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challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts
dark
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Death of parent
Minor: Drug use, Violence, Vomit, Police brutality, Car accident
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Death of parent, Alcohol
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual content, Grief
Minor: Terminal illness, Death of parent
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As a big Sally Rooney reader, while it has never stopped me from loving them, my main critique has always been that her books could be 10 pages long if the characters would just sit down and communicate like grown ups.
This book has some of that, as is only natural, but it has so much more depth and complexity. To the point where this is the first of Rooney’s book where I genuinely understood why it was so difficult for them to reach a resolution.
The characters were both lovable and deeply flawed, and this one featured a much more complex and interesting look into polyamory than Conversations with Friends.
The difference in writing for each chapter shows perfectly the contrast between how the two brothers think. As an ADHDer myself, I think although it wasn’t discussed, the brothers clearly display diverse and differing neurotypes. I found it quite genius how it was depicted through the shift in writing style.
I loved it, I think this is my favourite of Sally Rooney’s books and it’s been a delight to see her writing shift and grow.
This book has some of that, as is only natural, but it has so much more depth and complexity. To the point where this is the first of Rooney’s book where I genuinely understood why it was so difficult for them to reach a resolution.
The characters were both lovable and deeply flawed, and this one featured a much more complex and interesting look into polyamory than Conversations with Friends.
The difference in writing for each chapter shows perfectly the contrast between how the two brothers think. As an ADHDer myself, I think although it wasn’t discussed, the brothers clearly display diverse and differing neurotypes. I found it quite genius how it was depicted through the shift in writing style.
I loved it, I think this is my favourite of Sally Rooney’s books and it’s been a delight to see her writing shift and grow.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i read this at the wrong point in my life. i’m not mentally stable enough to appreciate this in the way that it deserves. with that being said, i found parts of my myself in both peter and ivan. i do not know to interpret that as of yet, given my opening reason.
i will most definitely reread this in the future when i reach the level of maturity and understanding this book deserves.
this was also my first sally rooney book, and her writing style took me a while to get used to (i do understand why it was written the way it is). hence, i found parts 2&3 a lot more tense & interesting.
i will most definitely reread this in the future when i reach the level of maturity and understanding this book deserves.
this was also my first sally rooney book, and her writing style took me a while to get used to (i do understand why it was written the way it is). hence, i found parts 2&3 a lot more tense & interesting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence
Minor: Animal cruelty
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol
Moderate: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cursing, Infidelity
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
required lots of patience with the pacing and character development and thought the eventual state of all the complex relationships between the brothers, with their parents, and with their partners was for the best.
tbh was trudging through part 1 and had to alternate between reading & listening to the audiobook because i was still adjusting to the writing style (lack of quotations, disjointed/choppy sentences)— more so with Peter’s chapters because his read like streams of consciousness that were often difficult to parse out whether i was reading his dialogue with others or himself. but ultimately understood why it made a lot of sense to bend the conventional writing rules, especially in Peter’s case. definitely got more into the narrative’s flow once the characters started crossing paths and had longer, more honest conversations.
liked Ivan for how introspective and hopeful his outlook is, taking obstacles like his sort-of unemployment and former chess glory days in stride; how communicative, caring, & genuine he is with Margaret, and how straightforward yet respectful he is with others, in particular his first encounter and interactions afterwards with Naomi. despite both of them thinking Peter is the cooler one that’s got his life together, he actually seems more immature and detached from reality than Ivan in regards to how he handles his situationships with Sylvia and Naomi and just his overall chronic indecisiveness and aimlessness. he’s so caught up in his own emotional turbulence that he lacks self-awareness and accountability for how inconsiderate and patronizing he treats his loved ones so was glad they each called him out on it.
