Eleanor and Park is about teenage love, and both characters in their “adolescent stage” in life. Eleanor through the entire book shows a level of maturity, she takes care of her younger siblings. She is very aware of the adult things that go on around her. Eleanor is forced to grow up faster than she has to. Her mother could be labeled neglectful as a parent. She puts Richie before any of the children. When Eleanor’s mother and Richie fight Eleanor makes sure the children are okay and alright, instead of really focusing is whether she’s okay first, which is what a parent would do. All of those situations forcing Eleanor to become more independent and more adult like sooner than her peers.

When Richie finds out that Eleanor and Park are a thing, and that Richie is the one writing in her book, she feels she has no other choice than to run away. As she makes plans to runway, she debates whether or not she should go back for her younger sibling, she takes a parental role in her younger siblings life.

Which goes back to the debate of what adolescents really is. She has matured faster than some of her peers because she had to. She had to grow up in order to survive.  The label “adolescent” is a social construct. There are so many different definitions of it, and what it actually means. People will say that Eleanor is not a adolescent because of how fast she had to mature and grow up. While others, because of her relationship with Park would say she is an adolescent.

Books written about adolescents are important in todays society because of all the different people who are or have gone through different situations in their lives, Young readers can read books about adolescents are relate to at least one scenario in the book whether it be: bullying, dating, school, family, etc.