Normal People Book Review

This book is about Marianne and Connell and how the two of them are in and out of each other’s lives and the effect that has on them. 

I decided to read this book after watching the TV series. And I must say, the book was great but the TV show was amazing. I found that the visuals helped a lot with this story. There were so many scenes that although they played out word for word the show did a better job at showing the emotions of both characters. I also liked the show better because the story plays out in chronological order where the book jumps between past and present a lot and I found that confusing at times. 

Now my biggest complaint with the book had to be the fact that there are no quotations. It almost forced me to focus more on the book, which was really hard for me and I found the book a bit tiring overall. It also made the book a bit slower and I feel I would have read the book a lot quicker otherwise.

Another thing I didn’t love about the book was the ending, it felt like it was such an abrupt ending, like the ending just came out of nowhere. It felt like an ending I would write in an essay for school when I am about to reach my word limit. The story just feels incomplete. I know it is an open ending and it is up to me to decide how it ends. However, I am way too much of a realist to think of a happy ending. The author is supposed to do that for me.

Now onto the things I loved about the book.

This story was fabulous. I honestly loved the storyline. The characters, everything. The story was raw and realistic which I loved. It wasn’t your typical romance where the two people lock eyes and they are both instantly in love. The relationship between Marianne and Connell was realistic and Rooney showed that a relationship could never work unless there is hard work put in and without good communication, the whole relationship will fall apart.

I also loved how Rooney spoke about how guys are viewed in society. How men aren’t allowed to show any sort of feeling and the effect that may have on them. I also loved how she didn’t shy away from writing about serious topics like depression, abuse and co-dependency.

I have to say Marianne’s story almost had me in tears a few times throughout the book. Although at times I wanted to shout at Connell for never being able to communicate how he is feeling, his character overall just broke my heart. It was hard to read how he was feeling and all the turmoil that he put himself through.

Overall this book was amazing and had such a unique story. I think everyone should read this book at least once.