appreciate how the nuances of grief and levels of loss were conveyed, coming up time and time again in conversations and ruminations. with Peter and Ivan, it wasn’t until the big altercation in their old home where they aired each other’s grievances that i began to understand their dysfunctional relationship started way before their father’s death, stemming from not only their significant age gap but also their family dynamics. saw plenty of parallels with Peter and Margaret as well— loss of their fathers, estranged from their mothers & siblings, still hurting from separation with long-term partners, torn over their new, somewhat socially controversial relationships. but her story garnered more sympathy because she chose herself and what was right for her, even when she was made to feel guilty and ashamed for her decision by those around her (except for Ivan of course). Sylvia’s own situation -separate from her relationship with Peter - was also quite sad, having to live in constant pain and come to terms with not being able to live life like before her accident.
found it interesting we’re introduced to Margaret’s pov but never Sylvia nor Naomi’s, who has the least fleshed out backstory and is instead described one-dimensionally through the lens of a male gaze, but maybe that was to reflect Ivan’s confidence in and show early on that Margaret’s intentions with him aren’t predatory. meanwhile keeping us in the dark about Sylvia & Naomi’s inner worlds mimics Peter’s uncertainty and prolongs the suspense of whether they still/truly love him. sometimes overthinking about the inevitable end of relationships whether by internal/external forces is futile. as long as they all consent upon the arrangement of their situation without harming others and can live with themselves at the end of the day.
tbh was trudging through part 1 and had to alternate between reading & listening to the audiobook because i was still adjusting to the writing style (lack of quotations, disjointed/choppy sentences)— more so with Peter’s chapters because his read like streams of consciousness that were often difficult to parse out whether i was reading his dialogue with others or himself. but ultimately understood why it made a lot of sense to bend the conventional writing rules, especially in Peter’s case. definitely got more into the narrative’s flow once the characters started crossing paths and had longer, more honest conversations.
liked Ivan for how introspective and hopeful his outlook is, taking obstacles like his sort-of unemployment and former chess glory days in stride; how communicative, caring, & genuine he is with Margaret, and how straightforward yet respectful he is with others, in particular his first encounter and interactions afterwards with Naomi. despite both of them thinking Peter is the cooler one that’s got his life together, he actually seems more immature and detached from reality than Ivan in regards to how he handles his situationships with Sylvia and Naomi and just his overall chronic indecisiveness and aimlessness. he’s so caught up in his own emotional turbulence that he lacks self-awareness and accountability for how inconsiderate and patronizing he treats his loved ones so was glad they each called him out on it.
appreciate how the nuances of grief and levels of loss were conveyed, coming up time and time again in conversations and ruminations. with Peter and Ivan, it wasn’t until the big altercation in their old home where they aired each other’s grievances that i began to understand their dysfunctional relationship started way before their father’s death, stemming from not only their significant age gap but also their family dynamics. saw plenty of parallels with Peter and Margaret as well— loss of their fathers, estranged from their mothers & siblings, still hurting from separation with long-term partners, torn over their new, somewhat socially controversial relationships. but her story garnered more sympathy because she chose herself and what was right for her, even when she was made to feel guilty and ashamed for her decision by those around her (except for Ivan of course). Sylvia’s own situation -separate from her relationship with Peter - was also quite sad, having to live in constant pain and come to terms with not being able to live life like before her accident.
found it interesting we’re introduced to Margaret’s pov but never Sylvia nor Naomi’s, who has the least fleshed out backstory and is instead described one-dimensionally through the lens of a male gaze, but maybe that was to reflect Ivan’s confidence in and show early on that Margaret’s intentions with him aren’t predatory. meanwhile keeping us in the dark about Sylvia & Naomi’s inner worlds mimics Peter’s uncertainty and prolongs the suspense of whether they still/truly love him. sometimes overthinking about the inevitable end of relationships whether by internal/external forces is futile. as long as they all consent upon the arrangement of their situation without harming others and can live with themselves at the end of the day.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence
deals with divorce, death of family member, age-gap relationships, difficult family relationships. mentions of alcoholicism and suicidal thoughts.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Misogyny, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse