Normal People.

 

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CONTAINS SPOILERS

At school Connell and Marianne pretend not to know each other. He’s popular and well-adjusted, star of the school soccer team while she is lonely, proud, and intensely private. But when Connell comes to pick his mother up from her housekeeping job at Marianne’s house, a strange and indelible connection grows between the two teenagers - one they are determined to conc

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 in college, Marianne and Connell circle one another, straying toward other people and possibilities but always magnetically, irresistibly drawn back together. Then, 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. 

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I have no words. I am still going through the motions even though I finished the book last night. I heard about NORMAL PEOPLE for a while, especially since the show came out on Hulu. I watched the first episode before reading the book, and it became clear to me that it is a book that I needed to read. Once I started to read it, I did not want to stop. If it weren’t for my fall semester starting this week, I would have read it all day. I am not sure if I can even begin to explain the emotions that are going through me right now. NORMAL PEOPLE is the book that I wish I read it sooner when it came out. I wish I knew about it earlier but did not hear about it until the show came out. I love books about real life, about friendships, relationships. NORMAL PEOPLE was one of the most realistic books that I have read this year. No matter how hard I try, I cannot seem to get the story out of my mind. This is a story that I will never forget.




Connell and Marianne, I was not sure what to think about their relationship. I am not sure if what they had should even be considered one. I could tell that they cared about each other, as they got to know each other, but how much did they care about each other? It seemed as if their relationship mostly consisted of sex, at least in the beginning. Besides, Connell did not want anyone to have what was happening, that they were together. It was if he was ashamed. It had me wondering if Connell cared about Marianne at all or if he pretended that he did. As time passed, the two of them seemed to go back and forth to each other. No matter what was going, who they were dating at the time, they always went back to one another. I noticed how protective Connell got over Marianne, the way they acted if one of them was dating someone else. I realized that over the years, they have fallen in love with each other. I was waiting for them to admit to one another, to recognize that the two of them belonged to each other. Their relationship was real. They had their difficulties, and it felt real. I am curious about what happened to them afterward.



That ending, I am not sure how I felt about that ending. I went back and forth between liking it and not. There was a part of me that felt that it wasn’t a complete ending, that there should be more. It’s an ending that has you wondering what happens next. What happens with Connell and Marianne. NORMAL PEOPLE was the first novel that I read by SALLY ROONEY and I am eager to check out the rest of her books. NORMAL PEOPLE was real, or at least it felt real. What Marianne and Connell went through, dealt with, is something that can happen in real life. Those two are the characters that others can connect with. Now that I have read the book, I cannot wait to watch the rest of the TV Show. I would highly recommend giving this book a chance.