A well-told and relatable look at the trials and tribulations of coming of age in the era of social media. I thought this novel was a well-paced and incredibly observant critique of online culture and its impact on young minds. Relatable and musing central character.

I absolutely loved this, completely unputdownable.
A coming of age story about the reality and struggles of growing up with the internet and social media and the difference between who you really are versus what you want people to see and think of you. Very well written and relatable.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Well! This book made such an impression. It's both relateable and horrifying in equal measures with moments that were excrutiatingly painful to read and moments that were so tender they near broke my heart. It resonated with me on so many levels, touching closely on my some of own experiences and closer still some of the fears I harbour for my children. It me made acutely aware of how vulnerable we can be online, was intensely intimate and incredibly powerful and has been bouncing around in my head since I finished it a couple of months ago. I loved the style of writing and the closeness I felt to the narrator. I loved the way it made me think about difficult and current issues. And I loved how chilling but utterly real it felt. It's an incredible book.

This was a truly 5 star read. I really enjoyed “None of This is Serious”, but Prafiska’s new fare is even better. The intimacy of 2nd person narrative works brilliantly here, and as I also grew up around the time of the internet boom of the late 90’s/early 00’s, this book brought with it a nostalgia I didn’t know I had. The writing is raw and sucks you straight in, I read this across two sittings and didn’t want it to end.
I looked forward to her next novel.

This book takes a very specific period of time, particularly in relation to the burgeoning internet to explore some clever and gripping points around safety and privacy, and how we give up parts of our selves. I found this book packed in a lot into a short book, keeping propulsive and wise throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

This Is How You Remember It delves into the early days of the internet through the perspective of a nine-year-old girl. Initially enchanted by the discovery of cute animal photos and innocent online interactions, she soon encounters unsettling adult content that profoundly impacts her understanding of her own body and relationships.

As the protagonist's access to this mature and often pornographic material goes unchecked, it begins to shape her expectations and experiences in troubling ways. The novel explores how this unregulated exposure leads to significant repercussions throughout her teenage years and early adulthood, exacerbating issues of self-image and interpersonal relationships. The narrative poignantly addresses the consequences of early and uncontrolled internet access, including the harassment and degradation that arise from both cyberbullying and the invasive nature of digital documentation.

I really enjoyed Prasifka's first book and from the concept alone I knew I was going to love this even more. I was alarming to be reading something that so closely mirrored my experience of being online, particularly from a young age, and being able to process it from a distance reading this book, I was troubled. Really impactful, one I'll think about for a long long time.

Described as “Chilling, potent and intensely intimate, This is How You Remember It is at once a cautionary tale, a call to arms and a tender love story. It is about a life lived online, and about finding another way, when it’s all you’ve ever known.”

It brings us through the mind of a young girl from age 9 to early twenties. It’s scary to realise what teenagers can go through today. A thoroughly engaging read.

A very interesting exploration of the influence of social media and the internet in young people’s lives. As someone who would have grown in the same era that the author is writing about, it is quite chilling to be reminded of how much we used to unwittingly share online and how that can result in some dark outcomes.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC.

Reading this book made me feel like i’d been peeled open and it pushed on my every nerve. Prasifka completely nails the experience of growing up perpetually online and the second person narration worked perfectly although I was hesitant about it at first. You feel everything the protagonist goes through in your gut. Highly highly recommend.

This is the authors second novel and I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the first but I found the subject matter really interesting.

The book focuses a lot on growing up in the internet era and being a child/teenager when social media and the internet was just growing into something that we use everyday. It was a read a found quite difficult because a lot of the damaging things which happened to the main character concerning the internet also happened in some form to me, so it brought back some memories which were hard to think about which is why I think this book was personally not as enjoyable as her debut.

But I do like books which have a strong sense of time and place and the nostalgia for the 00s something really popular in fiction at the moment and Prafiska captures this perfectly. I flew through the book because it was a super easy read and would really recommend it if you enjoy contemporary Irish fiction with a coming of age plot in it that does touch on a lot of darker and more traumatic themes regarding the internet age.

Raw.
I felt a deep connection with the situations and characters from the very first page. I think this is good representation of what it was like to grow up in the early 2000s as well as the situations to which women have been subjected by men through technological advances in our daily life. The lack of restrictions in the internet and the facility in which one could –and still can– access disturbing content is just one of the subjects that resonated so much with myself.
I hope people who can handle the deeper and distressing matters within this work give it a go.

🖱️ In "This is How You Remember It," Catherine Prasifka offers an uncompromising vision of girlhood and coming-of-age as our young protagonist grows up around the perils of the internet and social media.

