Sorrow and Bliss, by Meg Mason

There are better introspective novels.

The highly anticipated Women’s Prize for Fiction nominated novel, Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason; anticlimactic and there are certainly far better introspective novels. The narrative follows a troubled female protagonist who struggles with controlling her emotions, observing how this came to be in her childhood and how it affects her present. I am battling with my immediate reactions when reading the novel, it left me feeling flat and unsatisfied. This could be because readers, listeners and watchers of mainstream entertainment are majority given succinct conclusions. However, in comparison to other introspective novels with un-concluding endings, Normal People by Sally Rooney, Leaving the Attochi Station by Ben Lerner, what these novels did do is give nuanced observation. Mason’s writing lacked unique insight, therefore left me feeling flat and indifferent to the characters. It is a cliche to say it read like The Bell Jar, but it absolutely did, that text also left me cold, but Sylvia Plath gave a far better description into existing with depression, whilst Mason just told us the character’s did.

I am a huge fan of introspective unsatisfyingly “normal” writing, however, this wasn’t it, if you want a better book that observes the complexities of mentality read My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Otessa Moshfeigh, a review of this novel is available on this website.

Written by Stephanie Ornithari Roberts