‘Creative leap’: Third novel by Normal People author Rooney on way
BESTSELLING author Sally Rooney is hoping to replicate the success of
Normal People with a third release due out later this year, titled Beautiful World, Where Are You?
The Mayo writer (29) scored a global success with her second book, a follow-on to her debut novel
Conversations with Friends.
The book, based on the complicated relationship between two Trinity students, was adapted by BBC Three and Hulu, and made huge stars out of Paul Mescal and Daisy EdgarJones.
Rooney’s new book tells the story of two best friends named Alice and Aileen who are both in their late 20s, but in different places and on very different trajectories.
The narrative centres around them exchanging emails about art, friendship and the world around them, as well as the complex love affairs unfolding in their own lives.
They indicate they want to see each other again soon, but are uncertain what will happen when they do.
Publisher Alex Bowler has acquired the UK and Commonwealth rights in a two-book deal from Tracy Bohan at the Wylie Agency. It will be published in Canada and the US by Knopf. Speaking about the novel, he said it was “a book of friendship and sex, art and faith, power and love”.
“It absorbs you once again in the inner lives of characters with brilliant minds and aching hearts, while marking the next creative leap from a singular writer. The book scintillates with intelligence, empathy and, yes, beauty,” he said.
It will be published by Faber in September in paperback and hardback form and is expected to attract huge interest among Rooney’s many fans.
Nominated for an Emmy for her work on the TV adaptation of Normal People, Rooney first came to prominence with her 2017 novel Conversations with Friends, which earned her a string of awards.
The 12-part TV adaptation of Normal People, released in April last year, now holds the title of BBC’s moststreamed release, clocking up some 62.7 million views during the year. It had over three million streams on the RTÉ Player and was also a huge success stateside, earning Mescal an Emmy nomination.