Normal People follows the love story of Connell and Marianne during their adolescent and young adult years. While they grew up in the same small town, their socioeconomic status and family relationships differ. These are only some of the challenges keeping them from having the relationship they wish for. This love story is so honest. You will feel deeply for Connell and Marianne and root for their successes throughout the book.

I have to be honest, this one didn’t work for me. I got about halfway through before abandoning to move on. I can see that Rooney has a great deal of talent as a writer but I could not connect with the story.

I reviewed this book on my Instagram account! I thought it was a very unique love story, and who hasn't been entangled with a high school romance that carries on through the years? Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't. I loved how connected and intertwined they were, even though they were obviously extremely different.

This book was very interesting, definitely different than I was expecting. But definitely good.

I enjoyed reading about Connell & Marianne. There were parts of this story where my heart broke for both of them just trying to find their way through life. Depression, loveless family & friends were just some of the things that plagued them. I liked the writing, although it was a bit different than I’m used to with Sally being from a different country. But this didn’t impact my feelings on the book.

Overall this is a great book, I would definitely recommend it!

This book was amazing. I had to sleep on it before I gave it a rating because it made me feel so much. I think I would put this as my favourite read of 2019 so far.

Normal People tells the story of Marianne and Connell, teenagers on the brink of adulthood. Connell fits in with the high school crowd, while Marianne remains an outcast. He's lower class, she's upper class. They couldn't be more different but are drawn to each other first in high school and then on and off throughout the years that follow.

What I loved about this book is that it's realistic. I thought Marianne and Connell's friendship/romance was believable because it was full of ups and downs, back and forth. They were both deeply flawed humans but I still found myself feeling tender toward them through the whole novel. Their betrayals to one another felt real--the pains of young people maturing. They are characters that I would like to know if real life.

This is definitely one I'll be purchasing. It's the day after I finished it and I still feel all the feels.

This was my first Sally Rooney book and upon finishing, I went out and bought Conversations with Friends. I love her writing and her descriptions of Marianne and Connell. I felt like I knew both of them so well. The ending fell a bit short for me, it did not feel conclusive. Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Thanks to NetGalley for my advanced copy!

Sally Rooney populates her newest novel, Normal People, with two very bright teenagers. Connell and Marianne have known each almost all their lives. Both of them are at the top of the class and getting ready to apply to university. Connell is popular, athletic, and handsome. Marianne has very few friends and tends to hide behind a book in the cafeteria and the library.

Connell's mother cleans house for Marianne's family, and that puts them together regularly. They enjoy each other's company and eventually their relationship moves to the physical level. This event probably started the troubles both of them would suffer from for many years.

Connell has a loving mother who provided a beautiful home and foundation for his young life. Marianne's family is cold and unfeeling to her; at times the coldness turns much worse and has scarred the girl for a long time.

Neither Connell nor Marianne considers themselves in love, but Marianne suffers a hurtful disappointment from Connell, and that stays with her as they both depart for university.

To say that the couple has a complicated relationship may be an understatement. Their lives bring them together at various times, but they both try to move ahead and do what is expected of them, independent of each other. I couldn't stop reading this excellent book to see how the young couple's lives would turn out. I recommend this book as a must read!

I received this advance copy from the publisher through NetGalley. Thank you.

I received a digital ARC of this book from Crown Publishing and #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Normal People follows the lives of Marianne and Connell as they finish high school and make their way through college. These two find a powerful friendship and bond in each other that they explore and test throughout their time in this book. Change can come so rapidly in this time of life: social status, mental states, relationships, self-perception, etc. Through all this change Marianne and Connell learn what it means to have someone you care deeply about in your life. This doesn’t come easy for these two, but it is a compelling, although not always comfortable, read.

The prose was well crafted and I enjoyed the shifting viewpoints. The tone of most of this book is quite dysthymic and I wonder if that was what was keeping me from getting too invested in these characters. That is my main quibble. While I did care for the Marianne and Connell and was rooting for them, I felt like I should have cared for them more than I did. There was some emotional divide that I couldn’t quite bridge. I still enjoyed it quite a bit, though. Recommended for readers looking for character driven writing that captures the social anxiety that many new adults seem to face.

Sally Rooney knows what she's doing. Her style is unique-- blunt, intimate, and almost dreamy-- and I imagine not to everyone's taste. For me, it was like diving deep into the heads of two remarkably spiky, soft-hearted people and falling in love. It was a lovely, intimate experience of reading. Highly recommended. THANKS TO NETGALLEY FOR THE ADVANCE COPY.

I feel as though I don't quite "get" Sally Rooney's books. I have the same reaction to Normal People as I had to Conversations With Friends... I can recognize that her writing is very smart, and unique, but I find that I have to slog through the pretty slim novel just to finish it. Normal People follows a young man and woman from high school where they have a secret sexual relationship, through college where their relationship becomes more open and complicated. We only really know the characters as they relate to each other, and for me, that just wasn't enough to care about them; there also wasn't enough "action" to keep me interested. That said, I do understand the appeal of Rooney and Normal People for a different kind of reader and she is clearly an immensely talented writer.... just not for me.

This novel was simply too intense for my taste. I found it hard to relate to the protagonists, perhaps their youth or their problems made them too inaccessible for me.

