A short story from Normal People writer, Sally Rooney. We review Mr Salary
Mr Salary – the blurb
My love for him felt so total and so annihilating that it was often impossible for me to see him clearly at all.
Years ago, Sukie moved in with Nathan because her mother was dead and her father was difficult, and she had nowhere else to go. Now they are on the brink of the inevitable…
Faber Stories
Mr Salary was actually my first introduction to Sally Rooney. Normal People had just become a huge hit but I was reluctant to jump on the band wagon. The 30 paged short story seemed like the perfect way to sample Rooney without actually being a sheep and so I grabbed it. Mr Salary is part of the Faber Stories – a series of short stories from masters of past, present and future. Included are the likes of Alan Bennett, Sylvia Plath and of course, Rooney. Having recently watched the TV series and read Normal People it felt like the perfect time to re-read Mr Salary in an attempt to get another Rooney fix.
Will they won’t they?
The books centres around Sukie and her relationship with the somewhat older Nathan, dubbed ‘Mr Salary’ by her drug addled father. Sukie has had a troubled childhood that has had a lasting affect “These cells may look fairly normal, but they are not.” The book oozes with sexual tension yet Rooney manages to include copious amounts of other little things/observations: success being measured by expensive hand dryers; comparing Sukie to a smooth, hard, little ball that her father couldn’t get a purchase on “I just rolled away.” But at the heart of it all is Sukie and Nathan. Will they? Wont they? When will they!
Something to tide you over
Mr Salary is well worth the £3.50. It’s an exquisite piece of writing from one of our best current authors. If you loved Normal People, have read Conversations with Friends twice over and are stumped until her next book (come on Rooney, we’re all waiting) then this is a perfect stocking filler to tide you over.
