Sally Rooney · 2018 · Novel
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Connell and Marianne grow up in the same small town in County Sligo, in the west of Ireland. At school, Connell is popular and quietly clever, while Marianne is sharp, wealthy and friendless. Connell’s mother cleans for Marianne’s family, and the two begin an intense relationship that Connell keeps hidden from his friends.
When both go to Trinity College Dublin, their positions reverse: Marianne finds her place, while Connell feels out of step. Over four years they drift apart and return to each other, shaped by class, pride, family cruelty and depression. Sally Rooney’s spare, close prose focuses on what goes unsaid between two people who understand each other deeply. The novel won the Costa Novel Award and became a popular television series.
Key insights
- Many misunderstandings come from what people fail to say; small silences between Connell and Marianne change the course of their lives.
- Social status depends on setting; the person admired at school can be sidelined at university, and the reverse is also true.
- Class shapes confidence quietly, from who feels at home among wealthy students to who can afford to stay in the city for the summer.
- Being fully known by another person can help you grow; the novel shows two people changing each other for the better.
- Depression is portrayed plainly; Connell’s decision to see a counsellor presents asking for help as an ordinary, practical step.
Read it if you like quiet, intimate fiction about love, class and communication that puts character before plot.