OK, total confession time, as we are now friends, Petya....I am not a fan. In fact, I don't enjoy her books at all. I read the first one, tried the second one and gave up. So this is one hype I am happy to watch from the sidelines!!
Yes, I am with Kate. Happy that so many are happy about another book from her, but I don’t get it. Probably my “born in the 70s” showing but *middle-aged shrug*
Apparently when Sorrow and Bliss first hit it big in the UK, a lot of people were comparing Meg Mason to Sally Rooney and I've heard her very openly get irritated with the comparison and say that the protagonists in her own work are not as "immature" as Rooney's. 😂
i haven't read the first one, but i read normal people during the pandemic and it was such an escape from the dread at the time. i read the third book earlier this month and i found it very pleasant, but it felt to me like it resolved itself too neatly in the end.
I've preordered via Apple. Cause I look forward to reading undisturbed in the dark with the help of backlight, while the girls sleep in the other room.
I had the benefit of reading the first two of her books fairly "early," when they were just books. And I liked them! Conversations more than Normal People. Quite a bit, for all the reasons Becca Rothfield derides. Somewhere along the way the books themselves became a signifier (seemingly the first literary fiction people had read since school, based on how many complaints I've come across in the years since about the lack of quotation marks).
I found her third book insufferable - a intense self-awareness and discomfort with becoming a signifier, which clouded the entire book. I'm open to the fourth book, because Beautiful World felt at the time like something she needed to get out of her system, rather than being a particularly compelling story in both content and themes.
I believe the character is NOT her, and don't think 90% of the character's personality and actions reflect hers... but the emails, the endless emails handwringing about fame as a writer of literary fiction? Are those universal thoughts and emotions pulled from the ether?! Sally, that's such a specific experience to spend so much time with!
The main thing that makes me want to read Intermezzo sooner (despite how absolutely SCORCHED I feel with marketing material about it) is to avoid being swayed by reviews. Avoiding the reviews will be difficult!
SAME. AND… a part of me wants to explore why I am so fixated on not wanting to be be a part of a collective cultural experience. The overthinking is what connects me to the Rooney-verse
Oh the hype… As a recipient of the chessboard bandanna I strongly agree. This book was going to be huge no matter what so why not divert some of the marketing budget? I also have often wondered how self-professed Marxist Rooney feels about her books being promoted alongside so much potential waste. I’m in the same boat as you. I have liked her books but they are not my favorites and I have spent a lot (maybe too much) time pondering why she is the literary darling of our time. I think it might be what you said about the characters extreme specialness—or perceived specialness. Is this something many Western millennial readers can or want to relate to?? Perhaps, which is pretty cringe 😬 I have very complicated feelings about INTERMEZZO and some of my frustration came from the beautiful, waifish yet heavy-breasted homeless Marxist love interest for one of the brothers. I’ll be curious to hear what you and others think!
The interviewer at the NYTimes made a comment that all Sally Rooney novels feel like they come from the same world and the characters could walk in and out of her books and feel more or less at home. I thought that was a fair observation and I don't think he meant it as a criticism but she felt very defensive in her answer (in MOST of her answers, I should add):
"... when I look at writers whose work has transformed my life, I look at Austen, Henry James, Dostoyevsky. Those writers produced work that adheres to what you’re describing, where it feels like a figure from one of their books could stroll into any of the other novels that they wrote and be at home. But each of the novels is its own world, and it’s intense and it’s profound and it’s beautiful, and that’s what I’m striving for."
Alexandra Schwartz at The New Yorker said that her work feels realistic but it reminds her more of Harry Potter - "an aspirational fantasy".
I’ll have to check out that interview. The Austen comparison has always intrigued me. I see it, but the way they see the world and people feels so very different to me. But if it’s apt, maybe in 200 years there will be cozy mysteries where Marianne and Ivan are solving crimes alongside the rest of the Rooneyverse😉
The feeling I get is that her marketing team is not on the same page as Rooney regarding personal ideology. It all feels very tacky. I can't imagine that she supports it. I have the book on hold through my library app because I refuse to purchase a hardcover book.
I tried reading Beautiful World, Where Are You? and couldn’t get into it. I haven’t tried another Rooney book since. Maybe it’s cultural.
Intermezzo sounds the most interesting of all of her books, but I’m waiting to hear from people I trust (you, Natalie) before I make a decision on reading her again.
