I feel like I have to read/reflect on this book through 2 lenses: the artistic/literary lense and the realistic one. In an artistic sense: it’s beautiful. The ending is powerful and the way Connell and Marianne’s journey is told through these key moments over the years was an effective way to tell their story. In the realistic sense, it’s frustrating (see spoilers ahead) but I can also understand some of the choices. People make mistakes and choose not to say things they should’ve said all the time. 

Overall I found it an engrossing read, a solid 4 stars. 

Why doesn’t Marianne go to therapy??? It’s weird to me that she doesn’t take that step to work on herself when she has been through so much and is fairly self-aware. Especially once Connell goes and benefits from it. Related: their miscommunications were frustrating. They could’ve spent that summer together in college if they had just communicated.