A review by definebookish
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood

reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

At times, No One Is Talking About This reads like an essay, or memoir. At others, prose-poetry. It’s about a woman who is deeply online, known for her viral social media posts, a frequent speaker on the topic until a crisis in her offline life forces her to take some time out.

I sticky tabbed the hell out of the first half, which is full of these acutely observed sideways jibes at this online existence of ours. I demanded my wife listen to fragments I found particularly genius as I read them aloud. Then I started to doubt either the book or myself, imagining each neon sticker a mere throwaway analogue ‘like’ at exactly the point when the narrative began to shift focus, anyway.

The second half surprised me – the family crisis at the book’s heart unfolding with a kind of purity and tenderness the first half didn’t lead me to expect. For the most part, I think the contrast works; it’s hard to reconcile the two halves, but that disconnect is kind of the point.

Overall, I think it’s insightful and elegant and poignant. The observations about online life resonated deeply with me. However, where the fragmented nature of the narrative works in the first half because it feels like scrolling, for me the second half only worked in spite of that.
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