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celisabeth's review against another edition
Stopped reading due to triggering content
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, and Toxic friendship
ainsleymm's review against another edition
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Drug abuse, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Body shaming
Minor: Toxic friendship, Vomit, and Abortion
rosrey's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Honestly I don't know how to feel about this book. I breezed through because of how intrigued I was by the main character and what she was planning even though I didn't like her. I could see why this book is so divise, and although I didn't necessarily like any of the characters, it was refreshing to read about characters that are complicated and morally-grey.
AlthoughI could see the 9/11 ending coming from the moment the twin towers were mentioned, I wasn't exactly expecting the protagonists reaction to it to be so... nonchalant. I am a little confused about the whole art thing that happened with Ping Xi was all about, but I found their whole friendship hilarious and absurd.
Overall I liked MY Year of Rest and Relaxation and have already checked out Lapvona to read next.
Although
Overall I liked MY Year of Rest and Relaxation and have already checked out Lapvona to read next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Cancer, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Drug use, and Eating disorder
mabelsyrup's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-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
this book felt personal, and it made me mad ngl.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation was a very introspective read, it dealt with cronic depression, nihilism and grief in a way that didn't romanticize it as to make it seem like it's "aesthetic" and "we all get sad sometimes" but rather made it look ugly and unkept and undesireable. Ottessa Moshfegh knew what she was doing and she did it wonderfully; the narrator (which? I never realized she was never given a name?? i liked that) is physically beautiful but inside she is empty, vain, narcissistic, rude, obnoxious, and very very veeery relatable, she is complex and I often didn't like her, and i think that's the point, she's so far gone that she's just the shell of someone she never got the chance to be, her idea to sleep until she became someone different is desperate and a cry for help of a sort, she wants to experience life and feel the things that we're supposed to instead of that void that eats away at her aaagghgg. Reva also deserves a special mention, she shows another side of living with (i think) deppresion and low self esteem, they were both very flawed and had different outlooks on life, their friendship was interesting.
The book is gen very well crafted, the pace dragged WITH intention in the middle but otherwise it was a breeze (to a fault lol). Not much else to say, the book is just the main character going through this journey and dissecting the things that make her the way she is or isn't. Also, very funny? in a witty and sardonic way imo.
The book does fall off a bit toward the end; after she achieves her plan for the ultimate rejuvenating sleep the story wraps up insanely quickly, i have thought that maybe it's a way of showing how she was right; this plan really worked miracles on her and changed her life in a matter of 2 weeks max, but idk how much i'm into that explanation cuz up to that point this book was very realistic in its portrayal of depression, isolation and the feeling of otherness and having this near magical solution kinda made it look like either there's no positive way of getting over these feelings in the real world or it's proposing this idea that this is a legit approach, but honestly who the fuck cares it was still enjoyable and seeing her becoming a philosophical-thrifting-non caffeinated girlie was fun. Another thing I didn't love was the very last chapter, that last page! Idk what I wanted exactly but THAT last page was weird? I guess it shows the ways that both her and Reva got out of their deppresion, even if one of them was forced, they both took the decision for themselves.
TLDR: weird, but not as weird as I thought. Much more relatable than I ever imagined. Fun!
"I thought life would be more tolerable if my brain were slower to condemn the world around me"
"Life was fragile and fleeting and one had to be cautious, sure, but I would risk death if it meant I could sleep all day and become a whole new person"
"I had no big plan to become a curator, no great scheme to work my way up a ladder. I was just trying to pass the time. I thought that if I did normal things-held down a job, for example-I could starve off the part of me that hated everything"
"Oh, sleep, nothing else could ever bring me such pleasure, such freedom, the power to feel and move and think and imagine, safe from the miseries of my waking consciousness"
"They were all so jovial and relaxed with one another, fraternal even. Maybe I was envious of that. They had lives-that was evident."
"Rejection, I have found, can be the only antidote to delusion"
"There was majesty and grace in the pace of the swaying branches of the willows. There was kindness. Pain is not the only touchstone for growth, I said to myself. My sleep had worked. I was soft and calm and felt things. This was good. This was my life now"
"I'd be renewed, reborn. I would be a whole new person, every one of my cells regenerated enough times that the old cells were just distant, foggy memories. My past life would be but a dream, and I could start over without regrets, bolstered by the bliss and serenity that I would have accumulated in my year of rest and relacation"
My Year of Rest and Relaxation was a very introspective read, it dealt with cronic depression, nihilism and grief in a way that didn't romanticize it as to make it seem like it's "aesthetic" and "we all get sad sometimes" but rather made it look ugly and unkept and undesireable. Ottessa Moshfegh knew what she was doing and she did it wonderfully; the narrator (which? I never realized she was never given a name?? i liked that) is physically beautiful but inside she is empty, vain, narcissistic, rude, obnoxious, and very very veeery relatable, she is complex and I often didn't like her, and i think that's the point, she's so far gone that she's just the shell of someone she never got the chance to be, her idea to sleep until she became someone different is desperate and a cry for help of a sort, she wants to experience life and feel the things that we're supposed to instead of that void that eats away at her aaagghgg. Reva also deserves a special mention, she shows another side of living with (i think) deppresion and low self esteem, they were both very flawed and had different outlooks on life, their friendship was interesting.
