Another addition to the sad 20-something girls genre. This is what I wanted Sally Rooney to be - closer to Naoise Dolan's Exciting Times in terms of being in the head of an overly self-aware 'unlikable' main character. Touches on our relationship to the internet in a way that also gave me Fake Accounts and No One Is Talking About This vibes.

I intend to buy a copy when it eventually comes out in paperback.

None of This is Serious is an ambitious debut that speaks to the whirlwind of experiences of new adults in the modern age. The title itself really captures the nonchalant pessimism that I’ve felt from my fellow millennials and now gen z. Overstimulated by technology and social media, depressed by the struggle to “adult” after college, frustrated by a lack of fair political representation, and the additional dread of climate disaster have created an undercurrent of anxiety that has defined the last two generations of young people. And we cope by memeing it.

Although things can seem bleak, the younger generations are also some of the smartest and most empathetic. Prasifka understands this duality and explores these themes with sincerity. Sophie is cynical and at times an extremely frustrating and flawed narrator, but I was invested in her character. Her mental health is deteriorating and she struggles with persistent feelings of not being good enough, she’s caught between toxic people, boys, friends, and family, and she dives into internet addiction as a distraction. This reliance on technology was sobering and reminded me why I can’t stand most social media.

The book could be a little repetitive at times about certain topics, but it never got boring. Once I passed the halfway point I couldn’t put the book down and stayed up all night to finish the book. Prasifka has potential as an author and I’d love to read more books by her in the future.

Great read, one of the few books that illustrate social media well . The analysis of the the good and evil of social media is also handled perfectly. Easy book to recommend to most people!

Sophie has just finished college and is unsure of what she wants to do next. She views her friends with jealousy as they confidently navigate life and feels that she is being left behind. She's been in love with her friend Finn for years, and faces a dilemma when she meets Rory online. As a crack appears in the sky, Sophie is left questioning everything about life and her future.

“I refresh the feed every minute and continue to consume, growing fat. I’m like a vampire, leeching off the content of other people’s lives. I’m not even really interested in anything I’m reading.”

This was a very intriguing book that delved into peoples' relationship with social media. I honestly felt that I needed to delete all apps off my phone after reading this. Sophie is completely dependent on her phone and having access to the internet. Scouring and refreshing apps to learn the most up to date opinions or to see what her friends are doing. Her appetite for information stems for her own lack of self esteem and insecurity and hopes that it will make her seem interesting or intelligent in social situations.

The book also discusses the difficulties that this generation will face. The crack in the sky could be caused by environmental change, and shows the reaction towards our dying planet with either hyperawareness or indifference. The book also portrays the financial struggles of this generation with Sophie struggling to find a job and dealing with anxiety of whether she will ever manage to afford a house. The misogyny, violence, and abuse that Sophie suffers not only online but in real life is harrowing. Prasifka highlights how victims of abuse can be gaslighted and undermined, and in the end doubt themselves. Sophie's experience is one that unfortunately too many people have gone through and yet it still perpetuates our society.

4.5 stars.

Wow.

'None of This is Serious' by Catherine Prasifka was an absolute surprise. I had a gut feeling regarding this book, one that led me to pre-order it weeks before I was able to recieve this ARC copy! And my gut feeling was right. Catherine Prasifka is an author that I will be keeping on eye on in the future as she writes and constructs characters that resonate so deep with me.

'None of This is Serious' is an intensely introspective novel, one focused on the main character Sophie who truly doesn't know what she wants to do with her life. I mean, do any of us? After finishing her political science degree, she is incapable of seeing and understanding of a future where she can exist happily. The world is on the precipice of catastrophe with climate change and the continuing exploitation of land and natural resources for production, social media is changing the narrative of our reality and people are too concerned with feigning ignorance that the world is reaching a critical point. The author has truly captured this almost combative clash between reality that supposedly exists as we see it and the reality being constructed through the digital world.

