Eleanor & Park, a young adult novel by Rainbow Rowell, is set in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1986. The story follows two sixteen-year-old misfits: Eleanor, a redheaded new girl struggling with poverty and a troubled home life, and Park, a half-Korean boy who loves comic books and alternative music. When Eleanor sits next to Park on the school bus, an unlikely friendship blossoms through shared comics and mixtapes, gradually deepening into first love. As Eleanor faces danger at home and cruelty at school, the couple must fight to protect what they have. Tender and heartbreaking, the novel beautifully captures the transformative power of young love.
