diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..27592c8
Binary files /dev/null and b/.gitignore differ
diff --git a/package-lock.json b/package-lock.json
index 8fce75c..8e2718d 100644
--- a/package-lock.json
+++ b/package-lock.json
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
     "": {
       "name": "nodejs-practice-repository",
       "version": "1.0.0",
-      "license": "ISC",
+      "license": "MIT",
       "devDependencies": {
         "jest": "^29.7.0"
       }
diff --git a/src/utils/palindrome.js b/src/utils/palindrome.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f9d81f1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/utils/palindrome.js
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+/**
+ * Author: Amanda Ruff
+ * Date: 2 June 2026
+ * File: palindrome.js
+ * Description: This script checks if a string is a palindrome.
+ */
+'use strict';
+
+// The isPalindrome function checks whether a string reads the same forward and backward
+function isPalindrome(str) {
+
+  // If the input is not a string, throw an error
+  if (typeof str !== 'string') {
+    throw new Error('Input must be a string');
+  }
+
+  // Remove spaces, convert to lowercase, and remove non-alphanumeric characters
+  const cleanedString = str.toLowerCase().replace(/[^a-z0-9]/g, '');
+
+  // Reverse the cleaned string
+  const reversedString = cleanedString.split('').reverse().join('');
+
+  // Return true if the cleaned string matches the reversed string
+  return cleanedString === reversedString;
+}
+
+module.exports = { isPalindrome }; // Export the isPalindrome function for use in other scripts
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/utils/palindrome.spec.js b/test/utils/palindrome.spec.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4727293
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/utils/palindrome.spec.js
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+/**
+ * Author: Amanda Ruff
+ * Date: 2 June 2026
+ * File: palindrome.spec.js
+ * Description: This script tests the isPalindrome function.
+ */
+'use strict';
+
+const { isPalindrome } = require('../../src/utils/palindrome'); // Import the isPalindrome function
+
+// The describe() function is a test suite that contains one or more tests
+describe('palindrome.js', () => {
+
+  // The it() function is a test spec that checks a valid palindrome
+  it('should return true when the string is a palindrome', () => {
+    const result = isPalindrome('racecar'); // Call the function with a palindrome
+    expect(result).toBe(true); // The expected result is true
+  });
+
+  // The it() function is a test spec that checks a non-palindrome
+  it('should return false when the string is not a palindrome', () => {
+    const result = isPalindrome('hello'); // Call the function with a non-palindrome
+    expect(result).toBe(false); // The expected result is false
+  });
+
+  // The it() function is a test spec that checks invalid input
+  it('should throw an error when the input is not a string', () => {
+    expect(() => isPalindrome(123)).toThrow('Input must be a string');
+  });
+});
\ No newline at end of file