A crack in the sky is an overarching plot point that highlights the ridiculousness of us as humans happening on the ground - we observe all of this through Sophie herself. Sophie is an incredibly complex character, she is trying to do what all of us are trying to do and that is to be content with her life and be loved. Throughout the novel, we see Sophie trying to work through her trauma as she has honestly one of the worst twin sisters I have ever read. Hannah is one of those characters who you understand has her own issues and story, but the way that she interacts with her sister, Sophie, makes you as the reader unable to empathise at all with her. She is so insecure and unhappy that she lashes out to Sophie. As a result of almost constant comparisons between them and found lacking, Sophie has such incredible low self-esteem, is uncomfortable with her physical body and studies every single interaction she has with people to uncover every nuance or possible meaning to it, like she's taking an exam.

Sophie's anxiety is one of the aspects of the novel that I felt was written with such authenticity. I've been Sophie, I am Sophie in different ways. My brain works similarly to Sophie - sometimes it can feel like a minefield. And that element, although some readers may not enjoy it, felt very real to the experiences I and others have had with their own anxiety. Sophie's mind, in some respects, is her enemy. Everything she does or doesn't do, everything other people do, how she interacts with people, etc., is plucked at, unspooled, prodded and pulled apart until it's lost meaning and she feels able enough to deal with it in this now 'dull' form. Some readers may call Sophie unlikeable and frustrating, selfish or narcisstic, but she is just trying so hard to figure out how to live. She believes that everyone hates her or doesn't have time for her, because she is so in her own mind that anything to the contrary feels unrealistic. When she meets someone who seemingly is wonderful, with Sophie believing that someone like him could never actually be with someone like her, her certainty in him collapses after an honestly traumatic event, leaving Sophie reeling. Sophie's reality undergoes changes, higlighting the uncertainty of our world and explores how we, as humans, engage with the people around us. It highlights the hypocrisy of people, their ignorance and the impact it can have on someone. Sophie is just trying to keep her head above water.

The crack in the sky I think could be a metaphor to the literal dying of our planet, to climate change and even to the reality of living during a global pandemic. Similar to the crack in the sky, COVID is the new normal. I don't even remember how we were as a people before the pandemic. The way we live has changed and they way we interact with the world is constantly changing as a result.

The only reason why I have given this novel a 4.5 stars and not the full five star rating, is because the ending felt quite abrupt, as if in a rush to finish.

Catherine Prasifka has written a novel that feels authentic and genuine, even when emphasising how ridiculous we all are. I would recommend this novel for those who loved 'Beautiful World, Where Are You?' by Sally Rooney and the Seasonal Quartet by Ali Smith.

I appreciate what this tried to do but the message was lost in how much the book dragged. The perspective went from interesting to old really fast. The cover is beautiful though!

A coming of age story discussing friendships, love, and our obsession with the online world - with a surprising apocalyptic twist! I enjoyed this book a lot.

Sophie is so pretentious and unlikeable but I feel like this was intentional, so whilst off-putting at first, I persevered and I did find myself feeling sorry for her at times (I still wanted to scream at her at others though!!).

I really liked how the apocalyptic, end-of-the-world undertone was a direct metaphor for the cracks in Sophie's own life and her search to discover what is going on leads her to face up to her own issues and try to move past them.

The only let down for me was the way the dialogue was written. I found it quite difficult to distinguish what Sophie was actually saying and what she was just thinking. This ruined the flow of the novel for me and for that reason I have rated the book 4/5 stars.

If you like Sally Rooney, Catherine Prasifka is a must read for you.

A very relatable read regarding social media and the effect is having on us the younger generation. I didn't expect to like it this much!

This is a novel about anxiety of various forms and unfortunately that meant that I just found the protagonist Sophie, a young woman leaving university into a failing economy, to be wearyingly moany. None of This Is Serious’s big USP is that the sky cracks open - used as an obvious pandemic stand-in without the same societal impact - that in my opinion wasn’t used to its full dystopian or speculative potential. Prasifka has an original concept here that hits hard on millennial (or Gen Z?) woes that just sadly wasn’t for me right now.

A really well written and scathingly relatable book, I loved how vulnerable and honest this book was. The characters were all true to life and I was rooting for Sophie all the way.

Sorry this book was archived before I could read. I got a heavy amount of April 5-7 books and was unable to read and review so sorry.

