Rating: ★★★

Summary:

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Literary Fiction

Publication Date: 24th September 2024

No. Pages: 442 Pages

Keywords: Relationships, Family, Grief

Content Warnings: Mental illness, Death, Substance Abuse

Format: Hardback, E-Book, Audiobook

Review

A Literary Case of Peter Pan Syndrome?

The latest Sally Rooney novel, Intermezzo, was the most awaited release of the year. Since her debut release, Conversation with Friends, Rooney has dominated the literary fiction world. Her second novel, Normal People, was adapted into a mini-series which took over the internet. When Faber & Faber announced the release of Rooney’s new book, excitement was palpable and expectations were sky-high.

Intermezzo is the story of two brothers, Ivan and Peter. Ivan is a chess genius that, at the prime age of 22, loses his sparkle and abandons the chess world. Peter, a successful human rights lawyer, is struggling to juggle two significant relationships. Despite an early childhood affinity, Ivan and Peter do not share the close bond they once had. When their father passes away, they exit each other’s life in unspoken agreement. The novel follows them during those initial weeks of grieving, as they come to terms with their relationship with each other and the people they love.

Sally Rooney has always been interested in the complexity of human relationships. Through her writing, she investigates the human condition and the need for interpersonal connection. Rooney’s philosophy is one of anti-individualism, as she explained in her interview for the Louisiana Channel:

“ I [...] don't believe [...]  everyone should be very self-sufficient and “you don't need anyone else to love you, you just need yourself to love you’’. I think that's nonsense; [...] of course we are all connected in a network of human relationships all the time which sustain us. [...] People are out in the fields picking crops so we can eat; people are making clothing that we have to wear. So the idea that you can move through the world as a self-sustaining individual is fiction”.

“Sally Rooney on 'Conversations with Friends'”, Louisiana Channel, Uploaded on Youtube on 06/06/2019

This ideology has been prominent in all of Rooney’s novels, each story expanding and stretching the boundaries of her ideas. That was not the case for Intermezzo. Despite having more room to work with, Rooney fails to step out of her comfort zone. Instead of offering a new perspective on familial relationships, which at first glance would seem to be the focal point of the story, she once again centres the story on romantic “unconventional” affairs. We encounter again the age-gap dilemma, with an added theme of polyamory that was unfortunately not explored in any meaningful way. When reading the blurb, grief also appears to be quite central to the characters’ experiences and their development. However, the writer does not give it much weight, and rather treats it as an embellishment to the plot. The result is a predictable storyline, in which the characters are almost caricatures of themselves. The novel also lacks conflict resolution and character development. By the end of the story, neither character has had a meaningful emotional journey or learnt any lesson as a consequence of their mistakes. The overarching conflict is never resolved; everything is forgiven and forgotten with no apparent reason or purpose.

There is a reluctance from the writer to explore new themes within her work. Her literary voice is improving, but only on an aesthetic level. The substance of her stories has become stagnant. Is this a case of Peter Pan Syndrome? How sustainable is this attitude towards the writing craft, and art in general? I still believe that Sally Rooney is a talented writer, and I have enjoyed her previous work. I will look forward to reading her next book, hoping that I will be proved wrong.

The Round Up

Standout Quote or Moment: “Well, if that's suffering, he thinks, let me suffer. Yes. To love whoever I have left. And if ever I lose someone, let me descend into a futile and prolonged rage, yes, despair, wanting to break things, furniture, appliances, wanting to get into fights, to scream, to walk in front of a bus, yes. Let me suffer, please. To love just these few people, to know myself capable of that, I would suffer every day of my life.”

Read If: You enjoy literary fiction and/or Rooney’s previous work.

Similar Books: “What I'd Rather Not Think About” by Jente Posthuma or “The Poet” by Louisa Reid

Lasting Impression: “Intermezzo” has beautiful writing and well-rounded characters, but fails to make any substantial contribution to the conversion surrounding grief, brotherhood, and love.

Written by Roberta Guarini

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