ELEANOR & PARK

I may not be the intended demographic for this very touching YA romance, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying it – especially since Eleanor and Park are 1980s teenagers (like I was) and dig The Smiths and Prefab Sprout (like I did).

This book recalls what it’s like to be 16, when the world seems to orbit around your emotions and every feeling is magnified 1000%.  The characters’ lovestruck charm and mutual inability to fit in won me over, even as the 40-something mom in me wants to plead “make good choices!” at them through the pages.  The story had a sweet, quirky John Hughes movie vibe – and I mean that in the best possible way.

In one of the book’s pivotal scenes, an altercation stems from a holiday table with no pumpkin pie.  Here’s min – perfect for this season and easy to make – but not an easy photo to snap with little hands waiting to grab a slice!