Inside The Sally Rooney Launch Party
A dispatch.
Something in the air changes when a new Sally Rooney novel is published. Branded bucket hats start popping up on the heads of people on the train carrying The Drift tote bags. Numbered galleys — more exclusive than Fashion Week invites — circulate. Readers start seeing the world in a singular color palette: In this case, the goldenrod and slate gray comprising the chess board Intermezzo cover, landing in nail-bitten hands everywhere any day now. Unlike the many authors taking marketing and publicity into their own hands Sally Rooney has made it clear she wants to be left alone to write. Belletrist, the book club helmed by Karah Preiss and actress Emma Roberts – which is, for the record, Language Arts’ favorite celebrity book club, listened.
We go to a lot of splashy literary parties: Some have pay-by-donation Botox; others have custom perfumes. But the Sally Rooney book party, which was also hosted by Rooney’s publisher FSG at the Irish Arts Center, turned up the volume, elevating the book party to that of a premiere. (What we’re really trying to say is there was a custom photo booth and a step-and-repeat. In Hell's Kitchen, no less!) However, if you’re conjuring images of a rosy-cheeked Paul Mescal hunched over a Guiness in a damp cedar pub, you’re mistaken. The Irish Arts Center looks more like the lobby of a privately-funded university, complete with Gaelic translations on the wall. Ever wondered what the Gaelic word for library is? Leabharlann. Unfortunately, we can’t help you with the pronunciation, even a little bit.
There were not one, but two drafts of Guinness on tap, which felt fitting for the location…while also leaving us wondering: What goes down at the Irish Arts Center when there isn’t a Sally Rooney book premiere? The surprise crowd pleasers were mini shepherd’s pies; imagine going to a party and actually feeling sustained from a meal instead of chasing down a waiter for a singular bite of quiche like a little rat? Bliss! Of course, an early evening Manhattan party would not be complete without signature drinks: a Ghia mocktail called The Grand Master and a refreshing mezcal cocktail (Would Sally Rooney like mezcal? We’re not so sure.)
The night brought out NYC’s literati, including Celebrity Book Club co-host Lily Marotta, Hunter Harris, Anna Marie Tendler, and Coco Mellors. TikTok’s @DJBooks mixed audiobook readings into his set, his laptop balancing precariously on a stack of books that included Trick Mirror and Dostoevsky while girls braver than us hovered over a beading station to craft chess-themed friendship bracelets. Everyone was secretly wondering the same thing: Would we be leaving with copies of Intermezzo once the clock struck 8 p.m.? You better believe it. Gift bags included a hardcover of the novel, along with bandanas, cloth napkins, enamel pins, and the pièce de résistance: an Intermezzo baggu.