The book is gen very well crafted, the pace dragged WITH intention in the middle but otherwise it was a breeze (to a fault lol). Not much else to say, the book is just the main character going through this journey and dissecting the things that make her the way she is or isn't. Also, very funny? in a witty and sardonic way imo.
The book does fall off a bit toward the end; after she achieves her plan for the ultimate rejuvenating sleep the story wraps up insanely quickly, i have thought that maybe it's a way of showing how she was right; this plan really worked miracles on her and changed her life in a matter of 2 weeks max, but idk how much i'm into that explanation cuz up to that point this book was very realistic in its portrayal of depression, isolation and the feeling of otherness and having this near magical solution kinda made it look like either there's no positive way of getting over these feelings in the real world or it's proposing this idea that this is a legit approach, but honestly who the fuck cares it was still enjoyable and seeing her becoming a philosophical-thrifting-non caffeinated girlie was fun. Another thing I didn't love was the very last chapter, that last page! Idk what I wanted exactly but THAT last page was weird? I guess it shows the ways that both her and Reva got out of their deppresion, even if one of them was forced, they both took the decision for themselves.
TLDR: weird, but not as weird as I thought. Much more relatable than I ever imagined. Fun!
"I thought life would be more tolerable if my brain were slower to condemn the world around me"
"Life was fragile and fleeting and one had to be cautious, sure, but I would risk death if it meant I could sleep all day and become a whole new person"
"I had no big plan to become a curator, no great scheme to work my way up a ladder. I was just trying to pass the time. I thought that if I did normal things-held down a job, for example-I could starve off the part of me that hated everything"
"Oh, sleep, nothing else could ever bring me such pleasure, such freedom, the power to feel and move and think and imagine, safe from the miseries of my waking consciousness"
"They were all so jovial and relaxed with one another, fraternal even. Maybe I was envious of that. They had lives-that was evident."
"Rejection, I have found, can be the only antidote to delusion"
"There was majesty and grace in the pace of the swaying branches of the willows. There was kindness. Pain is not the only touchstone for growth, I said to myself. My sleep had worked. I was soft and calm and felt things. This was good. This was my life now"
"I'd be renewed, reborn. I would be a whole new person, every one of my cells regenerated enough times that the old cells were just distant, foggy memories. My past life would be but a dream, and I could start over without regrets, bolstered by the bliss and serenity that I would have accumulated in my year of rest and relacation"
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Grief, and Drug use
soniaaaaaaaa's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The person at the counter as I was buying said it was one of the strangest books she read this year, and she's 100% right
The premise is utterly absurd on surface level, however it is a really good look at a woman who is struggling to deal with her griefand depression, and decides that drastic measures are the only way through the burden that she calls life. It was definitely uniquely hilarious at times. Dr tuttle is my favourite character because of how hilariously incompetent she is
I do think the middle was dragging on a bit however it further cements to the readers an accurate depiction of the main characters monotony, the pointlessness she felt. I also do enjoy unreliable narrator tropes what can I say. I'm not entirely sure about the ending right now, however it definitely was subtly hinted at throughout it which at least didn't make it cheap, but I might retract that at a later day.
3.75 stars
The premise is utterly absurd on surface level, however it is a really good look at a woman who is struggling to deal with her griefand depression, and decides that drastic measures are the only way through the burden that she calls life. It was definitely uniquely hilarious at times. Dr tuttle is my favourite character because of how hilariously incompetent she is
I do think the middle was dragging on a bit however it further cements to the readers an accurate depiction of the main characters monotony, the pointlessness she felt. I also do enjoy unreliable narrator tropes what can I say. I'm not entirely sure about the ending right now, however it definitely was subtly hinted at throughout it which at least didn't make it cheap, but I might retract that at a later day.
3.75 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Self harm and Suicide
Minor: Abortion
maxenporter's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Mental illness
haileyeh's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, Confinement, Drug abuse, Addiction, Sexual content, Eating disorder, and Drug use
Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Medical content, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Cancer, Abortion, and Alcoholism
Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, and Vomit
_rowan_'s review against another edition
dark
reflective
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Alcohol, Body shaming, Cancer, Confinement, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Death of parent, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Terminal illness
addimop's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-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
3.5
wanted to like this book more than i did, but honestly it left me feeling lethargic and a bit sick. the main character’s privilege is
disgusting and somehow her self-awareness makes it worse. the friend is shallow and 2D. i guess the ending is good (?) but is it worth putting up with narrators delusions? im sure somehow this book is a critique on american capitalism and white privilege, it just didnt land for me. the writing is very good though, that definitely saved it
disgusting and somehow her self-awareness makes it worse. the friend is shallow and 2D. i guess the ending is good (?) but is it worth putting up with narrators delusions? im sure somehow this book is a critique on american capitalism and white privilege, it just didnt land for me. the writing is very good though, that definitely saved it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Mental illness, Drug use, and Addiction
Moderate: Eating disorder
sestout's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
sad
medium-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Addiction
Moderate: Terminal illness, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Eating disorder, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Death of parent, Grief, Drug abuse, and Animal death
Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, and Toxic friendship