Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - My Year of Rest and Relaxation

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh

1356 reviews

aishareads1111's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

In reading this book, I got all the emotions. Some laughter, some confusion, and definitely sadness. I heavily related to the protagonist from her way of coping with life, to her lack of emotions and care throughout most of the book. It hit me hard at times. In spite of the emotional roller coaster, I really enjoyed it. Definitely going to re-read and annotate the heck out of it!

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lizvai's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

After hearing a lot of bad reviews I really enjoyed this book. Obnoxious at times but otherwise I thought it was an interesting concept and really well written

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leavemejoy's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

quite the odd book. the unnamed narrator’s goal to essentially hibernate for an entire year is an intriguing concept for a novel. the “plot” itself is a bit boring and repetitive in the beginning, but it picks up towards the middle. slow, but well-paced. outlandish stories like this can easily turn me off, but there was a point to be made with all the chaos, so it worked. the narrator is as compelling as she is insufferable. i see why a lot of people like and don’t like this book; being a character driven narrative, it hinges on you finding her and her relationships enjoyable to read about. her unlikeable personality worked for me as there was a clear purpose to it, but i can see why it did not work for others. the relationship between the narrator and reva was the heart of the novel. i kept reading just to get to more scenes of them together. i liked picking up on the several ways they foil each other and how their dynamic portrays the novel’s more interesting themes.

some (glaring) issues that keep this from being a full 4 stars: the majority of the comedy fell flat for me, apart from two bits that i remember laughing at. the narrator’s tangents about whoopi goldberg were especially unfunny and a little uncomfortable to read at times. as this was advertised as a “dark comedy”, i was disappointed. i also HATED the psychiatrist (i don’t even remember her name). i understand her purpose and why she’s necessary, but her character and dialogue irritated me. lastly, the ending was surprisingly underwhelming given what happens and all the foreshadowing that leads up to it. perhaps this was the point, but my thoughts remain the same.

a cool idea executed somewhat successfully, and it was an enjoyable and entertaining read overall.

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soupygirly's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I have never read something like this before. Annoyingly repetitive and boring but so captivating and beautifully written at the same time.

The last sentence left me stunned because I couldn’t believe that there was no other page coming after this. The narrator needs professional help and definitely not from Dr. Tuttle. I fear I didn’t exactly hate her though… in a way I kind of got her. Couldn’t really blame her somehow. For some things. The ending left me unsatisfied, as already predicted halfway through.

I’m undecided about recommending this book. The concept itself was intriguing, that’s why I picked it up in the first place, but it definitely could have been used better. After reading various reviews I came to the conclusion that it has the potential to change your life but it probably will not. Very overrated in my opinion.

Gonna take a nap now. ⋆⭒˚☾⋆.˚

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