None of This Is Serious by Catherine Prasifka is the gateway to inevitable "post-pandemic" novels bound to crop up within the next few years thinking of the aftermath of how the 2020 coronavirus has, and continues, to have longstanding effects on people. As Sophie is both mystified and even underwhelmed by the giant crack in the sky that one day creates a kinship between the world, she is ultimately anxious how the world interprets the narrative of this historic event. Prasifka writes Sophie with careful and conscious apathy. Whether Sophie exhausts her energy doomscrolling the internet or tries to connect with her friends as they all begin to think of their own lives in their early twenties, None of This Is Serious captures a perfect sense of frustration and indulgence in acknowledging one's accountability to knowing what it feels like to experience history without belittling or having to justify meaningful change. While at times snarky, Sophie's vulnerable acceptance of her loneliness grants her a unique confidence as well as a narrator. When Sophie finds her own confrontation with developing the narrative of her life, her submissiveness to having people tell the story of who she is for her is one that is both haunting and, somehow, paints a domestically dystopic future.

Wasn't sure about this book at first, and at times I felt like I was actively trying to dislike it but it grew on me. Feels like the most contemporary piece of literature I've read in a while, and the main character, Sophie, is absolutely someone I can emphasize with and relate to. I think NONE OF THIS IS SERIOUS does a wonderful job of depicting what goes through the mind of a young person, especially at that time in our lives where we're not teenagers anymore but we also have no idea of how to be a proper adult and achieve all those milestones out parents and other older people around us already had achieved at our age and expect us to achieve quickly as well, even though these are very different times and we very different people.

Would have given it a better rating if not for Hannah, I hated her and that character often made me hesitate to pick the book back up again. Also, I love the cover. And I think I'd like to read more books by Prasifka, this one was such a pleasant surprise.

Set in Dublin, Sophie and her friends have just finished university and are trying to figure out their place in the world, albeit a world in which a giant crack has appeared in the sky- as if they need any more anxiety and insecurity added to their twenty-something angst!
I was really keen to read this, what with the Louise Nealon and Naoise Dolan quotes, and Sally Rooney comparisons - I usually love a coming of age book about a sad, troubled young woman.
But this was just disappointing - the ingredients and themes were there but I couldn’t get on with the writing - the characters were flat and it all felt a bit clumsy, cliche and YA.
Sorry, I should’ve loved it - I’m still not really sure why I didn’t - perhaps it’s not you, it’s me!
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. All views are my own.

The quote from Louise Nealon and the seriously aesthetically pleasing cover is what first made me extremely keen to read None Of This Is Serious and I can happily confirm it totally lived up to my high expectations. The story follows Sophie from Dublin, who is coming to the end of her time at university and finds herself feeling adrift. She feels her friends are leaving her behind and that her relationships are a disaster, and after a seismic event at a party she becomes even more obsessed with the online world and confused about her place in the real world.

None Of This Is Serious takes a magnifying glass of sorts and holds it up to the absurdity of modern life and the way young people especially have adapted to and perhaps become consumed by living their lives online. It is sharp, clever and candid and yet manages to also contain moments that feel so achingly sad and painfully relatable. This completely deserves to be one of the most talked about books of 2022. Full of insight, social complexities and brutally unflinching honesty – you don’t want to miss this one!

A poignant reminder for this forthcoming generation that we must not forget and abandon the natural world beyond our phones. ‘None of this is serious’ is an aptly produced novel that reminds us all that even if the internet can tell us everything, it may not bring us joy and true companionship. Another great Irish work, if you enjoy Sally Rooney’s existentialism, this is of the same tone.

i really appreciated the intent and conceptually what the novel was trying to do. unfortunately, the execution was pretty mediocre and i thought personally read as a little too YA for a book about 20-somethings.

i found sophie to be unlikable almost always which is not usually a problem for me except for the fact that her character is terribly underdeveloped. the side characters were also horrible and one-dimensional (arguably not simply because of sophie's perception of them).

on the other hand, i did think this book had one of the most realistic portrayals of how young people use social media and i did find the issues surrounding job anxiety and post-university life.

