Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

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

163 reviews

zoethecraftyreader's review against another edition

Go to review page

Really not my cup of tea, felt like it was being grotesque at certain times for the sake of it rather than really adding anything to the narrative. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

molarbear31's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

littleseal's review against another edition

Go to review page

- My dumbass thinking Infermiterol was really a medication (I am a therapist that knows some medications but clearly was "tricked" to think this was, lol)
- There is something so interesting about the writing that it was hard to put down sometimes
- I knew, <i>knew</i> what the ending was going to be;
The book was set in 2000, and knew it'd go into 2001 and it would relate back to 9/11
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

gracenick3's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny reflective medium-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

4.75

I loved this book. If you’re not a fan of books with no plot, just vibes, that are dark and self obsessed, this one isn’t for you. But if you like reading about out-of-touch rich women suffering from their own decisions, this is for you. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

ktc97's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I had previously read another Moshfegh and didn’t love it, but was so pleasantly surprised by this one. I feel like Moshfegh’s strengths shine through when her dark writing is accompanied by some relief. This one had a ton of hilarious satire and a compassionate message at the end. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

leafyjosie's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

3.75

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

palomajoplin's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark funny reflective sad fast-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

4.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

tangoteamleader's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

4.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

calicoes's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark hopeful reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

i won't lie, i enjoyed the hell out of reading it and found it extremely hard to put down for later (for the most part.) HOWEVER. 

for me, my year of rest and relaxation was a rollercoaster that, more often than not, kept slinking downwards, and then her transformation at the end felt almost magic. it was nearly comical! i wanted it for her, and yet almost couldn't believe it? her ironic criticism of people's shallowness when she didn't seek any deeper meaning herself and held onto nothing but a dream... ultimately worked out for her—in other words, it reads to me as the "good ending" to all her decisions that would otherwise to lead to her (worse) demise.

the whole ordeal with ping xi came up a bit suddenly to me, didn't make as much sense as it was supposed to and happened very quickly—but i took it all as a satire and remark of the topics handled throughout the novel; image, ego, class & desperate relationships; all reflected in the bitter, privileged protagonist, her psyche, loveless past and her motives (or lack thereof?); her relative privilege seeming to just fuel her apathy & delusion only because it's all she can occupy herself with (childhood neglect aside.) i did note a bunch of ideas getting repetitive, but at other times i found much profoundness in those fleeting thoughts. 
plus 9/11 mentioned. saw it a mile away (reva's promotion lol)
 

maybe i'll be up to annotate the book by the time i re-read, and get my thoughts in better order... unfortunately i ate this one up
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

decrown's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny reflective 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

I struggled to rate this. A great book with a terrible protagonist. I hated almost every single thing she said and thought and did but I also couldn’t stop reading. Leans on shock value a bit much at times. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings