A review by reemoony
Normal People by Sally Rooney
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
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
4.0
I think the main thing that drew me in from the beginning is the characters. I didn’t understand why it was called normal people until i actually read it. It’s because they are, genuinely, normal people. They have their flaws and their strengths and they suffer. Connell and Marianne aren’t written like characters, they are written like people. They go through their lives, drifting to and from each other. The love lasts throughout, which is such a human concept. When you fall apart from someone, the feelings and things you had and experienced don't just go away, they stay with you. Also, one last thing. The lack of quotation marks is what made this such a good read for me. It felt more natural.
Spoiler
I also like how flawed they were. Connell was not a good person and neither was Marianne, and I refuse to believe otherwise. They had good characteristics and did good things, but overall they were not good, but in reality, no one is.Graphic: Death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Classism, Alcohol, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, and Suicide