Name: Intermezzo
Rating: 3.166666666666667 (6 reviews)
ISBN: 9780571365487

Sally Rooney

An exquisitely moving story about grief, love and family but especially love from the global phenomenon Sally Rooney.

Intermezzo

„[…] and a kind of shame somehow, because each passing day seemed to bring Ivan further away from him and the life they used to have together, a life that was receding increasingly into the past, into the realm of childhood and adolescence. The realisation that his adulthood […] which would last the rest of his life, would have to be lived without father. That he was becoming a person his father would never know.“ (p.255)

This was definitely a bit of a more complicated read for me, especially the writing style in Peter‘s chapters threw me off at first. Once I got used to it the story really captivated me. As always, Rooney writes such interesting and complex characters that are allowed to be flawed, self sabotaging and selfish but also hold within them all these feelings and unresolved issues that make them so human and relatable. Without spoiling too much, I loved the different perspectives of the brothers on their family and the issues between them and how they kept trying to navigate their struggle with grief, connecting with each other and the people in their lives, finding a way to express all the things and emotions they think shameful or can’t communicate out of fear of rejection. 

I’ve only read Normal People and Conversations with friends, so this was definitely a very different type of read for me but so worth sticking with. As with the other two stories, Rooney captures the complexity of human emotions and relationships so well and without judgement or adding a narrators moral voice, the characters seem to go through a journey in front of the readers eyes. I think it’s always interesting to sit with some of these unpleasant thoughts and actions the characters go through and let yourself reflect on your own past or your own conduct, feelings you’ve wanted to push away and avoid. The voice in your head and how different your thoughts and fears can be from reality, especially the reality of others who are also their own people, their own little universe inside a skull. 

[SPOILER] I really loved what Naomi said in the book, about Peter putting people into certain boxes or her in a drawer, making others one dimensional or only looking at them through your own suffering or your own needs. All of the characters seem to struggle with letting go a version of themselves or the past, a way things „should“ be and ultimately find themselves feeling better and more hopeful in life once they begin to work through some of the guilt and shame that is holding them back from actually living.

Zoé-Natasha

„[…] and a kind of shame somehow, because each passing day seemed to bring Ivan further away from him and the life they used to have together, a life that was receding increasingly into the past, into the realm of childhood and adolescence. The realisation that his adulthood […] which would last the rest of his life, would have to be lived without father. That he was becoming a person his father would never know.“ (p.255)

This was definitely a bit of a more complicated read for me, especially the writing style in Peter‘s chapters threw me off at first. Once I got used to it the story really captivated me. As always, Rooney writes such interesting and complex characters that are allowed to be flawed, self sabotaging and selfish but also hold within them all these feelings and unresolved issues that make them so human and relatable. Without spoiling too much, I loved the different perspectives of the brothers on their family and the issues between them and how they kept trying to navigate their struggle with grief, connecting with each other and the people in their lives, finding a way to express all the things and emotions they think shameful or can’t communicate out of fear of rejection. 

I’ve only read Normal People and Conversations with friends, so this was definitely a very different type of read for me but so worth sticking with. As with the other two stories, Rooney captures the complexity of human emotions and relationships so well and without judgement or adding a narrators moral voice, the characters seem to go through a journey in front of the readers eyes. I think it’s always interesting to sit with some of these unpleasant thoughts and actions the characters go through and let yourself reflect on your own past or your own conduct, feelings you’ve wanted to push away and avoid. The voice in your head and how different your thoughts and fears can be from reality, especially the reality of others who are also their own people, their own little universe inside a skull. 

[SPOILER] I really loved what Naomi said in the book, about Peter putting people into certain boxes or her in a drawer, making others one dimensional or only looking at them through your own suffering or your own needs. All of the characters seem to struggle with letting go a version of themselves or the past, a way things „should“ be and ultimately find themselves feeling better and more hopeful in life once they begin to work through some of the guilt and shame that is holding them back from actually living.

Classic Rooney. Smooth reading, pulled in. Characters with their own complexities but all quite likeable.

Intermezzo

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