How Sally Rooney's new novel “Intermezzo” became a celebrity obsession

By all accounts, Sally Rooney's highly anticipated fourth novel was not your typical book release. When it comes to publication in print, most books are treated the same way: advance copies in paperback format, called ARCs or galleys, are published about five months before publication and then again after the official cover is published. This intentionally generates interest, excitement and media even before the release date. But honestly, once you get a foothold in the literary world, it's generally not that hard to get into Galies.

Not so with this book. Only 2,500 copies of “Intermezzo“,” Rooney's latest book has reportedly been sent to journalists, critics, influencers, booksellers and celebrities. Each galley was named and numbered. The result was sudden, dramatic and hectic. Sarah Jessica Parker was photographed reading an advance copy on the set of And Just Like That in July. My social media pages were littered with photos of “Intermezzo.” They rest aesthetically on a wrought iron table next to an Aperol Spritz or deliberately cover the face of a bikini-clad lit influencer reading on a deep-pile beach towel. Everyone wanted a copy. “Intermezzo” had become a status symbol.

The novel is written in the third person, with alternating chapters between two brothers, Peter and Ivan. Peter is a 32-year-old lawyer from Dublin who is torn between his 23-year-old girlfriend Naomi and his ex-girlfriend Sylvia, with whom he is still very much in love. Ivan, a former chess prodigy who lacks social skills much to his brother's chagrin, falls in love for the first time with a woman 14 years his senior. The relationship between Peter and Ivan, strained by the loss of their father and plagued by fundamental misunderstandings, is the foundation of the novel. “Intermezzo” explores the realities of generational divide, the push-pull of brotherhood and family, and the constraints of time. Because it's Rooney, “Intermezzo” With her typical reduced writing style, she impressively explores love, sex, grief and guilt.

Whether the book or not Whether anything is of any use is completely irrelevant. By commercializing a novel as a status symbol, its literary value becomes secondary, perhaps even completely irrelevant. It's like a designer handbag: if you want one and buy one, reports of poor workmanship and suggestions of excessive costs are of little importance. The reality, however, is that even without the scarcity model hype, Rooney was already experiencing an increasingly devout internet following. For better or worse.

Like author Colleen Hoover – a comparison I'm reluctant to make – a large portion of Rooney's readership consists entirely of young online women. #Intermezzo, for example, had 130,000 posts on Instagram on Thursday. Now that the book has been published, there will be many, many more. BookTok, Bookstagram, and the influencers who drive them have the power to catapult an author from obscurity to literary royalty. The problem is that they also make money from book reviews. It may not be worth introducing a more obscure title to the millions of reviews on social media. The result is a revolving door of well-known authors and books, including Rooney. Does that undermine her? It could – but that's not the case, because Sally Rooney is an excellent author.

“Intermezzo” was so popular and successful largely because so many readers, including this one, love Rooney. Often referred to as the “Salinger of the Snapchat generation,” Rooney expertly captures the fears, desires and realities of millennials. Readers love her sincere appreciation of love, her nuanced characters, her understated writing style, and her female-centered sex scenes.

Despite her meteoric success in literary circles, online and in all the intersections between the two, she is notoriously private. It's really ironic. Rooney's conscious attempts to avoid the spotlight are a big part of what makes her shine so brightly. Take, for example, her own celebrity book party, hosted by actress Emma Roberts, which she didn't even attend. fashion, who reported on the event, attributed her absence to the physical distance between County Mayo, Ireland and New York's 11th Avenue and that Rooney “prefers to let her work be the star of the show”. Even if that were completely true, there would have been less to write about in the report if she had just been at the party.

Since launching her career in 2017 with the huge success of Conversations with Friends, Rooney has done her best to reject celebrity. Once, in 2018, she deactivated her . Rooney has often touted fame as a barometer of success; This is certainly notable in a culture now accustomed to cheap and deliberate fame. But Rooney, now incredibly rich and influential, can no longer claim himself as a victim of their runaway success. The status symbol “Intermezzo” proves this.

On Monday evening, à la Harry Potter and Twilight Yesterday's madness, there were “Intermezzo” midnight release parties in bookstores across the country. These community events for book lovers who seem to be just waiting to read the latest from their favorite author are much more like what Rooney still wants to hold on to. A real, honest Irish writer who rarely stays in the spotlight. Whether she can do so remains to be seen.

Although the list is short, “Intermezzo” is not the first novel to go viral before publication. For example, last summer we had “The Guest” by Emma Cline. Aside from what a dizzying example of late capitalism this galley madness is (sorry for Rooney, a self-proclaimed Marxist), it also speaks to literature's renewed cultural capital.

Something happens to books. Between the incessant attacks on book access in public schools, the hugely influential rise of BookTok, and the rise of book-as-status, literature has emerged as a central part of mid-2020s culture. We say this often on MSNBC's Velshi Banned Book Club: Books have power. If you don’t believe me, try finding a copy of “Intermezzo.” at your local bookstore. I'm sure it's sold out.