Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Ett år av vila och avkoppling by Alva Dahl, Ottessa Moshfegh

18 reviews

imrereads's review against another edition

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I just couldn't find it in me to care after one to many lines or fat shaming, antisemitism, and homophobia. 
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rebeccahensley's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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samarakroeger's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

let the record show that I HATED this book.  And I generally like plotless books about sad, somewhat unlikeable women in their 20s...

This book was such a slog to get through, especially the middle.  It truly put me to sleep better than any of the myriad of sleeping pills featured in (and weirdly endorsed by) this book and put me in a reading slump.  

I got the sense that Ottessa Moshfegh was trying to make this book as provocative as possible (which it definitely was, I just don't really vibe with that approach).  The casual racism, ableism, sexism, and homophobia served no purpose except to solidify my intense dislike for both Moshfegh and our vile, unfeeling narrator.  I've never read a book before where I hated every single character with every fiber of my being.  Reva did deserve a better friend despite her personal flaws.

The reason I gave this 1.5 stars instead of 1 is because Dr. Tuttle is so ridiculous and unhinged she became funny to me - i.e. "I've heard from several esteemed colleagues in Brazil that regular Infermiterol use can activate a profound tectonic displacement.  Followed up with some filigree work using low doses of aspirin and astral projecting, it's proven to be quite effective in curing solipsistic terror...".  After slogging through the 70 page middle chapter (ugh), the last two real chapters (can't count that cheap last paragraph) were alright (in comparison).

This was so incredibly privileged and pretentious and filled with so many triggers for mental illness I have no idea why people liked this book.  I was even more disappointed in this book due to all the positive hype I'd seen about it, so I'd definitely recommend reading the trigger warnings and thinking about why you want to read this absurd, pointless book before you pick it up.
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rissareadss's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad 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

3.0

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lwhitney_'s review against another edition

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dark reflective 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

3.0

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lucynoonan's review against another edition

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  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No

4.25

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xelasrecords's review against another edition

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

3.0

UPDATE: I may have conflicting feelings at the time I reviewed this book but over time this is one of the rare books that I still think about long after I finished.
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"I got sloppy and lazy at work, grayer, emptier, less there. This pleased me, but having to do things became very problematic."

I went into the book only knowing that it's about a girl who wants to sleep for a year and came out of it disliking this unnamed narrator who really only sleeps and be an asshole to the only person who cares about her, no matter how superficial their friendship is.

I don't mind that this is 100% character driven. And I, too, like to sleep to escape my problems. I'm usually interested in dislikeable characters, but I draw the line when she gaslights other people to stay by threatening suicide.

TW: minor homophobic and racist remarks, and fatphobia. Granted, it's set in early 2000s, but still.

-Pooping in the middle of the office after getting fired because she neglected her job and excused it because she saw an art that triggered her maternal trauma. Wtf was THAT
-By the pace she gulps down the sleeping pills, I really thought she would die by the end of the book. The ending is strangely poetic and good though.
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penofpossibilities's review against another edition

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dark reflective fast-paced
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

The last few pages of this novel were surprisingly, abruptly almost, beautiful and philosophical. I felt a sense of dread and general disgust with living and the rest of the world while reading this, which means it gave the exact vibes it wanted to give perfectly well. It felt like a very realistic description of depression and toxic friendship and just life in general. This did not improve my mood but it wasn't supposed to so I can't blame anyone but me 😌. Uhh this wasn't bad but also didn't bring anything into my life , which, again, it probably wasn't supposed to?
Could have been bigger on the social commentary, I loved those parts.
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