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jkschoen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
lilias's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
We mainly see things from Connell’s point of view. His mom, Lorraine, is a wonderful person and raised him on her own. He has a passion for reading, literature, especially. He is a poor kid who is constantly surrounded by rich kids, and the reminder of his background never goes away. It’s exasperated by Marianne, through no fault of her own, because she’s a girl who comes from an exceptionally rich family. His conventional views keep him from allowing Marianne to live at her full potential around him. He won’t reveal certain weaknesses around her, making their relationship full of potential but always unbalanced. Marianne feels that potential but blames herself for them never reaching it. Her leap to self-blame is probably familiar to a lot of women readers, and it’s furthered by her family, which is abusive.
For some reason, Marianne, as a character, is not as fully formed as Connell. At times, it was as though Marianne was losing both as a character within the story and a character on the page. Towards the end of the book, I started to dread reading more. I usually read dark books, but the constant cruelty Marianne kept having to endure just wore me out. I wish Rooney had left it out because distracted from the central character studies.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, Abandonment, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Death of parent, Mental illness, Grief, and Domestic abuse
In the beginning I kept thinking: When Harry Met Sally but make it shoe-gazing. Overall, I found this book to be both captivating and frustrating. I really loved certain aspects of Sally Rooney’s writing. Her moments that were here and now regarding Connell and Marianne were fantastic, and I reread some passages in awe of how well she showed the subtleties of human interaction. But I never really knew how we got here and there, especially when it came to Marianne. We mainly see things from Connell’s point of view. His mom, Lorraine, is a wonderful person and raised him on her own. He has a passion for reading, literature, especially. He is a poor kid who is constantly surrounded by rich kids, and the reminder of his background never goes away. It’s exasperated by Marianne, through no fault of her own, because she’s a girl who comes from an exceptionally rich family. His conventional views keep him from allowing Marianne to live at her full potential around him. He won’t reveal certain weaknesses around her, making their relationship full of potential but always unbalanced. Marianne feels that potential but blames herself for them never reaching it. Her leap to self-blame is probably familiar to a lot of women readers, and it’s furthered by her family, which is abusive. For some reason, Marianne, as a character, is not as fully formed as Connell. At times, it was as though Marianne was losing both as a character within the story and a character on the page. Towards the end of the book, I started to dread reading more. I usually read dark books, but the constant cruelty Marianne kept having to endure just wore me out. I wish Rooney had left it out because distracted from the central character studies.henyouise's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, Toxic relationship, Grief, Domestic abuse, Classism, Sexual violence, Sexual content, and Bullying
Moderate: Death and Eating disorder
gondorgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Grief, Alcohol, Sexual content, Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Classism, Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence
joscelynhe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Classism, Cursing, Grief, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
lunar_witch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Torture, Addiction, Alcohol, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Grief, Abortion, Alcoholism, Bullying, Classism, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
maislily's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Sexual harassment, Bullying, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Grief, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture
ellislilylovestoread's review against another edition
2.75
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Child abuse, and Grief
Minor: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
raindropxox's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Originally: 5 stars. I loved this book. I wasn't expecting to like it that much, but it blew me away. I didn't think the prose would be that spectacular but I really liked it, and there were a few moments of lovely metaphors but they were dripped in and woven in beautifully so they didn't feel forced. The lack of speech marks at first I found odd but quickly started to like it, as it felt more personal, like it was a diary, or someone telling me their story out loud. The characters, particularly Connell, I connected to. I found that lots of his feelings were ones I feel myself but never really realised or was afraid to feel them. My only qualm with the book was the ending, but in some ways perhaps it was refreshing, and quite in keeping maybe with the characters. I have seen some people criticising the characters for their lack of communication, but I felt that Rooney captured what it is like to feel young and vulnerable and afraid of doing and saying the wrong things. Anyways, I loved this book, and I am not afraid to rate it 5 stars like I am with many books!
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, and Mental illness
Moderate: Sexual violence and Suicide
behindherpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Classism, Grief, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Blood, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Antisemitism and Alcohol
Minor: Abortion