I am ambivalent about Rooney in the same way I am about Taylor Swift. I don't dislike either, I don't begrudge people who love their art, but they both cater to a very specific cultural idea that is fine but isn't my whole personality. I read Normal People in 2020 and I liked it - apparently I rated in 5 stars! But I borrowed it from the library so sadly I didn't write a review on it. I thought it uniquely captured a very specific generational moment, but if that isn't your reality (or aspirational reality) then it might be hard to see its importance? relevance? Normal People to me is how a millennial would write their life if they were imagining it as a movie, everything bled of extreme feeling. If the others are like that too, maybe that's the real appeal
Same. I don’t dislike either, but I also don’t feel pulled to them. It is really fun seeing everyone get so excited for a book launch. That I do love to see. 💥
I can’t sum up my personal feelings any better or more articulately than Natalie did, so I’ll just add that the NYT headline about her disinterest in her career made me LOL.
Love this take! And yes, I'm one who will be observing Sally Rooney Day today 😀🎉 (and also, as always, finding the Austen connection - not hard to do as Rooney is very influenced by Austen).
Disinterest in career, not even considering optioning the rights to the third book, writing the first page and not changing it at all, characters not in any way being influenced by personal experience were some highlights of that interview for me. All smacks of moral and artistic superiority in a way that feels disingenuous to me.
Confession: I have never read anything by Sally Rooney but know of her. Before this issue was published, I saw the recent episode of The Daily about her with the title that career growth is overrated and I thought "meh, I don't want to listen to that or read anything by her now." It just seemed like a very out of touch thing to say since she's a very successful published author and something about it made me roll my eyes very hard. Do I need to read her? You recommended that I read "What I talk about when I talk about Running" which I loved and I have liked all of your reading recommendations so far.
I listened to the NYTimes interview yesterday (David Marchese tearing up at the beauty of our existence!!!) and I was a little surprised by how defensive her answers were. I have read all her books so far, and enjoyed them, and I knew how she keeps her life rather private. But this interview solidified for me that she is not on board with the hype. I imagine FSG doesn’t have to get her approval to market everything the way they do. In that sense, it does feel a bit exploitive of the publisher to hype things so much when she’s not comfortable with it. But I suppose that’s fame (and capitalism) for you!
I only tried reading Beautiful World, Where are You? and I ended up DNFing it because I didn’t like it at all. As a result, I’m hesitant to try her other works because of how much I dislike BWWY.
The way I will be at my neighborhood bookstore upon open tomorrow to snag Intermezzo.
OK, total confession time, as we are now friends, Petya....I am not a fan. In fact, I don't enjoy her books at all. I read the first one, tried the second one and gave up. So this is one hype I am happy to watch from the sidelines!!
Yes, I am with Kate. Happy that so many are happy about another book from her, but I don’t get it. Probably my “born in the 70s” showing but *middle-aged shrug*
Apparently when Sorrow and Bliss first hit it big in the UK, a lot of people were comparing Meg Mason to Sally Rooney and I've heard her very openly get irritated with the comparison and say that the protagonists in her own work are not as "immature" as Rooney's. 😂
well... and the hype has been so off-putting.
i haven't read the first one, but i read normal people during the pandemic and it was such an escape from the dread at the time. i read the third book earlier this month and i found it very pleasant, but it felt to me like it resolved itself too neatly in the end.
I've preordered via Apple. Cause I look forward to reading undisturbed in the dark with the help of backlight, while the girls sleep in the other room.
I had the benefit of reading the first two of her books fairly "early," when they were just books. And I liked them! Conversations more than Normal People. Quite a bit, for all the reasons Becca Rothfield derides. Somewhere along the way the books themselves became a signifier (seemingly the first literary fiction people had read since school, based on how many complaints I've come across in the years since about the lack of quotation marks).
I found her third book insufferable - a intense self-awareness and discomfort with becoming a signifier, which clouded the entire book. I'm open to the fourth book, because Beautiful World felt at the time like something she needed to get out of her system, rather than being a particularly compelling story in both content and themes.
You know she is SOOOOO adamant that BWWY is NOT about her?!
I believe the character is NOT her, and don't think 90% of the character's personality and actions reflect hers... but the emails, the endless emails handwringing about fame as a writer of literary fiction? Are those universal thoughts and emotions pulled from the ether?! Sally, that's such a specific experience to spend so much time with!
The main thing that makes me want to read Intermezzo sooner (despite how absolutely SCORCHED I feel with marketing material about it) is to avoid being swayed by reviews. Avoiding the reviews will be difficult!
SAME. AND… a part of me wants to explore why I am so fixated on not wanting to be be a part of a collective cultural experience. The overthinking is what connects me to the Rooney-verse
Oh the hype… As a recipient of the chessboard bandanna I strongly agree. This book was going to be huge no matter what so why not divert some of the marketing budget? I also have often wondered how self-professed Marxist Rooney feels about her books being promoted alongside so much potential waste. I’m in the same boat as you. I have liked her books but they are not my favorites and I have spent a lot (maybe too much) time pondering why she is the literary darling of our time. I think it might be what you said about the characters extreme specialness—or perceived specialness. Is this something many Western millennial readers can or want to relate to?? Perhaps, which is pretty cringe 😬 I have very complicated feelings about INTERMEZZO and some of my frustration came from the beautiful, waifish yet heavy-breasted homeless Marxist love interest for one of the brothers. I’ll be curious to hear what you and others think!
