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Solitaire

by Alice Oseman · 2014

"Solitaire" is the debut novel of British author Alice Oseman, narrated by sixteen-year-old Victoria "Tori" Spring, a cynical, withdrawn sixth-form student who likes to sleep and blog and insists from the outset that this is… more

First published 2014 · 392 pages · English

30 quotes ★ 3.92 (146,315) Contemporary

Quotes from the Book

But books–they’re different. When you watch a film, you’re sort of an outsider looking in. With a book–you’re right there. You are inside. You are the main character.
561
I don’t want people to be worried about me. There’s nothing to worry about. I don’t want people to try and understand why I’m the way I am, because I should be the first person to understand that. And I don’t understand yet. I don’t want people to interfere. I don’t want people in my head, picking out this and that, permanently picking up the broken pieces of me.
291
All I know is that I’m here. And I’m alive. And I’m not alone.
255
As far as I'm concerned, I came out of the womb spouting cynicism and wishing for rain.
209
There’s a time and a place for being normal. For most people, normal is their default setting. But for some, like you and me, normal is something we have to bring out, like putting on a suit for a posh dinner.
172
You like to act as if you care about nothing and if you carry on like that then you’re going to drown in the abyss you have imagined for yourself.
170
I think you should know that I make up a lot of stuff up in my head and then get sad about it. I like to sleep and I like to blog. I am going to die someday.
169
Nobody is honest, nobody is real. You can't trust anyone or anything. Emotions are humanity's fatal disease. And we're all dying.
135
You look like you're having a midlife crisis." "It's not a midlife crisis. It's just a life crisis.
132
Do you think that, if we were happy for our entire lives, we would die feeling like we'd missed out on something?
121
School literally doesn’t care about you unless you’re good at writing stuff down or you’re good at memorising or you can solve bloody maths equations. What about the other important things in life?
113
There comes a point, though, when you can't keep looking after other people any more. You have to start looking after yourself.
108
I actually think that a lot of people are very beautiful, and maybe even more beautiful when they are not aware of it themselves.
98
We’re so used to disaster that we accept it. We think we deserve it.
88
Just because something doesn't matter doesn't mean it's not worth doing.
87
The problem is that people don't act. The problem is that I don't act. I just sit here, doing nothing, assuming that someone else is going to make things better.
87
I hate the phone. It is the worst invention in the history of the world, because if you don’t talk, nothing happens. You can’t get by with simply listening and nodding your head in all the right places. You have to talk. You have no option. It takes away my freedom of nonspeech.
84
I think it's better to just read and not study books.
78
You know, if you want to be happier, you have to try. You have to put in the effort. Your problem is that you don’t try.” I do try. I have tried. I have tried for sixteen years.
74
If this is the best time of my life, I might as well end it immediately.
64
I hadn’t realized I was crying. I don’t really feel sad. I don’t really feel anything.
63
Happiness," he says, "is the price of profound thought." "Who's that quote from?" I ask. He winks. "Me.
62
Nothing's going to change until you decide you want it to change.
60
I think you should know that I make up a lot of stuff in my head and then get sad about it.
58
we're all waiting for something to change. Patience can kill you
55
I'm a little bit in love with everyone I meet.
53
I really don’t do anything unless I actually want to do it. And most of the time I don’t want to do anything at all.
52
I don't know why I made all that fuss the other day. No that's a lie. I do know why. It's because I'm an idiot.
48
Just because someone smiles doesn’t mean that they’re happy.
47
Basking in the light and glory that comes with not giving a damn.
47

Did you know?

  • It was Alice Oseman's debut novel, written largely while she was a teenager.
  • The narrator Tori Spring is the older sister of Charlie Spring, who later became a lead character in Oseman's "Heartstopper" series.
  • Oseman has said the opening line establishes that the book is deliberately not a romance.
  • The novel was shortlisted for the inaugural YA Book Prize in 2015.
  • Solitaire is set in the same fictional universe as Oseman's other works, including "Radio Silence," "I Was Born for This," and "Heartstopper."

About Alice Oseman

Alice Oseman (born 1994) is a British author and illustrator best known for the "Heartstopper" graphic novel series. She published her debut novel "Solitaire" at nineteen and is recognized for young adult fiction centered on LGBTQ+ characters and mental health.

More about the author →

About the book

"Solitaire" is the debut novel of British author Alice Oseman, narrated by sixteen-year-old Victoria "Tori" Spring, a cynical, withdrawn sixth-form student who likes to sleep and blog and insists from the outset that this is not a love story. As Tori navigates the pressures of A-Levels, a fractured friendship, and her family, she becomes entangled with the eccentric, relentlessly optimistic Michael Holden and an anonymous group called Solitaire that begins staging escalating pranks and acts of sabotage at her school.

Told in Tori's sardonic first-person voice, the book explores adolescent isolation, depression, anxiety, and the difficulty of connecting with others, alongside themes of mental health, family strain, and the search for meaning amid academic and social pressure. Oseman wrote the novel while still a teenager herself, and its frank treatment of a disaffected narrator's inner life is central to its appeal.

Published when Oseman was nineteen, "Solitaire" launched her career and introduced the wider world she would continue to develop; Tori's younger brother Charlie Spring later became a central character in Oseman's hugely popular "Heartstopper" series. The book drew attention for its candid portrayal of teenage mental health and established Oseman as a notable voice in contemporary young adult fiction.

Key characters

  • Tori SpringCynical, withdrawn sixteen-year-old narrator
  • Michael HoldenEccentric, energetic classmate who befriends Tori
  • Charlie SpringTori's younger brother, recovering from mental health struggles
  • Becky AllenTori's popular best friend
  • Lucas RyanA boy from Tori's childhood who re-enters her life

Book details

First published
2014
Length
392 pages
Reading time
6 hours
Goodreads rating
3.92 (146k ratings)
First line
“In case you're wondering, this is not a love story.”

Critical reception

  • Shortlisted for the inaugural YA Book Prize in 2015.
  • Praised by reviewers for its candid portrayal of teenage depression and an unsentimental narrator.
  • Gained renewed attention after the success of Oseman's "Heartstopper" series, which features Tori's brother Charlie.

Series & reading order

  1. 1 Solitaire

If you liked this, read…

  1. 1
    The Perks of Being a WallflowerAnother introspective first-person YA narrator coping with isolation and mental health
  2. 2
    Radio SilenceAlice Oseman's own follow-up novel set in the same universe with a similar tone
  3. 3
    All the Bright PlacesYA novel dealing frankly with teenage depression and connection

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