I do see the beauty and nuance in the writing, but I simply could not find myself entrenched in the plot.

I requested Normal People as background reading, to help with the editing process - as we will be reviewing it on BookBrowse. All things being equal, the review is scheduled for April 17--and a copy will be sent to Crown Publicity's generic email address (as I don't currently have a direct contact point for this book).

I received an ARC of Normal People by Sally Rooney in exchange for a fair review.
Normal People is a beautiful book about the complicated relationship between Connell and Marianne, classmates in 21st century rural Ireland (and later at Trinity in Dublin). They come from very different families (support, socio-economic background, etc.) and different social circles. However, as their relationship spans the years they are often the only other person either can turn to. Sally Rooney's insights into her characters are reminiscent of Alice Munroe; poignant and thoughtful words of wisdom that will resonate with any reader.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, the writing is strong and the characterizations are spot-on. On the other hand, I didn't feel compelled to turn the pages to find out what happened next. This is a love story that is not a romance. Don't expect it follow to the normal trajectory of girl meets boy, girl loses boy, girl gets boy back and they live happily ever after. Rather, this is a book that examines the way people in relationships really behave--not the way we *want* them to behave.

Each chapter is separated by a few weeks, a few months, or a few minutes. The story follows Connell and Marianne, two very different people from the same town, through the ups and downs of their adolescence through their new adulthood. Over the course of this short novel, they hook up, break up, act up, and grow up. The characters are as frustrating as normal people--so at least the title is apt. This is a quiet novel that will appeal to readers who are searching for psychological acuity instead of commercial entertainment.

Set in Ireland, Normal People is about two young adults as they continue to be pulled back into each other's orbit. As teens, Marianne and Connell meet when Connell's mom works as a housekeeper for Marianne's family. Marianne is an outcast at school; Connell is a popular jock. Yet, the two share a connection and soon start spending time together and sleeping together. As it becomes increasingly obvious that they are a good match, Connell spins into anxiety at the thought his friends at school would judge him for being with the unpopular Marianne. So they keep it a secret.

This is just the beginning of their story that spans several years into their college life. As Marianne finds her place and becomes well-liked, Connell delves into shyness and awkwardness. As Marianne continuously becomes more self destructive, Connell becomes depressed. Through it all, they keep in touch with each other, even becoming best friends.

The entire time I just wanted to yell at both of them to tell the truth. Tell each other what they were really feeling. Both of them kept misunderstanding each other and that would lead to heartbreak and misery for both. Over and over again. It was incredibly frustrating, yet entirely relatable and real.

While the ending made me angry, like the rest of the book, I still really liked it. I couldn't put it down. I cared about Connell and Marianne. I wanted them to be happy and to finally realize that they needed each other.

This is a heartbreaking, aggravating, enthralling character study of a novel. There isn't a lot of action in the whole book. It's reality. It's messy. It's depressing. It's melancholy. But its beautifully written and one of the most realistic depictions of young adulthood. (Also, just to note, there is domestic abuse, emotional abuse, physical abuse and more discussed and depicted in the book.)

**I received an e-ARC from Netgalley((

The Catcher in the Rye for the current generation. Like Catcher in the Rye, it is about high schoolers but not FOR high schoolers.

Well-observed coming of age tale. Meet Connell and Marianne in high school and see them navigate class differences, friendship, sex, moving to the city for university.

Character driven, slow, sad, worth sticking with it.

Normal People is a well-written, thoughtful novel. It is likely better than I rated it, but it left me feeling a bit flat. Connell and Marianne are complex, flawed characters, and I think part of my issue was that I had a tough time connecting with them on any level. While I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading it, this book just wasn't my thing.

I discovered Sally Rooney when on vacation in Ireland, so I was delighted to receive an ARC of Normal People. I’ve waited long enough! This is a coming-of-age story of two teenagers, Connell and Marianne. Over the course of four years, these two learn about themselves and each other. This is not your typical “meet cute” love story. Rooney’s writing carries the novel. It’s poignant and utterly captivating. This is one everyone will be discussing.

This book is subtly wonderful. No huge plot twists, no crazy gotchas. But the story of a complicated relation between two complicated people that unfurls slowly, with such honest detail paid to human nature that it’ll make you blush, if you’re paying close enough attention. This isn’t a book to blow through and move on. Sit with it, read slowly and thoughtfully, and enjoy.

I was so, so excited to get my hands on a copy of 'Normal People'. This is a Man Booker Prize nominee and a Costa Book Award winner. It needs no further recommendations.

Sally Rooney writes absolutely beautifully. This is the finest literary fiction, accessible and breathtaking. The story hooked me from the first page, and I was quickly immersed in the story of Connell and Marianne. I cared about the characters and what happened to them. They felt real, and they are flawed, and their relationship is deeply flawed.

This book is a meditation on the expectations of society and the pressures we put on ourselves to conform and fit in. It is about the intricacies of relationships, and the outside forces that shape our expectations of ourselves and others. It is a love story, and it is heart wrenching and sad and lovely.

There are books that are beautifully written yet boring, but this was not ever boring. It felt important, and both timely and timeless. Highly recommended.