The interviewer at the NYTimes made a comment that all Sally Rooney novels feel like they come from the same world and the characters could walk in and out of her books and feel more or less at home. I thought that was a fair observation and I don't think he meant it as a criticism but she felt very defensive in her answer (in MOST of her answers, I should add):
"... when I look at writers whose work has transformed my life, I look at Austen, Henry James, Dostoyevsky. Those writers produced work that adheres to what you’re describing, where it feels like a figure from one of their books could stroll into any of the other novels that they wrote and be at home. But each of the novels is its own world, and it’s intense and it’s profound and it’s beautiful, and that’s what I’m striving for."
Alexandra Schwartz at The New Yorker said that her work feels realistic but it reminds her more of Harry Potter - "an aspirational fantasy".
I’ll have to check out that interview. The Austen comparison has always intrigued me. I see it, but the way they see the world and people feels so very different to me. But if it’s apt, maybe in 200 years there will be cozy mysteries where Marianne and Ivan are solving crimes alongside the rest of the Rooneyverse😉
The feeling I get is that her marketing team is not on the same page as Rooney regarding personal ideology. It all feels very tacky. I can't imagine that she supports it. I have the book on hold through my library app because I refuse to purchase a hardcover book.
Yes, I can't imagine her ever wearing a bucket hat or doing a puzzle of her own book cover.
😂🎯
I tried reading Beautiful World, Where Are You? and couldn’t get into it. I haven’t tried another Rooney book since. Maybe it’s cultural.
Intermezzo sounds the most interesting of all of her books, but I’m waiting to hear from people I trust (you, Natalie) before I make a decision on reading her again.
As an Eastern European, I absolutely CAN NOT pass up a good chess book, or I will have my Bulgarian passport revoked. Will report back soon!
Can’t wait 😍
I can wait. I have it on hold at the library (after 115 other people) 😂😂😂
I'm with you Rojeen! I'm currently 105 in the queue at our local library. I'll be reading this sometime in the new year lol. ♟️♟️
FSG should use some of the proceeds to donate copies to local libraries. 😂
haha! There are plenty of other books to read in the meantime!
I am ambivalent about Rooney in the same way I am about Taylor Swift. I don't dislike either, I don't begrudge people who love their art, but they both cater to a very specific cultural idea that is fine but isn't my whole personality. I read Normal People in 2020 and I liked it - apparently I rated in 5 stars! But I borrowed it from the library so sadly I didn't write a review on it. I thought it uniquely captured a very specific generational moment, but if that isn't your reality (or aspirational reality) then it might be hard to see its importance? relevance? Normal People to me is how a millennial would write their life if they were imagining it as a movie, everything bled of extreme feeling. If the others are like that too, maybe that's the real appeal
Same. I don’t dislike either, but I also don’t feel pulled to them. It is really fun seeing everyone get so excited for a book launch. That I do love to see. 💥
I can’t sum up my personal feelings any better or more articulately than Natalie did, so I’ll just add that the NYT headline about her disinterest in her career made me LOL.
Love this take! And yes, I'm one who will be observing Sally Rooney Day today 😀🎉 (and also, as always, finding the Austen connection - not hard to do as Rooney is very influenced by Austen).
Disinterest in career, not even considering optioning the rights to the third book, writing the first page and not changing it at all, characters not in any way being influenced by personal experience were some highlights of that interview for me. All smacks of moral and artistic superiority in a way that feels disingenuous to me.
Not a Sally Rooney fan at all 😬🫠🫣
Confession: I have never read anything by Sally Rooney but know of her. Before this issue was published, I saw the recent episode of The Daily about her with the title that career growth is overrated and I thought "meh, I don't want to listen to that or read anything by her now." It just seemed like a very out of touch thing to say since she's a very successful published author and something about it made me roll my eyes very hard. Do I need to read her? You recommended that I read "What I talk about when I talk about Running" which I loved and I have liked all of your reading recommendations so far.
I listened to the NYTimes interview yesterday (David Marchese tearing up at the beauty of our existence!!!) and I was a little surprised by how defensive her answers were. I have read all her books so far, and enjoyed them, and I knew how she keeps her life rather private. But this interview solidified for me that she is not on board with the hype. I imagine FSG doesn’t have to get her approval to market everything the way they do. In that sense, it does feel a bit exploitive of the publisher to hype things so much when she’s not comfortable with it. But I suppose that’s fame (and capitalism) for you!
I only tried reading Beautiful World, Where are You? and I ended up DNFing it because I didn’t like it at all. As a result, I’m hesitant to try her other works because of how much I dislike BWWY.