Interview

Author Rainbow Rowell discusses first love and whether any of the characters in Eleanor & Park are based on her.

• What inspired you to write a misfits-in-love story like Eleanor & Park
  I have always, always wanted to write a first love story. I feel like, when you're 16, you have the greatest-ever capacity for romantic love. You fall in love with every cell of your body. But, at the same time, at that age, you have so little to offer the person you love. You don't belong to yourself quite yet—you still have school and your parents, you don't even have your own space…And you also know that what you're feeling probably won't last. First love usually doesn't. There's a built-in tragedy to falling (truly) in love when you're 16. It's like every 16-year-old in love is either Romeo or Juliet. That is what I wanted to write about.
  


• Do you see yourself in any of the characters?
  Ha! I see myself in all the characters! I think I was a lot like Eleanor when I was in high school. I was cynical about love and romance - and the future. But I was never as tough or as hard as she is. I was never that cool. And I identify with Park, too - that feeling Park has that he can't afford to draw attention to himself. I remember feeling like that.
  


• Eleanor & Park covers a lot of ground, from difficult family ...