What draw my attention to this book was, first of all, the cover, I love everything about it. But also, because this book sounded exactly like my kinda thing these days, that are sad woman in her 20s. For me this was Severance meets Beautiful World Where Are You, with an Alice Oseman vibe. Nonetheless, this one was a little more "on the ground", a recently graduated college student, with no job, living with her family and thinking about never owning a house. It tackles relations such as family, friends and crushes, the internet, and I love of the protagonist fears and insecurities. Therefore I think this is a great book for the YA readers that want to try more adult fiction.

First up, I really enjoyed this book, and I wish I’d requested a physical arc because I adore this cover and I want to see it on my bookshelf every day.

The story follows Sophie, a recent graduate confronted with every emotion that comes with being a young adult in today’s world. All these emotions are exacerbated when a mysterious crack appears in the sky that no one can quite explain.

I don’t know what it is about Irish authors but they seem to do this kind of New Adult fiction so well?! Catherine Prasifka perfectly encapsulates the uncertainty of this stage of life; panic about finding a job, buying a house, finding a partner, presenting yourself online, navigating the world as a woman, staying alive amidst an impending apocalypse, you know, the usual.

This, along with Sophie's desperate addiction to connection and consuming information even at her own expense, means it’s a tale that I’m sure will resonate with lots of readers of a similar age.

Sophie isn’t always the most likeable narrator, and there are times when she makes bad decisions and pushes people away. We see how her brain works and understand why she makes these decisions, and knowing her as a complex character makes her feel more real.

None of this is Serious is not the most cheerful read, but it’s so brilliantly done. It’s sharp, fresh, witty and a little absurd, and gets much deeper than I was expecting.

The way this book captures the zeitgeist of our generation is really special, and I can definitely see it becoming a staple in the New Adult sphere. I can’t wait for it to be published so that everyone can grab a copy and see for themselves how great it is.

In terms of content warnings, I’d give some for body image, disordered eating, social anxiety, sexual assault, and binge-drinking, so bear that in mind if you’re thinking about grabbing a copy.

Thanks so much to Canongate for inviting me to be on the social media tour ✨ I was seduced by the gorgeous cover and the fact that it centred on recent graduates living in Dublin; my opinion is that it's certainly an intriguing addition to the recent flood of young Irish female novelists. Sophie is an extremely online person who seems to have an existential crisis every day, and her anxiety about her future is not helped by her complicated relationships with her overbearing best friend Grace, her fuckboy friend Finn, her bullying twin sister Hannah, and the potential she has with someone new, Rory. Throw in an inexplicable world event – which I was NOT expecting – and it sounds like there's definitely a lot going on.

Yet this is one of the most plotless books I've ever read. I was reminded a lot of two of the Irish novelists Catherine Prasifka will inevitably be comped to: in Sally Rooney's exploration of human relationships in the context of impending world doom, and in Naoise Dolan's depiction of an overanalytical protagonist who lives very much in her own head. To be honest, being in Sophie's head was so claustrophobic that it gave me second-hand anxiety and irritation. And although I think this unreliable, exhausting first-person narration was exactly what Catherine Prasifka intended, it did make somewhat wearying reading at times; there's only so many times I can read about incessant social media scrolling/hangover vomiting/existential apathy before I crave a bit of variety and a bit less repetition. I also found myself wishing for more background and context on the characters' friendships – I finished the book feeling like I hadn't gained any sense about what college was actually like for Sophie, which seems like a weird oversight considering she's just graduated – and the ending was a bit too simplistic for my taste.

But there was enough in there to keep me interested. There were some really incisive observations on the power dynamics between men and women; I really liked how political and argumentative and authentically studenty the characters were; and the author completely and successfully inhabits the head of a naïve and obsessive 22 year old who has absolutely no idea how to navigate the relationships in her life. I always enjoy reading about millennial-ish characters trying to figure out to do with their lives, and parts of this were so readable, as smooth as silk. I will definitely read whatever Catherine Prasifka writes next, I just think that this book – with its particular combination of being too online and its claustrophobic setting – wasn't quite for me. I would rate it probably 3.5 stars? ✨