Why not just go for gold, close that 1 star stretch and give it a 5? 
 Because this book was sooooo good, so real, so painfully aware of teen romance and tragedy that it left a little 1 star hole in my review and heart because I was slightly disappointed and unsatisfied, especially at the ending. Don't get me wrong, the ending was okay. The rest of the book? Adorkable yet sad. 
 "He wound the scarf around his fingers until her hand was hanging in the space between them. 
 Then he slid the silk and his fingers into her open palm. 
 And Eleanor disintegrated." 
 Me too, Eleanor. Me too. 
 This book boasts everything good about YA. It is simple yet takes on strong topics and delivers them beautifully. It is unique, incredibly cute, and gives you main characters that are complex, real, and likeable even in their bad moments. My complaints are few and far between, but enough to keep this book from being shelved as an all time favorite. 
 (view spoiler)[ For example: 
 I love hate-to-love tropes. While Eleanor and Park dance around this a bit, it isn't quite what I would hope for or expect. The don't like each other in the beginning, that's for sure. After a time, I could see them moving forward, developing a friendship. However it seemed to me that this was rushed as I felt like the middle of their relationship was blurred. Then, it went from cute to sort of ridiculous with the constant barrage of "You are the air I breathe, I can't live without you," feel, which in the end was completely negated because Eleanor ignored him for a straight up year before responding to Park with three words. 
 For real. Three words? What were they? Was it I miss you? Did she finally say I love you? Because IGNORING THE PERSON YOU LOVE FOR A WHOLE FRIGGIN YEAR IS NOT THE BEST WAY TO GO ABOUT THAT. (hide spoiler)] 
 Eleanor & Park is a book I will be thinking about for a while- as I am not sure of how I feel about it at this time. (If you were able to read my full review with spoiler, I am sure you could tell I am quite conflicted on my view of this book.) I will probably reread it in the future and do another review, but until that time comes, I would still recommend this book to any YA fans.