Endings
I just finished reading Eleanor and Park. It’s sad, but it’s also cute. I don’t want to give away anything, but for those of you who have read it, did you like the ending? The last line was nice, but the ending as a whole was just kind of blah. It feels like she really just wanted to finish up the book and threw something together.. I don’t know
On my first reading I didn’t really like having to contend with the ambiguity of the ending. I loved so much about the book that I accepted it, though.
I just reread the book, and this time I went more slowly toward the end, working at putting myself more in the heads of the characters. (The first time I think I was kind of rushing toward the end in my desire to find out how the plot would resolve.) And I think I now understand better what was going on in Eleanor’s mind (especially) during the last part of the story, which in turn makes the ending feel more satisfying to me.
For myself, I think the characters ring true throughout. I definitely don’t think Rainbow Rowell was phoning it in toward the end. On the contrary, I think her commitment to a realistic depiction of what it is like to be 16 and in love for the first time, and the way she honored her characters by staying true to that all the way to the end of the story, was a brave choice, and one with a lot of artistic integrity.
The ending was not easy for me as a reader. But I think in a way that was appropriate to the story, which never made things easy for its characters, either.
Anyway, I liked it.
Reposted from http://lies.tumblr.com/post/45564986716.
Tags: eleanor & park.
