Book Review: Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Author: Rainbow Rowell
Published: February 1st 2013 by Orion
Pages: 329
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Source: Purchased from Periplus
Format: Paperback

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Periplus


Summary from Goodreads

"Two misfits.One extraordinary love.
Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.
Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.
Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try."

Rating: 4/5

It was my first time reading Rainbow Rowell's book. At first, I was not used to with the way she narrated. I meant, she was using third-person's perspective. And it was also my first time reading book with the way like that. Now, I'm getting used to it. 

I enjoyed Eleanor & Park so much. I loved this book. Eleanor & Park is funny, sad, and sincere. First things first about Eleanor, her lifes sucks, she is fat (she thinks herself fat) and poor, the oldest of five kids with a painfully difficult home. She is known as crazy red hair and always wear weird clothes. Park is half-korean (I like him so much) and is into alternative music and comic book. 

Both Eleanor and Park have their own issues accepting their self-worth whether it be comparing their look to others or their family sees them. Eleanor comes from an neglectful situation and got bullied at school. Park is struggling with his own identity and masculinity. They both bond being considered somewhat outsiders, also comic and music brought they together.

Eleanor meets Park on the school bus. Park lets her sit next to him because he feels sorry for her. Gradually, they fall in love. With Park, she is able to escape from reality to a safer place where there are no swear words and allow to just be herself.  

Huff, you should read it. It's a very emotional books. I got teary eyes while reading it. Not only because Eleanor's sad situation but also the love between Eleanor and Park. Their love is so intense. I hoped I got this love when I was highschool. Ha! The ending provided enough angst to break my heart but just enough to patch it right up. 

Book Review: How To Fall in Love by Cecelia Ahern

Author: Cecelia Ahern
Published: October 24th 2013 by HarperCollins
Pages: 327
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Adult
Source: Purchased from Periplus 
Format: Paperback

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Periplus


Summary from Goodreads

"She has just two weeks. Two weeks to teach him how to fall in love – with his own life.Despite her determination, Christine knows what a dangerous promise she’s made. Against the ticking of the clock, the two of them embark on wild escapades, grand romantic gestures and some unlikely late-night outings. Slowly, Christine thinks Adam is starting to fall back in love with his life. But has she done enough to change his mind for good? And is that all that’s starting to happen?"Adam Basil and Christine Rose are thrown together late one night, when Christine is crossing the Halfpenny Bridge in Dublin. Adam is there, poised, threatening to jump. Adam is desperate – but Christine makes a crazy deal with him. His 35th birthday is looming and she bets him she can show him that life is worth living before then. 

Rating: 5/5

Cecelia Ahern is now become my favorite author. This is my first time read her novel. And it was goood! I loved it so much! Such a beautiful story!

Christine, the female lead, saw a man shoot himself in the head and it changed her life forever. It was the most horryfying moment she's ever had. It made her not happy with her life, then she thought that she needed to change it before it was too late. She determined to start her life again after ending her marriage. Then, Adam is coming. She meets him on bridge in the middle of the night. Adam is tried to suicide by jumping from HalfPenny Bridge but Christine stops him immediately and promises him that she can help him to make him love his life again before his birthday which is just 2 weeks more. Christine is not really sure that she will succeed, she is fearful of what might happen if she doesn't succeed? Adam is also not quite sure she will be succeed. Can Christine helps Adam to enjoy his life again? Or may be they are destined for more?

How To Fall in Love are beautiful, unique, touching, and a heart-warming story. This book has a great structure of plot and subplots, along with some very thought-provoking words and events, this book was a highly enjoyable, captivating, and lovable read for me. I loved the main characters, Christine and Adam straight from the beginning. What I liked was they both are a bit broken. The book is about a period of two weeks and when you read it, you realised that life can change during a short time. This book will makes you think about your own life. I'm happy this book has such a good ending.

"Where would be without tomorrows? What we'd have instead would be todays. And if that was the case, with you, I'd hope for the longest days for today I'd fill today with you, doing everything I've ever loved. I'd laugh, I'd talk, I'd listen and learn, I'd love, I'd love, I'd love. I'd make every day today and spend them all with you, and I'd never worry about tomorrow, when I wouldn't be with you. And when that dreaded tomorrow comes for us, please know that I didn't want to leave you, or be left behind, that every single moment spent with you were the best times in my life. "

Book Review : I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella

Author: Sophie Kinsella
Published: Dial Press Trade
Pages: 433
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Comedy
Souce: Purchased from Periplus 
Format: Paperback

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Amazon
Periplus (Indonesia only)


Summary from Goodreads

"I’ve lost it. :( The only thing in the world I wasn’t supposed to lose. My engagement ring. It’s been in Magnus’s family for three generations. And now the very same day his parents are coming, I’ve lost it. The very same day! Do not hyperventilate, Poppy. Stay positive :) !! Poppy Wyatt has never felt luckier. She is about to marry her ideal man, Magnus Tavish, but in one afternoon her “happily ever after” begins to fall apart. Not only has she lost her engagement ring in a hotel fire drill but in the panic that follows, her phone is stolen. As she paces shakily around the lobby, she spots an abandoned phone in a trash can. Finders keepers! Now she can leave a number for the hotel to contact her when they find her ring. Perfect! Well, perfect except that the phone’s owner, businessman Sam Roxton, doesn’t agree. He wants his phone back and doesn’t appreciate Poppy reading his messages and wading into his personal life. What ensues is a hilarious and unpredictable turn of events as Poppy and Sam increasingly upend each other’s lives through emails and text messages. As Poppy juggles wedding preparations, mysterious phone calls, and hiding her left hand from Magnus and his parents . . . she soon realizes that she is in for the biggest surprise of her life."

Rating: 5/5 

OH. MY. GOD

This book has driving me crazy. I LOVED IT!

You know what? Sophie Kinsella is my favorite author all the time because she is a hilarious and engaging  and brilliant author! All of her books are brilliant and very funny. She know how to make the reader laugh out loud while reading her book.

I've Got Your Number is one of my favorite besides Confession of a Shopaholic books. I love every character in this novel. Poppy Wyatt, the main character, she is clumsy but hilarious. She lost her engagement ring and her phone in the same day. Then she found a phone in a bin. So she take out the phone and possess it as her own. And her story is begin, that phone led her to an elusive bussinessman Sam Roxton, because turned out she takes his office phone.

Second, Sam Roxton, the male lead in the book, like I said he is a a bussinessman who doesn't have time to reply messages on his phone. If he reply? He only replies very short message like he didn't care at all. That's why he has PA to handle this, but his PA has resigned suddenly. Poppy reads all of his messages and replies them all with "xxx". Haha. She did that under Sam's name ( I even laughing while writing this).

My favorite scene?
I think other reviewers will agree with me. My favorite scene when Poppy plays scrabble with her fiancee's family, Magnus aka Dr. Magnus Tavish. His family is very intellect and educated, he and his father are professor in university. All of his family put oh-so-f*cking-difficult words on scrabble, except Poppy who only knows "Pig". Hahaha. Coincidentally, Sam texts her, then Poppy asks him to help her and finds difficult word. I don't remember the word but because of that word, because of Sam helped her to cheat, her fiancee family impress with her. They didn't know if Poppy is actually intellect too and she won the game. Hahaha.

This book made me ship Poppy and Sam. They are perfect together. Oh I love them both.
You should read it, guys. I highly recommend this. You won't regret it!