Anyone watching “Normal People”

I am watching it for the first time tonight. I thought it was the first one ?

Set to record!

We are reading the book for book club!

I thought the book was awful (but I kept on reading hoping it would improve). I was so cross with myself for falling for the hype and buying it. Dire and clunky.

Watched the first part this evening. Didn’t bother with the second.

I read the book last year and thought it was very well written but somewhat unsatisfying. But I suppose life can be a bit like that - there aren't always "happy endings" but quite often just "OK endings".

I think the TV adaptation is very good and I will certainly continue watching.

www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/apr/26/normal-people-review-sally-rooney-bbc-hulu

I too read it last year. It was okay but I remember thinking it wasn’t brilliant. I won’t bother with the tv adaptation.
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I watched it because my Partner wanted to. I found it rather slow and tedious;

I thought the whole of the first part could have been wrapped up in about 10 minutes.

I'm of the same opinion of Urmstongran, in that I was under whelmed by the book and never understood why it was raved about. Having said that, I think it may be like "Elizabeth is Missing", where the dramatisation, for me at any rate, was far better than the book, mainly due to Glenda Jackson's fantastic performance. I quite enjoyed the first two episodes, it is slow, but nevertheless found the two young leads quite mesmerising, albeit a bit too mature for school, especially the actor. I will stick with it though because I recall the plot takes them through the trials and tribulations of university life and beyond.

A friend bought the book for me last year....I found it beyond tedious.It didn’t start badly though, but then just went on and on as if the author hadn’t planned beyond the middle of the book.I gave it until three quarters through then put out of sight!

I read the book for our book group last year. None of us liked it, found it tedious, but agreed that it might be because we are in our 70s and that younger readers would likely relate to it more. I think I'll give the series a miss.

I was impressed that a school girl was wearing matching underwear!!

Sorry I started another thread in Chat I am so pleased that it wasn’t just me that found it rather tedious, won’t be watching anymore

I expect the young people will like it because it's just about teenagers having sex ( twenty-five-year-old teenagers by the looks of it!) Being well past the age when I thought that watching other people having sex was interesting, I shan't bother again, although I suppose there are many others who will. TEDIOUS beyond imagining. Why can't they serve up something amusing and light-hearted ?

As it was in hardback when it was suggested for book group, we read her first instead, "Conversations with friends," dreadful! So won't be be bothering.

I haven’t read the book but watched it last night - I thought it was beautiful and its pace did justice to the experiences of the young couple. I can see its subtlety and nuance wouldn’t appeal to everyone.
mum does your username mean you have never been a mother to teenage girls? Of course they wear matching underwear ( ime)

I plodded through Conversations with Friends and was underwhelmed.And decided not to bother with any more of the authors books so the TV adaptation didn't appeal either.I may watch later without DH but we have plenty of other programmes lined up to watch -so I doubt I will.

I don't mind "slow" books and drama if I believe in the characters and the situations in which they find themselves - and find them interesting.

Seeing people running round streets, driving fast cars, unearthing mutilated bodies, etc, etc, - as is quite common in many dramas these days - can, in my opinion, be very uninteresting.

Perhaps everybody has got too used to "fast" books, films and TV programmes. To some extent, I include myself in that. I used to love the series of Inspector Morse with John Thaw. Watching them more recently, I found them rather slow and I think that's because a lot of drama has become very action orientated and plot-driven these days, and not so much care is given to creating believable and relatable characters.

Haven’t read the book, but have watched first 4 episodes whilst doing the ironing, yes it’s slow, but after the first episode it improves, I thought it quite a sweet story of first love, lies, deception etc.

I didn’t mind it and thought the girl was rather pretty and interesting although rather mature for what 17/18 but it really was just about how many places you can have sex in
My daughter texted me and said that was the most boring thing she’d ever seen
Does it go on for long ? And does it get any better ?

Unbelievable characters. Boring.

I quite enjoyed it which is unusual for me because I am not usually keen on dramas. But thought I would give it a try and, happily, I am looking forward to the next episode