Elenor and Park Review

   

 I think it’s about time I read a book this year that I actually liked. However, Eleanor and Park is not one of my new favorites. Little things irritated me were scattered throughout the book. That said, more was done right than wrong and Eleanor and Park is one of the better high-school romance novels out there. 

      The first and probably biggest gripe I had with this book was the formatting. Eleanor and Park is written in third-person limited switching between Eleanor’s and Park’s perspective. I didn’t have a problem with the split perspective. The book is title Eleanor and Park it the story of the two of them not just one. What I didn’t poetically like was the way in which the split perspective was handled. Every time the narration would switch between Eleanor and Park the page would be title with the current narrator. However, I feel this is very unnecessary as the book it third-person. If the narrator switches it’s very obvious. Personally, I felt slightly insulted as if whoever made this formatting decision thought the readers were too dumb to figure out who was narrating by the text alone that they had to outright be told.  I shall note this is very much a personal preference of mine and that several of my friends were not bothered by this one bit. 

      As to the actually story, I don’t think I have ever before read such a realistic representation of a high school relationship. Park and Eleanor are teens. Although they very much care about one another, they aren’t ready to get married and start their lives together. 

      The way the relationship came slowly, but organically. It wasn’t that Park saw Eleanor get on the bus and instantly fell in love or vice-versa. Eleanor starts reading Park’s comics with him and they slowly become friends. 

     Eleanor’s dysfunctional family contrast nicely with Park’s functional one. Park has a set of parents who love each other very much while Eleanor’s father doesn’t appear to care much for her, but her step-father is even worse. 

     I’ve notice the ending is a bit of a touchy subject so I have decided to discuss it here. I am not going to say exactly what happens just what I felt about it. However, I feel the following paragraph could be considered a spoiler. Read at your own risk. 

    Opened endings are lacking in YA books especially romances. I like the possibility of wondering what happened to Eleanor and Park’s relationship. I don’t have to know exactly where it went because whether the pair is together or not, I feel both Eleanor and Park win in the end. My biggest problem, which was not enough to ruin the book for me, was I felt not enough justice was given to Eleanor’s step-father. 

Can an Ending Ruin a Story?

This year, I finished The Black Key, the final book in The Lone City trilogy. I was disappointed to say the least, especially because I enjoyed the first two books in the trilogy. I still find joy re-reading The Jewel and The White Rose, but the knowledge of how sloppily the plot is tied together at the end crawls around the back of my mind. Which made me wonder, can an ending ruin everything that came before it no matter how well written it is?

      No novel is perfect. I don’t think a book has to be great all the way through, but I do think it needs to be good for most of it. Endings are only a small section of a book. However, it is also the final glimpse we have of the book's world as well. Last impressions can be just as important as first impressions. My final impression of The Lone City trilogy was the ending wasn’t given enough time. Lately, I have noticed super-sonic endings are rampant in YA literature.

     Another ending that felt way to rushed for me was, The Crown, by Keira Cass. I wasn’t particularly thrilled with the books written after, The One, but I didn’t find The Heir a chore to read. However, The Crown was so hurried character development that would be logical if there was time spent on its execution, crashed like a bird flying into a window. Plot points and subplots were thrown in all directions. My brain could hardly keep up as the story progressed. I turned the last page wondering about what I just read. 

     I enjoyed Teardrop, but it’s sequel Waterfall did not bring the story to a satisfying close. It started out okay, but halfway through every plot twist vomited in my face. It was like the second half of the book was written during NaNoWriMo (A annual challenge to finish a novel draft in the month of November.) and left unedited. 

     I don’t think endings are given as much focus as they need. Most of my complaints about endings can be summed up as, it was too rushed. The end of a story, especially a long running series, should be a gradual stroll home not a desperate sprint for the finish line. 

    My favorite finales are often long. The Lunar Chronicles is one of my favorite book series, with what I consider one of the best endings. The last book is over eight-hundred pages long, but it needed to be. I loved Return of the King and that is also not something that can be read in a day. Both these books were organic endings to their predecessors. Did it take me a while to get through? Yes, but was it worth it? Also, yes. 

     As my English professor told me, a story needs to be long enough to complete itself. Writers are taking a reader on a long journey, taking the reader by the hand and showing them the wonders of the world they have imagined. The tour shouldn’t be cut short at the end because we need to get there as fast as possible. The tour should be as long enough to show everything worth seeing. As Miley Cyrus puts it, “It’s not about how fast I get there, it’s about what’s waiting on the other side.”  

     Which brings me back to the original question, can an ending ruin a story? I think it can. I’m not saying it will make the story before it impossible to enjoy, as I mentioned earlier, I still enjoy The Jewel and The White Rose. The quality of those books have not diminished since I read The Black Key. However, my reading experience with those books are different as I know many of the characters are going to experience hardship with poor resolution. 

Books I Have Changed my Mind About

     People change. Some changes will come around quicker than others. I have also grown quite a bit and so has my taste. When I was a child I used to love American cheese and would eat it straight out of the package. Now, I hate it with a burning passion of a thousand suns. On the flip side, I used to not care so much for coffee, but now I have a cup almost every day. Although eating is different activity from reading my taste in both aren’t the same than five years ago. Since I started college, I’ve become a much more critical reader. Flaws I have never noticed before are poking at me. However, some books I’ve revisited had some very nice elements I missed my first time through. 

