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A review by travelseatsreads
None Of This Is Serious by Catherine Prasifka
emotional
reflective
slow-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
2.0
I was in two minds about picking this up after seeing it being compared to Normal People & Snowflake. I'm not a Sally Rooney (Prasifka’s sister-in-law by the way) fan in any form so was going to avoid it but then Snowflake was one of my top reads of 2021. So when I saw it as an audiobook I said what have I got to lose?
I was a bit too optimistic because while there was some really good interesting lines which really caught my attention, overall the majority of the time I was left rolling my eyes, clinging to the hope that this is not what your average 20something Trinity graduates are actually like.
So for some balance;
What I Liked?
• The portrayal of the consuming & suffocating nature of social media was terrifyingly accurate. Prasifka spoke about closing out of Instagram after scrolling for hours & your thumb automatically reaching back for the app & I was shook, I do that, all of the damn time!
• Observations about the role of the Catholic Church are extremely well executed & so relevant at the moment considering the NMH crisis.
• The crack & it's varied impact on people was really well done. Especially post-covid after seeing people going from panic buying hysteria to almost forgetting it exists.
• There are many beautiful quotes which stand out as poignant commentary on society which would make me want to come back to Prasifka's writing at another time of her life.
What I Didn't Like?
• The book reeks of upper-class white cis-gender female privilege & it isn't a pretty smell.
• Flippant references to things such as the famine come across as distasteful & quite irrelevant.
• The book tries to be feminist forward yet in total contradiction has the protagonist crawling after guys who are horrifically & quite obviously manipulative.
• The injustice of portraying females as these whiney, insecure naval gazing beings who can't function properly without male attention (negative or positive).
Overall, it's an interesting book which some will absolutely devour & completely identify with but for me it just missed the mark. Insightful & poignant at times yet also repetitive & draining.
If you've read it let me know your thoughts!
I was a bit too optimistic because while there was some really good interesting lines which really caught my attention, overall the majority of the time I was left rolling my eyes, clinging to the hope that this is not what your average 20something Trinity graduates are actually like.
So for some balance;
What I Liked?
• The portrayal of the consuming & suffocating nature of social media was terrifyingly accurate. Prasifka spoke about closing out of Instagram after scrolling for hours & your thumb automatically reaching back for the app & I was shook, I do that, all of the damn time!
• Observations about the role of the Catholic Church are extremely well executed & so relevant at the moment considering the NMH crisis.
• The crack & it's varied impact on people was really well done. Especially post-covid after seeing people going from panic buying hysteria to almost forgetting it exists.
• There are many beautiful quotes which stand out as poignant commentary on society which would make me want to come back to Prasifka's writing at another time of her life.
What I Didn't Like?
• The book reeks of upper-class white cis-gender female privilege & it isn't a pretty smell.
• Flippant references to things such as the famine come across as distasteful & quite irrelevant.
• The book tries to be feminist forward yet in total contradiction has the protagonist crawling after guys who are horrifically & quite obviously manipulative.
• The injustice of portraying females as these whiney, insecure naval gazing beings who can't function properly without male attention (negative or positive).
Overall, it's an interesting book which some will absolutely devour & completely identify with but for me it just missed the mark. Insightful & poignant at times yet also repetitive & draining.
If you've read it let me know your thoughts!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism