I have heard and read several opinions arguing that Normal People will establish itself as a literary classic. Although I cannot be sure of that, I am inclined to agree.
The second novel of Irish writer Sally Rooney displays many characteristics that apply to classics. Firstly, it attracted a broad public, having been praised by both casual and avid readers. In other words, Normal People was translated to many languages and ended up becoming a best-seller in different parts of the world. This is something common of classics, not just the fact that it is greatly appreciated, but, most significantly, discussed.
That is the second point I wish to prove. What matters, in this case, is not that many people, with different reading habits, like the book; the most interesting aspect is that it generates completely opposite opinions. For the amount of people who love this book, there is the same amount that hates it. It is controversial, not just for its content, but also for the way Sally Rooney conveyed it: with a captivating yet simple prose, the author was capable of building sympathetic, complex, and real people. Normal people.
Normal People functions like a time capsule, just like many of the well-beloved literature classics. It perfectly captures what it means to be a millennial, to live in the 2010s, and how the contemporary society works. Marianne and Connell, the two main characters, are perfect specimens of “here and now”, as if they were real people we could potentially meet in our everyday lives. Even though they can be seen as mere literary stereotypes (and, therefore, undervalued), it is true that they stand as valid examples of today’s people. The fact that the most visible distinction between them is their economic situation and family status only contributes to this view. Nowadays, it is not difficult to find these disparities in life: people with different backgrounds bonding, the barriers of class dissolving and disappearing as time passes and opportunities appear. Our characters both live in the same Irish city, attend the same high school, and eventually move to Dublin to study in Trinity College. As a matter of fact, they manage to achieve similar opportunities, notwithstanding Connell, a working-class character, must work harder for it.
The relationship between Marianne and Connell is the central vein of the novel. The story takes place throughout approximately five years; since they are in high school until they almost complete their university degrees. The book develops as a dance between these characters, who are individually trying to know themselves and, consequently, build their lives. This self-discovery journey often starts in high school, which is the period when our relationships grow deeper and personalities start to settle. As the characters get more and more involved with each other, they start to question who they are. This is especially evident for Connell, who has difficulties dealing not just with what he feels for Marianne, but also with what he wants his life to be: whilst he is the popular star of the football team, he dreams of being a writer and spends his free time hanging out with Marianne (the school lonely underdog), developing feelings for her.
With only a little subterfuge he can live two entirely separate existences, never confronting the ultimate question of what to do with himself or what kind of person he is.
Sally Rooney, Normal People (2018)
Marianne, who seems surer of herself despite all the bullying and intimidation she goes through, later struggles to find herself at university, where she becomes a social and admired individual: “She hates the person she has become, without feeling any power to change anything about herself.” It seems that it is within their social inadequacy that they manage to be their true selves, and it is only through each other that they display who they truly are.
Sally Rooney was able to capture a beautiful portrait of a couple navigating life, sex, power, and love, together. It enchants us, spectators in the growth journey of two intertwined people, and it leaves us experiencing all those human feelings typical of normal people: the dependency between one another, the complexity of love relationships, the search for your place in the world. It does so through an honest and raw representation of the characters and their interactions, as well as through a beautiful and compelling writing style: what Rooney had accomplished in her debut, Conversations with Friends, she masters in Normal People, establishing herself as one of the most promising contemporary writers.
Much has been written about this book, and I am convinced that it will remain an object of discussion for years to come. It touches a lot of us because it speaks of things we can relate with, cry about or laugh of. Despite being thought of as forgettable by some people, I do believe that it is the first and biggest success of what can be called a “millennial book” – with all its flaws and qualities.
A Reading of One's Own 
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