Red Queen

     In high school, I was obsessed with this series! Although my life became busier as I got older, I found the time to work my way through these fairly large novels. I think the only thing keeping me from reading the books faster was how they were only released once a year. Which means my reading taste had changed dramatically by the time the last one came out. I decided to read through the other three books again in preparation to making my way to the finale. I even had plans to devote an entire month of articles on my blog to the Red Queen series the month War Storm was released. That didn’t happen as I was greatly disappointed with my re-read of Red Queen. I realized how predictable, clichéd, and mediocre this series is. I don’t hate them, but I no longer adore these books anymore and see them as bland but not bad. 

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Matched

    Once again, one of my high school favorites turned out to just be okay if that. Matched was my bridge series that brought me from middle school books to YA books. In early high school, I was addicted to this series, the romance, the characters, and the government that I loved to hate. I don’t think I could’ve read a trilogy any faster. The summer before I started college I decided to re-read the books of my childhood, The Hobbit, The Ordinary Princess, The Giver, and several others including Matched. It took me much longer to get through Matched the second time I read it. I couldn’t understand why the book suddenly seemed, cliché, predictable, and kind of bland by dystopian standers. Then I realized Matched hadn’t changed, I did. I still have a special place in my heart for Matched because of all the other authors and books I found through it, but I think I’ll leave the trilogy to rest in my heart. 

The Merchants Daughter

      I’m surprised I managed to finish this book the first time I read it. This isn’t the best book I’ve ever read, and I didn’t enjoy it as much as Dickerson’s other books. However, it’s still a good book and I will recommend it to Beauty and Beast fans. I cannot recall what I didn’t enjoy about The Merchant’s Daughter on my first read through. What I do remember was my very low rating I gave it on Goodreads. A few years later I decided to give it another chance. Upon finishing, I found this book to be an enjoyable historical-fiction romance with a good message. It’s still not my favorite, but I think it’s worth taking the time to read.

Fractured Fairytale Cliches

 
     As a folklore enthusiast and a kid who grew up with the Disney Princesses, I enjoy fairy tale retellings. I’m familiar with the original stories and reading the beloved tales with a fresh twist is a simple joy. However, the key word here is “fresh”. Lately, I’ve noticed some fairytale retellings are rehashing the same creative “twist” over and over. Not all the tropes I discuss here are “bad”. All but one I do enjoy reading. However, everything in moderation. I can have too much coffee even though I love it. The same I can go for a trope. 

The Retelling is Based on the Disney Version 

     As I mentioned in the introduction, I grew up with Disney. I don’t have any ill feelings towards the movies of my childhood. I’ve noticed many people have only been exposed to fairytales through the animated-musical versions. Consequently, when a creator goes about playing with common fairytale themes, he/she ends up parodying the Disney version rather than the folklore. In short, the writers are adapting an adaptation. 

The Princess “saves herself”

     There is actually nothing wrong with this trope in of itself. I don’t see anything wrong with more active female characters. My gripe is that every time an author uses this trope he/she is hailed for being so original and creative. However, almost every single fairytale retelling published in the past fifteen years, has a feisty and royal heroine. Again, I don’t mind this, but it’s not revolutionary anymore. That said, I think it is a good thing this isn’t “fresh” anymore. Why? Because it means independent princesses are now the “norm” for fiction. 

Modern Versions

Bonus points if it takes place in high school. Enchanted, Ever-after high, Decedents, A Cinderella Story, Once Upon a Time, Tell me a Story. I don’t know how to feel about these. On one hand, I think it is kind of cool to see how a fairytale would look in our society. On the other hand, one of the most intriguing features of a fairytale is the sense timelessness the stories own. Setting a fairytale in the modern world soils the wonder and magic the original tale holds. 

Prince Charming is a Jerk

      When I’m told someone is supposed to be charming I don’t picture that individual as a jerk. However, from my view the majority of modern fairytale retellings portray prince charming is a complete idiot and at worse the big evil of the story. I get the idea of trying to switch what is good and evil, but don’t call the character “charming”. I don’t see anything charming about taking over the world and enslaving millions. In The Sister’s Grimm Prince Charming is rather rude, in Just Ella the prince isn’t great, in Shrek Prince Charming is also a jerk. I’m not saying there can’t be nasty or outright evil princes, but don’t call the character “Charming”. 

The Big Bad Wolf is a Werewolf

     And, often has the hots for Red Riding Hood. The first time I saw this trope was in The Sisters Grimm with Mr. Canis. I didn’t see anything wrong with Mr. Canis. He’s one of my favorite characters. However, in Scarlett Moon the big bad wolf is a werewolf and also has weird uncomfortable affection for Red Riding Hood. Scarlet by Marisa Meyer has a romantic pairing between red and the wolf characters as does Ever After High. The only situation where this doesn't make me uncomfortable is in Scarlet. I don't understand why someone would want to do this. In the fairytale the wolf eats the grandmother and the little-girl. Why give the wolf a (ripped) human form and make it the romantic partner of the little-girl who is now suddenly aged into an adult? I may be a grump, but this tope grosses me out.