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A review by zoegupta
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i feel very conflicted about this book. on one hand, very beautifully written, very psychologically whole and complex characters, lots of nuance, and she succeeded in making me understand if not fully root for every character. it pulled me in and kept me itching to finish right through the end.
on the other hand, i feel it fell into some unfortunate tropes. frances in particular feels like a bella swan / waif / manic pixie dream girl / not like other girls girl… where a lot of concerning attributes (self harm, eating disorder, selfishness, inability to communicate) seem to be romanticized. and i doubt she would be able to get away with nearly as much or be considered mysterious or cool if she weren’t a thin white woman…! if she were written by a man i’d especially hate it, but written by a woman makes it even stranger - she feels like a self insert for rooney? many plot points and attributes seem to be identical to marianne from normal people and to rooney’s own life…
on the other hand, i feel it fell into some unfortunate tropes. frances in particular feels like a bella swan / waif / manic pixie dream girl / not like other girls girl… where a lot of concerning attributes (self harm, eating disorder, selfishness, inability to communicate) seem to be romanticized. and i doubt she would be able to get away with nearly as much or be considered mysterious or cool if she weren’t a thin white woman…! if she were written by a man i’d especially hate it, but written by a woman makes it even stranger - she feels like a self insert for rooney? many plot points and attributes seem to be identical to marianne from normal people and to rooney’s own life…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Self harm
Moderate: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Blood, Chronic illness, Infertility, and Alcoholism
Minor: Suicide attempt