Reviews
A September Indie Next Pick "In many ways, this book, a work of both philosophy and romantic tragicomedy about the ways people love and hurt one another, is exactly the type of book one would expect Rooney to write out of the political environment of the past few years. But just because the novel is so characteristic of Rooney doesn't take anything away from its considerable power . . . A novel of capacious intelligence and plenty of page-turning emotional drama." -- Kirkus (Starred) "A cool, captivating story . . . Rooney establishes a distance from her characters' inner lives, creating a sense of privacy even as she describes Alice and Eileen's most intimate moments. It's a bold change to her style, and it makes the illuminations all the more powerful when they pop. As always, Rooney challenges and inspires." -- Publishers Weekly (Starred) "Writing with her trademark truthfulness and wit, Rooney compels with both these meta-conversations and the actions of her characters' lives: their enthralling, intimate, and consequential grappling with themselves, with one another, and with beauty, sex, and friendship. Rooney's first novel since Normal People , which became a popular and award-winning Hulu series, is steadily drawing excitement." -- Booklist (Starred) "Keen and tersely delivered observations about the follies of youth, sex, and friendships." --Adam Price, The Millions (Most Anticipated) "As much as she resists the title, Rooney's new book may just cement her status as a leading voice of the millennial generation. -- Harper's Bazaar (Most Anticipated) "Delicious." --Emily Temple, Lit Hub (Most Anticipated) "Instead of latching onto hardships, digging through them until every last nuance has been overturned and all the trauma and tragedy has been exhausted, Rooney carries her readers and characters through them in realistic portrayals of the way time and life don't wait for people to recover . . . For those who have yet to hop on the Sally Rooney bandwagon, it's never too late." --Oriana Christ, Zzvya Praise for Normal People 'It is time to take a sharp inhale, people. Sally Rooney has produced a second novel, Normal People . It is superb . . . a tremendous read, full of insight and sweetness.' - Anne Enright, The Guardian 'Magnificent . . . Rooney is the best young novelist - indeed one of the best novelists - I've read in years.' - Olivia Laing, New Statesman 'Rooney is such a gifted, brave and adventurous writer, so exceptionally good at observing the lies people tell themselves on the deepest level, in noting how much we forgive, and above all in portraying love . . . [ Normal People ] is a future classic.' - Kate Clanchy, The Observer 'One the best novels I have read in years. Sally Rooney understands the complexities of love, its radical intimacy, and how power is always shifting between people, and she tells her story in a way that feels new and old at the same time. It is intelligent, spare and mesmerizing, and it sent me back to an earlier point in my life in such a vivid and real way, reanimating for me with that period of time (first love), which I had thought was lost to me forever, but which felt born again in the form of this book.' - Sheila Heti, author of Motherhood 'I couldn't put Normal People down - I didn't think I could love it as much as Conversations with Friends, but I did. Sally Rooney is a treasure. I can't wait to see what she does next.' - Elif Batuman, author of The Idiot
