Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Diary of an Oxygen Thief by Anonymous

32 reviews

jayismit's review

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dark sad medium-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

3.25


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icarusandthesun's review against another edition

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dark funny 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

2.75

lots of potential, average execution.

i picked this up because i saw a youtube short that basically said something along the lines of "i'm halfway through this book and i feel sick" backdropped by a picture of the first page, adorned with the very eye-catching first sentence:
 
i liked hurting girls. 

i was intrigued, because i'm a fan of all things dark, disgusting, disturbing, mental.

and the first third was quite good, actually - funny (the narrator taking the "pith" out of someone's "lithsp" was probably the funniest thing i've read in a book ever) and cynical; the reader absolutely appalled by the narrator and yet being met with smart and relatable quotes, self-aware, realistic observations about life and the relationships we choose to fill it with.

but all of that sort of got lost as the story progressed: the narrator becoming an emblem in AA (alcoholics anonymous), getting a good job, fretting about the future, describing his boring and mid-life-crisis way of living, and tiring everyday life.
halfway through, this turned into some sort of self-pitying self-help book written by a touch-deprived middle-aged man.

and the thing with aisling, right...
the thing we've been waiting for since page one.
Spoilerit was just silly. i didn't pity the narrator and i also didn't understand what her strategy was supposed to be. it didn't have any impact, wasn't surprising, wasn't brutal at all (which is what i'd desperately hoped for).

it was nothing.

infuriating, considering i read 140 slow and excruciating pages to get to this point just to be disappointed like every girl the narrator fooled back in his prime time. (ironic, if you think about it.)

yeah, i just expected something a little different. i wanted disgusting, unhinged. i wanted another humbert humbert (shame on whoever it was who compared this book to lolita in the synopsis).
i wanted so much more than this.

but alas.

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bookmark3brodi's review against another edition

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dark reflective 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

1.25


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peterockshakur's review

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dark funny mysterious sad fast-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

Entertaining, gross, farfetched read.  Won’t read the sequel. This book made me feel grimy. 

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nicoleanthony's review

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

2.0


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real_vivi's review

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reflective medium-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

2.5

I hate the main character... That's it. If you relate in any way please get some help

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honeybunchesofoats06's review

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dark emotional 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

2.0


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niclore's review

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

1.0

I don’t understand this book, the main character is awful and the karma at the end fell flat.

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julianalynne's review

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dark sad tense 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

4.5

A really deep psychological stream of consciousness from a perceived protagonist with a mind comparable to that of a serial killer. I loved it, I loved trying to understand him, and I loved partially feeling a sort of relationship with him through his journey in recovery. Totally recommend.

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nymnphi's review

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

1.0

i always like to extend benefit of the doubt to books that try their hardest to touch upon a niche genre, but this one was not it (and when this opinion is the popular one, you know something is up with the book).

to compare Diary of an Oxygen Thief to Lolita is like comparing a slice of cake to a charred cookie. yes, they are both baked goods in their own right, only one is enjoyable and a masterpiece in its own right.
 
never once did i ever find myself sympathizing with the narrator. he is a pretentious, hypocritical asshole who seems to think that a) acknowledging his faults makes him less of an asshole (it does not) and b) what happened to him at the climax + conclusion justifies the slew of women he psychologically tortured (it did not).

 the phrase "hurt people hurt people" is used so much as a way to justify these misgivings that it ends up being an excuse rather than an explanation. 

the ending fell flat for me. when the events at the bar concluded, i was genuinely left wondering what else was going to happen in the next five pages for me to feel even a sliver of remorse. i suppose there's another book for that, but the plot and characters were all just so bland and unlikeable there is zero chance anyone would pick up the next one. i remember laughing out loud at all the times he mentions the chance of the book being published. seriously, who approved this book?

tldr; this book is a romanticized account of a manipulative and abusive  person who hurts people without remorse and paints himself as the victim (bullshit). 

this is not a story of a damaged soul who needs to find love and heal and move on in a world that is against him, this is the story of a person that chooses to hurt people in retaliation for being damaged, and he wants you to feel sorry for him even though he never changes or shows an ounce of genuine remorse.

at least the title is accurate. this truly was the diary of someone who is stealing oxygen from those who deserve it.

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