Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Normal People

This book was just okay. It really felt like it was lacking a purpose, like I didn't really get the point of telling this story. And it kind of felt like nothing important happened.

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bookishevy's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Once again, a really popular book that has Goodreads reviewers divided. I had to see for myself.

In secondary school, Connell is the popular star of the school soccer team, while Marianna struggles to make friends because she's intense and opinionated. But they end up connecting when Connell comes to pick his mother up from her housekeeping job at Marianne’s house, and they agree to keep their relationship secret.

At Trinity College in Dublin, a year later, Marianne adjusts well to her new surroundings while Connell can't find his footing. Marianne and Connell continue to circle one another. Although they stray toward other people, they are always drawn back together like magnets.

I had to put on my social work hat to understand Marianne. She suffered a lot of trauma growing up, and it's made her numb, so she allows men to have their way with her. She's steadily gravitating towards jerks. It's self-destructive.

Connell feels out of his league in Dublin. He's around people from a higher social class who are different from Marianne, and it's affecting his confidence. He keeps going back to Marianne because she's the only one he can be himself around. Even though her aloofness frustrates him, he trusts her. They have history. She represents home. 🥺

Marianne feels safe with Connell, but she didn't grow up in a loving home like he did, so she doesn't think real love is possible. She doesn't take men seriously. So, despite their history, she doesn't believe Connell really loves her because she doesn't feel worthy of love. While Connell works on himself, Marianne is unaware of how her childhood trauma affects her relationship with him, the only man who's handled her with care.

These two intelligent people must figure out how to make it work, and I rooted for them every time they spun the block. They need each other.

And I needed this read to be longer, but I understand why Marianne remains a work in progress. We all are. I love that it ends on a promise. I wouldn't mind a ten-year follow-up with these two.

I enjoyed it, but I can see why this read is so polarizing.

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cindylikestoread's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I wish I could forget this book after every time I read it just so I could newly experience it all over again every single time.

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miuku's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

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wyabook234's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad

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

4.75

Normal People by Sally Rooney is as close to depicting a relationship that feels humane and realistic. While the prose describes what characters do and say without quotations, it's a style that can take some time to adjust. Nonetheless, the writing doesn't degenerate how these characters are authored as being breathable people within Rooney's novel. Conell and Marianne have moments where you hate them due to their class-related prejudice, selfishness, or pettiness. However, it can make you consider how young they are while making mistakes. Their mistakes can make it seem like their relationship is believable, and when it improves, it isn't just about improving upon them as a couple but as individuals in how they spend time and think about each other. This story isn't Romeo and Juliet. However, it's a love story that makes you feel that Conell and Marianne could be good for each other.

Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Suicide, Mental Illness.

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carlapastor's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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

4.5

Just wow. Such a great, great book. Incredible depiction of young people and how hard it is to figure things out sometimes. I couldn't love it more. Raw characters and a raw story with great writing. This might be a controversial opinion but I didn't mind at all the quotation marks. I found it to not be annoying at all. I have yet to watch the show but I found this honestly amazing, but I am also a sucker for this kind of stories where nothing incredible happens, it's just someone's life and the ups and downs that come with it (Perfect Days is a great movie that reminded me of this book!).

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wildflowerfieldsforever's review against another edition

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This one is... frustrating. I don't really even know how many stars to give Normal People.

On one hand, I liked that the characters were not perfect. The relationships were not perfect. In that way, it was very real-life. This is *not* a rom-com, light and fluffy read. I find those books very annoying and not enjoyable; so on that side of my opinion, I appreciated that aspect very much. I kept listening because, despite my frustration, I was invested and I thought there was going to be an ending that at least hinted at Marianne and Connell getting better and figuring some things out.

However, there are a lot of damaged people in this book. Again, how very real. And, very bold of Sally Rooney to write this book... and, with no real redeeming ending to make it better. Yet again, despite myself, I appreciated that.

Normal People is also disturbing. Marianne's deep emotional issues coupled with how people (including Connell) treat her, is very difficult to watch unfold. I wanted to reach through the pages and tell her to GET HELP, this is *not* okay. Sometimes, I felt like Rooney was letting the writing indicate that Marianne's issues were okay. But, she also leaves the ending very open and while Connell and Marianne are very, very young. I hope that the Connell and Marianne that live within these pages both get the help they deserve.

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eviemm's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

the emotional codependency is crazy (frustrating, intriguing, thought-provoking, etc etc) in this one

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