11 Thought-Provoking Normal People Book Club Questions

Will you be discussing the book Normal People by Sally Rooney at your next book club meeting? These Normal People book club questions may help get the discussion going!

Normal People is one of the most popular pieces of contemporary fiction. It’s loved by some, loathed by others, but either way there’s a lot to unpack in this book.

It’s the story of Marianne and Connell, two students from Sligo, Ireland. Connell’s mother is Marianne’s family cleaner so the pair see each other frequently but barely interact with each other. Connell is popular at school whilst Marianne is somewhat of a social pariah.

Despite this, a relationship develops between the pair in their final year of school, but it is kept hidden from their classmates at Connell’s request.

Both of them then go on to recieve scholarships to study at Trinity College Dublin, where things change dramatically. Now it is Marianne who is popular and has lots of friends, whilst Connell struggles to fit in.

Their relationship continues on and off over the years, with many miscommunciations and personal difficulties getting in the way.

Normal People is a great pick for a book club discussion as it is a character driven book with lots to unpick in the behaviour of the two protagonists.

Personally, I loved it and will reread this book again and again. The TV adaptation is also wonderful and one of the best (if not the best) book to screen adaptations I have seen in recent years.

Now let’s get going with some Normal People book club questions!

If for some reason you’ve made it this far but are yet to read Normal People, grab a copy of it now:

Buy Normal People by Sally Rooney

Normal People Book Club Questions

Firstly, let’s talk about the title.

What do you think of the title “Normal People”? Do you think it is an appropriate title for the story? Are either Connell or Marianne “normal”?

Connell and Marianne’s relationship seemingly springs up out of nowhere.

What do you think initially draws the pair together?

Marianne has a fraught relationship with her family and is abused by her brother. By contrast, Connell has a loving and supportive mother.

How do you think both characters are shaped by their families?

Connell ignores Marianne in public at school because he is self-conscious about being seen with a social outcast. But it is revealed at the end of the first part of the story that his friends seemed to know he was seeing Marianne anyway.

How do you feel towards Connell at the end of part 1? Do you feel sympathy towards him?

Once the pair get to university, things change dramatically. Marianne is popular and has lots of friends, whilst Connell struggles to fit in.

How do you think this shift changes their relationship? What is it about university life that makes Connell feel so uncomfortable?

Connell is short on money and wanted to move in with Marianne over the university summer holidays. Through a miscommunication, he ends up moving home instead and the relationship sours.

How do you think things would’ve panned out for the pair if Connell had moved in with Marianne over the summer?

You may have found your feelings about both characters changing a lot as the novel progressed.

Which character did you prefer – Marianne or Connell? Did you like either one more at different points?

Marianne experiences many terrible relationships throughout the story – both romantic, and with her family.

How do you think these shape her? Why do you think she ends up in these terrible romantic relationships? Was Connell really “good” to her?

Marianne and Connell never define their relationship or give it a label.

How do you think both of them defined it to themselves? Do you think they each viewed it differently?

At the end of the novel, Connell is about to leave to study in New York, whilst Marianne will remain in Ireland.

How do you feel about the ending? Do you think the characters will ultimately end up with each other? Did it surprise you that Connell was the one to leave?

Towards the end of the book, Marianne thinks: “They’ve done a lot of good for each other. Really, she thinks, really. People can really change one another.”

Do you think Marianne and Connell were good for each other? Was one of them more good for the other than the other way around?

I hope you have an enjoyable Normal People book club discussion! If you’d like to share your thoughts and answers to any of these in the comments below, please do! I’d love to chat.

Laura

Founder & Editor of What’s Hot?

Laura is an award-winning travel and book blogger based in the UK. She studied French literature at Oxford University and is now an IP lawyer at a top law firm in London. She was named UK Book Blogger of the Year in 2019 and loves to combine her passion for books and travel with literary travel.