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A review by andreia
Normal People by Sally Rooney
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- 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
i was debating whether to give this a 4.5 or 5 stars but eh what the hell i'll just go with 5 stars, because i can't really find a reason to not give it the full rating. this is shocking to me because picking up this book was very much a random spur of the moment decision, after many months of really refusing to read it because i truly believed i wasn't going to like it
so here's your reminder to sometimes read books you think you're not going to like just to see if all the negative reviews are right
here's the thing. this book is definitely not for everyone (aren't they all - no, but really). if you like books that explore people, relationships and life at their best and worst in a very real way, you might love this. if you like a clear plot and generally feeling like you know where it's going, you'll hate this.
normal people is not a perfect book nor will it give you positive feelings all throughout reading it (quite the opposite). but i can honestly say, much to my surprise, i was hooked the whole time. i practically read this in 2 sittings and my frustration when i had to put it down to do other things was bigger than the frustration with what was happening
i'm not a big romance reader because i'm much too cynical about love to enjoy the things that typically come with romance books, like a meet-cute, cliche tropes, unrealistic flirty dialogue, etc etc. i feel like normal people is very much a romance for cynical people??
when people say this book is basically one big miscommunication trope, although it's technically true, i really think it's a huge disservice to everything that's explored here. "if they just told each other how they feel!!!" yeah sure. look, i'm someone who loathes this trope, because usually it's used in completely ridiculous circumstances, like for example:
character A overhears character B talking on the phone about something but only hears a very specific part out of context that seems really bad and, instead of confronting character B about it right away to clear it up, character A runs away and provokes a falling out that lasts for 15 chapters before they finally resolve it
that's not what happens in normal people at all!!!!
this is a story about two people who have known each other from a very young age, who have been romantically interested in each other for a long time, and who have a lot of difficulty expressing their feelings to one another. it sounds so simple when you put it like that but really, when was the last time you walked up to someone you have a serious crush on and just outright said how you feel? when was the last time you were in the early stages of a relationship and felt absolutely no anxiety about telling the other person you really like them? are you always honest and open about your feelings when someone you love hurts you?
if you're someone who can just casually "tell other people how you feel", congratulations, good for you! however, i'd bet for most people in the world, clearly expressing your feelings (especially if romantic) is incredibly hard to do, especially if you're already dealing with so many other things (in this case, feeling lost in school, feeling like your life is going nowhere, dealing with the loss of friends, bullying, abusive relationships, self-loathing, etc etc).
so obviously not everyone wants to read about depressing things like that, which i totally get so, again, i understand why a lot of people hate this. personally, normal people really surprised me positively. there's a lot to reflect on here, not just in the sense of human connection, but also how romance is inevitably intertwined with class, money, studies and childhood traumas.
i found myself relating to both the main characters connell and marienne at different points, and also really wanting to shake them in other instances. i cared about them from the beginning but sally rooney makes it hard to care for them at times, which i loved because it gave a lot of insight into what the characters were feeling when they turned away from each other. oh yeah, that's another thing, this is one of those books where it's not always written out word for word what the characters are feeling, but sally rooney makes it really easy for you to piece it together because you get to know connell and marienne so well that their motivations just naturally shine through.
ahhh i could really go on forever, i think this book will stay with me for a long time because there's really a lot to unpack here. i wish i had more big brain energy right now to fully explore my thoughts on how problems of class and trauma are handled, but i have to reflect more on that
anyway, give normal people a chance please
so here's your reminder to sometimes read books you think you're not going to like just to see if all the negative reviews are right
here's the thing. this book is definitely not for everyone (aren't they all - no, but really). if you like books that explore people, relationships and life at their best and worst in a very real way, you might love this. if you like a clear plot and generally feeling like you know where it's going, you'll hate this.
normal people is not a perfect book nor will it give you positive feelings all throughout reading it (quite the opposite). but i can honestly say, much to my surprise, i was hooked the whole time. i practically read this in 2 sittings and my frustration when i had to put it down to do other things was bigger than the frustration with what was happening
i'm not a big romance reader because i'm much too cynical about love to enjoy the things that typically come with romance books, like a meet-cute, cliche tropes, unrealistic flirty dialogue, etc etc. i feel like normal people is very much a romance for cynical people??
when people say this book is basically one big miscommunication trope, although it's technically true, i really think it's a huge disservice to everything that's explored here. "if they just told each other how they feel!!!" yeah sure. look, i'm someone who loathes this trope, because usually it's used in completely ridiculous circumstances, like for example:
character A overhears character B talking on the phone about something but only hears a very specific part out of context that seems really bad and, instead of confronting character B about it right away to clear it up, character A runs away and provokes a falling out that lasts for 15 chapters before they finally resolve it
that's not what happens in normal people at all!!!!
this is a story about two people who have known each other from a very young age, who have been romantically interested in each other for a long time, and who have a lot of difficulty expressing their feelings to one another. it sounds so simple when you put it like that but really, when was the last time you walked up to someone you have a serious crush on and just outright said how you feel? when was the last time you were in the early stages of a relationship and felt absolutely no anxiety about telling the other person you really like them? are you always honest and open about your feelings when someone you love hurts you?
if you're someone who can just casually "tell other people how you feel", congratulations, good for you! however, i'd bet for most people in the world, clearly expressing your feelings (especially if romantic) is incredibly hard to do, especially if you're already dealing with so many other things (in this case, feeling lost in school, feeling like your life is going nowhere, dealing with the loss of friends, bullying, abusive relationships, self-loathing, etc etc).
so obviously not everyone wants to read about depressing things like that, which i totally get so, again, i understand why a lot of people hate this. personally, normal people really surprised me positively. there's a lot to reflect on here, not just in the sense of human connection, but also how romance is inevitably intertwined with class, money, studies and childhood traumas.
i found myself relating to both the main characters connell and marienne at different points, and also really wanting to shake them in other instances. i cared about them from the beginning but sally rooney makes it hard to care for them at times, which i loved because it gave a lot of insight into what the characters were feeling when they turned away from each other. oh yeah, that's another thing, this is one of those books where it's not always written out word for word what the characters are feeling, but sally rooney makes it really easy for you to piece it together because you get to know connell and marienne so well that their motivations just naturally shine through.
ahhh i could really go on forever, i think this book will stay with me for a long time because there's really a lot to unpack here. i wish i had more big brain energy right now to fully explore my thoughts on how problems of class and trauma are handled, but i have to reflect more on that
anyway, give normal people a chance please
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Child abuse and Mental illness
Minor: Blood and Eating disorder