Normal People: A Novel
NOW AN EMMY-NOMINATED HULU ORIGINAL SERIES • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE • “A stunning novel about the transformative power of relationships” (People) from the author of Conversations with Friends, “a master of the literary page-turner” (J. Courtney Sullivan).
“[A] novel that demands to be read compulsively, in one sitting.”—The Washington Post
ONE OF ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY’S TEN BEST NOVELS OF THE DECADE
TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: People, Slate, The New York Public Library, Harvard Crimson
Connell and Marianne grew up in the same small town, but the similarities end there. At school, Connell is popular and well liked, while Marianne is a loner. But when the two strike up a conversation—awkward but electrifying—something life changing begins.
A year later, they’re both studying at Trinity College in Dublin. Marianne has found her feet in a new social world while Connell hangs at the sidelines, shy and uncertain. Throughout their years at university, Marianne and Connell circle one another, straying toward other people and possibilities but always magnetically, irresistibly drawn back together. And as she veers into self-destruction and he begins to search for meaning elsewhere, each must confront how far they are willing to go to save the other.
Normal People is the story of mutual fascination, friendship, and love. It takes us from that first conversation to the years beyond, in the company of two people who try to stay apart but find that they can’t.
WINNER: The British Book Award, The Costa Book Award, The An Post Irish Novel of the Year, Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, Time, NPR, The Washington Post, Vogue, Esquire, Glamour, Elle, Marie Claire, Vox, The Paris Review, Good Housekeeping, Town & Country
“[A] novel that demands to be read compulsively, in one sitting.”—The Washington Post
ONE OF ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY’S TEN BEST NOVELS OF THE DECADE
TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: People, Slate, The New York Public Library, Harvard Crimson
Connell and Marianne grew up in the same small town, but the similarities end there. At school, Connell is popular and well liked, while Marianne is a loner. But when the two strike up a conversation—awkward but electrifying—something life changing begins.
A year later, they’re both studying at Trinity College in Dublin. Marianne has found her feet in a new social world while Connell hangs at the sidelines, shy and uncertain. Throughout their years at university, Marianne and Connell circle one another, straying toward other people and possibilities but always magnetically, irresistibly drawn back together. And as she veers into self-destruction and he begins to search for meaning elsewhere, each must confront how far they are willing to go to save the other.
Normal People is the story of mutual fascination, friendship, and love. It takes us from that first conversation to the years beyond, in the company of two people who try to stay apart but find that they can’t.
WINNER: The British Book Award, The Costa Book Award, The An Post Irish Novel of the Year, Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, Time, NPR, The Washington Post, Vogue, Esquire, Glamour, Elle, Marie Claire, Vox, The Paris Review, Good Housekeeping, Town & Country
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Community Reviews
Beautifully written though I remember feeling more frustrated with the characters and their lack of understanding, communication, and willingness to make something they want work. The book touched on subjects that I've not read in other books - such as toxic relationships in regards to abuse and submission and were writing in a way where I felt responsive to these things. Well written, but not my cup of tea. Plus the ending killed me - I'm a sucker for a good ending and this one just kinda leaves you high and dry.
Beautifully written book, I love Sally Rooneys writing style (besides the lack of “…” for dialogues). Sexless & Sexy ending, happy endings are just a reflection of everything we wished would go right for ourselves in the end. And yet, we are all just Normal People.
okay wait, i actually really loved this! it took me a second to get into the writing but i couldnât put it down! i canât wait to watch the show!
I did enjoy this book... The character development was really great and not super straightforward like most books. The reality of human relationships with others as well as with oneself was portrayed beautifully. I also enjoyed the style of writing. It was slightly vanilla (most reality is) which is why I gave it a four star, but I also read a lot of horror and fantasy books. Overall, I think this was a great story.
Hopefully I'll rewrite this review when it's not close to midnight on a day when I've been up since 6 a.m.. This book is about two people drawn to each other, but totally unaware of how to be vulnerable enough to make their relationship work. They can do the physical part, but never get the communicaton part down. In the telling of it from the two viewpoints, we learn that they have continually interpreted each other's statements in a wrong way. It's the kind of thing that those of us with low self-esteem do all the time. I want to shake them and tell them to just put it all out there, that if they both do that, it'll all be okay. But it's not going to be. There is no way that Marianne can tell him all of the terrible things that have happened to her. There's no way for her to tell him that she's so abused, so broken that she's totally messed up. And frankly, he can't fix her. He can be there for her, but she needs someone who is NOT a lover, not a friend, to dump it all on. She needs someone who will understand that she's going through crap, but doesn't let her turn him into her therapist. And there is not therapist character in this book, so she will never be fixed. But maybe she's better, and the ending is sufficient for us to root for the ultimate ending we want, like when Gone With The Wind ends and we all have our own opinions of whether or not Scarlett gets Rhett back or not.
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