How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Not just new—but big and awkward. With crazy hair, bright red on top of curly. And she was dressed like… like she wanted people to look at her. Or maybe like she didn't get what a mess she was… Like something that wouldn't survive in the wild. (1.41)
When Park first sees Eleanor, he's almost shocked by how she looks. She's impossible not to notice, and he cringes inwardly, knowing she'll be a target for the kids on the bus.
Quote #2
When Eleanor was a little girl, she'd thought her mom looked like a queen, like the star of some fairy tale […] You'd look at Eleanor's mom and think she must be carved into the prow of a Viking ship somewhere or maybe painted on the side of a plane […](4.24-26)
Eleanor gives us an amazing description of her mom's beauty. Too bad it only lands her a string of terrible husbands.
Quote #3
Jesus, was she weird. Today she was dressed like a Christmas tree, with all this stuff pinned to her clothes, shapes cut out of fabric, ribbon […] (6.14)
Even though we her a lot of Eleanor's inner thoughts, we never hear Eleanor talk about why she decorates her clothes, or why she ties scarves on her wrists. Why do you think Rowell never has Eleanor mention all of her colorful decorations?
Quote #4
She had bobbed blond hair and hard, curled bangs, and she was the only kid in school with a Swatch. Kim was one of those people who never wrinkled […] She wouldn't make eye contact with Cal. (7.13)
Here's a great example of how appearances matter in high school: Park thinks he knows a lot about Kim because of how she looks.
Quote #5
If you don't want people to look at you, Park had thought at the time, don't wear fishing lures in your hair. (7.30)
So Eleanor probably doesn't want people looking at her—but she wears stuff in her hair. Maybe she figures her hair's eye-catching enough already? She's fighting a losing battle? Whatever the reason, we love it.
Quote #6
He looked exactly like a rat. Like the human being version of a rat […] Who knew what her mom saw in him; Eleanor's dad was messed-up looking, too. (10.10)
Eleanor's vision is so tainted by Richie's personality that she can't see him as anything but ugly. In this case, what's outside definitely reflects what's inside.
Quote #7
He did have really cute hair. Really, really… It was completely straight and almost completely black, which, on Park, seemed like a lifestyle choice. He always wore black, practically head to toe. (16.25)
How great is it that Eleanor thinks Park's naturally black hair seems like a "lifestyle choice"? We love how both of these characters totally adore how the other one looks.
Quote #8
"And you look like a protagonist." She was talking as fast as she could think. "You look like a person who wins in the end. You're so pretty, and so good. You have magic eyes," she whispered. (19.358)
Eleanor actually tells Park, here, that he looks like a protagonist. (Guess what, Eleanor?) It's a great way of expressing how she feels about Park—her feelings about him really affect how she sees him.
Quote #9
God, what must his dad be like? He looked just like Tom Selleck... The whole family was cute. Even his white brother. His mom looked exactly like a doll. (21.115-116)
Eleanor's initially really intimidated when she meets Park's family, because she thinks they all look so perfect. The neat, happy Sheridan house is so different from her own home. Interesting that Eleanor refers to Josh as Park's "white" brother, isn't it? Park always says he looks much more Asian than Josh does.
Quote #10
Eleanor was right: She never looked nice. She looked like art, and art wasn't supposed to look nice; it was supposed to make you feel something. (27.60)
This quote, right here—can we frame it? Because this quote is art, too. What an awesome sentiment from Park. Here's why appearances can be so important.