and maybe it's true, that if you fall in love for someone, you only see the good things in them, but when you see the bad ones, it makes you love them even more and their imperfections; looking through the eyes of love. This book was all about  how to learn to love someone without looking what's on the cover. And what I love about it is that it covers the thoughts of both characters. So you wont have to ask "is she crazy?" Or "is he just playing her?" Their feelings are very well explained on the novel. 

It took me 4 days long to finish the book because I have to go to work and I can tell you how much I missed when I leave it lying on my desk. So many times I attempted to bring it to work but afraid that I'll make it dirty so I only read it when I got home. I only want to go home asap to read it. 

When I finished it, my face was blank and I was shouting 

 

"what's this book?!" 

 

"That's it?!"

 

"That's about it?!"

 

I even flipped the pages back and forth to see if there's anything I've missed and read the acknowledgements maybe there's something in there.  But none. That's about it. The book was finished. It leaves you hanging but not much like David Levithan's Everyday. I'm satisfied. I feel like I was still looking for something but all in all, the story was highly satisfactory and beautiful.

I highly recommend this book and gives it 5 stars.

Weird Dreams : April 1, 2014 [9:38 PM]

With sleep still on my eyes, I forced myself to write at this very hour when I was shaken by a bad dream. 

I was at our house and it was a mix of jungle and a living room. Ground was not tiled but all dirt. It looks like I was sitting on a bench outside a forest. There was a wooden small gate. I came out looking for “Mama Bear” who gives love advice when I heard our maid’s voice. I was on a dark alley, a very dark alley. It’s like dawn and no one is there.

I went back inside the house.

An orange creature with a breed somewhere between an orangutan and monkey is on my mom’s right shoulder. Our maid was asking what it was. Her words were slurred and I can’t figure out what she was saying next. It’s like the name of the creature was Magnolia. I was headed outside, while saying Magnolia? What kind of creatures is that?

I turned my back heading somewhere west and it leaped on my shoulder and touched my head and I woke up with a gasp and was struggling to remove something. I panicked and was trying to shake the fear. I wiggled in my bed like a worm while doing the funny panicked gasping sound.

Then slowly, my heart starts to pound really hard on my rib cage.

I drifted back to sleep and my dream was all dark. It has people I don’t remember but sure I was escaping my mother. I don’t remember much of it but whenever I read a good book, it happens on every end of the month. It’s as if my soul becomes one with the book I was currently reading and happens in my dreams.

 Honestly, looking back, this is a really funny dream.