All posts tagged: love story

February Book

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Image by Katherine C. The only thing getting us through this month is the promise of chocolate (whether bought by someone else, or yourself. No shame). The weather’s not great. Awful, actually. We’re months away from spring. And we’ve just said a long goodbye to the Obama’s. So, let’s embrace February as a month of romance. Whether Valentine’s Day is your favorite or least favorite holiday we can all agree there’s no better upper than a good love story. So we’re taking you back to a classic romance to end all romances (well, no, that wouldn’t be good… but you get what we mean).   Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, is a world-renown classic. First published in 1813, and set in the early 19th century, it tells the story of Elizabeth Bennet (and her family) and her struggles with English manners and upbringing styles of her time. We’re probably telling you what you already know, but for those of you who haven’t read this one, we’ll go on with our basic summary. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s five unmarried …

Mending a Broken Heart

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This book broke my heart over and over again. My heart broke for Eleanor, for Park, for Eleanor and Park. I was completely shattered. I was preparing myself to be totally destroyed by the ending, and then… and then came the last line of the book and I was lifted. I know Rowell was purposely vague and I am sure there are those who did not read the ending as positively as I did. But I am the eternal optimist, I’m hopeful, and I’m always searching for happy endings. So I am choosing to believe that those three words on the postcard were “I love you,” because if they weren’t, I would just simply be crushed. I know other Bookly Clubbers disagree, but I adored this book. I felt so strongly for, related to, and identified with both Eleanor and Park on so many levels that I couldn’t help but love the story. I remember being a teenager, and even a young adult to a certain extent, and wondering how it was that so-and-so felt the way they did. I also remember, like Park, feeling simultaneously protective of …

All the Feels

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Confession: I read this book months ago. While details of the story might be fuzzy, how I felt about it isn’t. I devoured this book, so consumed by the relationship of Eleanor and Park that I stayed up into the wee hours, finishing it in a couple of days. I recommended it to anyone who hadn’t already been charmed by the quirky characters and the innocence of first love. This is why I love books; how it resonates – or doesn’t – with the reader varies from person to person. It’s dependent on their life experiences, who they are, what they believe, what makes them feel. For Katie C., this book didn’t resonate, a totally legitimate reaction. But for me, it took hold within the first few pages. I was what some might call a late bloomer. I didn’t have my first kiss until I was 16, my first boyfriend until 17. This kind of young love that bonded Eleanor and Park is something I’m unfamiliar with. And that might be the reason it fascinated …

Just not that into… this book

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This was the first Rainbow Rowell book I’ve read. But I’ve been hearing a lot about her recently. Similar to John Green, I feel like her books have found sudden popularity in the YA world. So with all the hype, especially surrounding Eleanor & Park, I was definitely excited to read this one. I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a huge fan of YA books. Well, let me explain. A book like this is not typically my first choice, but when I have read YA books I’ve really enjoyed them. I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve read all the Hunger Games, Twilight and Divergent series, and loved each and every one of them. Anyway, I didn’t have SUPER high expectations for Eleanor & Park, but I did expect to enjoy it… unfortunately, I was wrong. Maybe it’s because I didn’t fall in love until I was in my 20’s, or maybe because I never had a high school relationship, or because by the time I was 18 I’d moved six times and never quite experienced a typical adolescence, but I couldn’t …

February Book

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Image © Haiku Deck We’ve come full circle! This is our last book of 2015/2016 before we start anew in March. If you’ve been with us since the beginning you’ll recall that we first launched Bookly in March 2015 with Still Alice as part of our Screenplay theme in honor of Hollywood’s awards season. For February, the month of Valentine’s Day, we’ll be reading a love story… … Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. Although many are now familiar with Rowell’s name, and her books (Fangirl, Attachments and Landline), this was her first young adult novel. Published in 2013, Eleanor & Park follows these two protagonists from Omaha, Nebraska as they fall in love in the late 1980’s. At the young, innocent age of sixteen Eleanor and Park build a connection over mix tapes and comic books, and find themselves in the dramatic world of young love. And since this book has such a strong emphasis on music we’ve brought back our Bookly playlist this month. So during your reading sessions, take a listen to the Bookly {February} “mix tape” on Spotify: …