Normal People - Sally Rooney

 Sally Rooney is considered one of the top 100 influential people in the world according to Time (one wonders how they figure that out) and is considered one of the brightest literary talents in the world right now. I found 'Normal People' in Anjali's shelf and started reading it.

It starts off with two characters Connell and Marianne who study in the same school. Connell's single mom works as a cleaner in Marianne's mansion. Marianne is considered to be a social misfit, ugly, but she has a special charm for Connell. The two have a relationship based on Connell's trust that Marianne would not go and tell everyone about it - in school he is popular as an all rounder who plays football and also studies well and is good looking. Marianne keeps the secret which means that Connell completely acts like he does not know her outside of their relationship. They break up when he decides to ask a popular girl out for the school gala without asking Marianne because he is too embarrassed to be seen with a loser like her. 

They go to college where the roles reverse. Rich Marianne gets popular because of he money and social status while Connell is lagging behind as a poor boy. They continue to have their secret affair/friendship going while dating others. It continues throughout the book - the bond these two share is deeper than any other they experiment with but they never come out with it until the end - she with her deep insecurities which make her put up with severe abuse in all her relationships, almost craving it, and he stops trying to look good for others and listens to what he wants. He ends up writing, she ends up going back to him as she is. They remain friends, always coming back to one another, somehow finding a space to be themselves, to be ok with their insecurities and fears and not be judged for it.

Its told very nicely and brings out the vulnerabilities and frailties of both the characters, subtly showing the honesty and the dishonesty they share. Definitely a book one will not forget - you may forget the characters but that feeling remains, something we all may have experienced, and that is what Sally Rooney achieved through 'Normal People'. It is for all the times when you were sure but something made you hold back.