None of This is Serious is set in Dublin and follows recent graduate Sophie as she navigates life after university. Sophie's friends all seem to be moving on with their lives while hers falls apart, along with the literal sky. Against a backdrop of political and environmental uncertainty, Sophie struggles to balance her real and online life as she gets caught up in doom scrolling and defending herself from online abuse.
For me, very few authors get it right when including social media and online life in their novels - but Catherine Prasifka nails it here. The inclusion of meme references and online discourse feels seamless instead of forced. and it's this that marks Prasifka as an author with a keen eye on the zeitgeist.

The novel has been recommended for fans of Sally Rooney and I can certainly see that connection. Sophie has a complicated family dynamic that is examined with nuanced scrutiny, a close friendship where power imbalances are coming to a head, and a couple of almost-relationships with boys who play nice but turn out to be cruel.
Prasifka writes modern young womanhood in a way that feels too close to home. This is a debut novel that is still on my mind weeks after reading. Impactful and all-consuming, this was not only one of my favourite debuts of the year so far, but possibly one of my favourite books of all time. I'm excited to see what Prasifka does next…
Review by Abi.
None of This is Serious was published on 07/04/22 by Canongate.
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