🖱️ Prasifka's bold decision to employ second person narration is a risk that ultimately pays off. Through this unusual narrative technique, readers are not mere observers but active participants, placed directly in the main character's shoes. As she navigates the perilous landscape of social media and the internet, we experience her struggles firsthand.

🖱️ The result is a powerful and affecting reading experience that invites us to question the role of technology in shaping the identities of young people, whilst inviting us to reflect on our own relationships with technology.

Rating: ★★★★¼

This Is How You Remember It by Catherine Prasifka is a hard-hitting novel that tackles the impact of the internet and being online on a child and the consequences of that.

Another book, I'm not sure if I loved or hated which is a good thing because that usually means it made an impact on me.

I thought it was very well written, clever and sharp. It's second person narrative which might bother some but it added to the overall feel of the book for me. I did find the time jumps a little confusing at times.

This book made me squirm while reading. It reminded me of how it felt to discover the internet and having an online presence. I am CRINGING thinking of bebo 😂
It's also terrified me because theres no escaping the web these days, and now I'm raising my own kids. One of whom is a massive gamer, my nerves are gone.

Overall, I thought this was a great read. Hugely relatable and very sad sometimes. The metaphor of the hole really resonates. I think it's an important and timely book that serves as a reminder of what lurks beyond the screen.
Would recommend. 4⭐️

Huge thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review

This is a rather terrifying novel, guaranteed to put shivers up every parents spine. It chronicles the online life of a young Irish woman, over a roughly 20 year period: from the family’s first home computer, where she discovers online porn to obsessively recording every detail of her life on social media as a teenager and young adult.

The protagonists loses all sense of self and is in effect de-sensitised by what she views online. This in turn makes it difficult for her to form relationships and to feel worthy of being loved. . This is a very tough read at times, and makes me appreciate being a teenager of the 1980s. Written in the (rare) second person present tense throughout, there’s a real sense of intimacy and revelation as the narrator tells her story. As the reader, you feel like you are in the room with the young woman. I found this an uncomfortable, disconcerting read and it was a 3 star read for me, Many thanks to @netgalley and @canongatebooks for the advance copy in return for my review.

An all too familiar story as an Irish 90s girl. It perfectly encapsulates growing up as internet culture, social media and smartphones all quickly emerged. The pure lack of understanding which lead to being unsupervised and unguided. How relentlessly peers put it to use without check. The confusion it stirred in you. This definitely hit a nerve. Super well written and always relevant.

I really liked the premise of this book and the first half was both captivating and disturbing. The use of the second-person was very emotive and Prasifka did a wonderful job of transporting the reader back to the complexities of childhood in the digital age. The second half of the novel, however, really fell flat for me. The timeline was quite confusing as the protagonist’s ages were never specified and the plot started to lose its magic. I found that the description of the book was quite misleading as it became a sort of generic coming-0f-age romance story, which unfortunately caused me to lose interest in the novel.

I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest unedited feedback. Thank you NetGalley!

This book blew me away, I’ve never read anything like this. The second person point of view was so interesting to read! The story is very compelling and beautifully written. It’s a sort of love letter to growing up as a girl at the beginning of the internet and I identified with it a lot.

I really went through a journey reading this book and it was so interesting to me that I was able to see the world and experience it through someone else’s perspective but then at the same time feel nostalgic towards my own experiences. Particularly the teenage school years brought up a lot of feelings that I had long forgotten.

Tender, eye opening, and poignant, this book is a must read for anyone who remembers their parents bringing home their first family computer and lived their childhoods through the computer screen.

I finished reading this book about two weeks ago and I have thought about it every day since. What a book.
I enjoyed Prasifka's first novel , I loved this, her second. What an incredible writer she is.

This is How Your Remember It is an intense and intimate read. It hammers home its message over and over again, I almost wanted to look away at several points but I could not stop reading this, there's an urgency and fearlessness to the writing and it will resonate hard with so many people across age groups but particularly those who grew up online. For me as a parent, it echoed so many of the fears I have.

We meet the protagonist when she is 9 and gets her first computer. She has a virtual pet, soon she is chatting to people online. Later her first kiss is captured on camera. Her first boyfriend records her in bed. Her phone flashes with notifications constantly. She knows because it is always in her hand.

This is a violently realistic and chilling tale about growing up online and living online. The writing is incredible. Described as a cautionary tale, a call to arms and a tender love story by the publishers, there is nothing I could offer as more apt description. One of the best books I have read this year, to date. What a writer. What a book.