A few weekends ago, I finally got my hands on Normal People by Sally Rooney, read it in a flash and then quickly binge-watched the TV series. When the show first aired, I saw a lot of contrasting tweets – some people preferred the book, whilst others were swayed by the series. So this what I wanted to talk about for this blog post – did I prefer the book or TV adaptation of Normal People?
Firstly, I want to say I really loved both. As a firm believer in reading the book before a film/TV adaption, I read the book first, and I surprised myself by how much I enjoyed it. The characters felt real and their emotions were so genuine that it was hard not to love Marianne and Connell.
I also really liked how the book jumped to different stages in their lives – we get to witness the characters essentially grow up together and see how much of an influence they played in each other’s lives. I was interested to see how they would handle this constant jumping in time in the show.
For the series, I think the actors who played Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell (Paul Mescal) brought these characters to life. I thought they were absolutely spot on, and Connell’s speech at the councillor’s office was even more moving than in the novel. Characters like Jamie, seeing them acted out in real life, made me hate him even more, so in that sense, I think the TV adaptation did an amazing job in taking the novel and its characters even further.
In terms of the timeline jumping forwards in the book, I think it was handled well in the show – it felt like a natural progression, rather than constantly stopping and starting, and it didn’t shock me at all.
One thing that did stand out to me was that Marianne’s relationship with her mother and brother in the series was a bit muted/dulled down. I’m probably being picky because I watched the series immediately after I read Normal People, but I absolutely hated Marianne’s mother and brother in the book, and I remember the brother being a lot more aggressive and violent. Maybe they purposefully did this to avoid upsetting viewers, but it did make up an important part of Marianne’s character development.
So, I think Normal People the novel has ever so slightly beaten the TV series. I know that onscreen adaptations can’t copy books word for word, but once I’ve got something in my head it’s hard to get it out! Although if you’ve read the book and haven’t seen the series, you should absolutely go and watch it (but maybe not with your parents…).
What do you think? Did you prefer the book or series? Let me know!
P.S; I recently made a bookstagram account! If you'd like to follow me on there, my handle is @_audreysreviews!