Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

내 휴식과 이완의 해 by Ottessa Moshfegh

135 reviews

tezariah's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This is a very complicated book and story. The main character who remains unnamed throughout the whole novel is extremely complicated. She is incredibly unlikeable and we are given no reason to like her as a person at all. However, from many reviews I have read and heard, there are people who want to like the main character to make up for the lack of plot. I think that’s understandable and also foolish. As readers, we aren’t supposed to love and idolize every character we read. Sometimes, we are supposed to dislike them but try and understand their story. At least, that’s my philosophy and what I presume to be true. 

This novel is incredibly well written. This is my first read from Ottessa Moshfegh and I plan to read her other works. 

I did love this character because of how real and relatable she was, and I’m not some white, rich, woman who lives in New York City or had some upperclass life with parents who seemed of high status or whatever. I am pretty much far below that bar and rank, but that doesn’t mean she should be erased and neglected from minds because she doesn’t have that relation, connection, or tie… she is relatable in the sense of having given up and wanting a fresh start and being so done with life. She was depressed and didn’t know how to manage and chose an option that seemed better to her and we read that play out. 

I don’t think the purpose was to get us to sympathize, especially with how twisted, cruel, and menacing she was with her words and some of her actions, but we could sympathize and understand without liking her. I enjoyed that. 

Considering a lot of reviews that I have read and heard, I do think this book is for a specific and small group of people, but I don’t exactly know that group. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Mental illness, Eating disorder, Grief, Drug use, Alcoholism, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Sexual content, and Pregnancy

alyc00per's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death of parent, and Grief

Minor: Fatphobia, Pregnancy, Drug use, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cursing, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Ableism, Abortion, Animal death, Classism, and Toxic relationship

lady_oracle's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective tense 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

4.5

“Sodium”: salt, white, clouds, gauze, silt, sand, sky, lark, string, kitten, claws, wound, iron, omega.
“Lauryl”: Shakespeare, Ophelia, Millais, pain, stained glass, rectory, butt plug, feelings, pigpen, snake eyes, hot poker.
“Sulfate”: Satan, acid, Lyme, dunes, dwellings, hunchbacks, hybrids, samurais, suffragettes, mazes.

quite possibly one of the literally coolest books available on planet earth. who doesn't just want to take a year off? and not die, necessarily, but sleep? ottessa nails this. really fascinating take on the hero's journey, where really all the protagonist does is pop pills and pass out, effectively falling deeper down the rabbit hole of drug abuse. a thoughtful perspective of grief and trauma - and my favourite, an unlikable, relatable bitch of a narrator.

the memories of her parents were so spectacularly done. the passage in particular about the week leading up to the day of her father passing made me a bit queasy, because that was nearly exactly the experience i had with my own. prose was poetic and tactile. also love-hated the doctor.

some questionable moments, but nothing i think too shocking for anyone who's familiar with this author. so glad this is what i've kicked off 2024 with.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Death of parent, and Drug use

Moderate: Sexual assault, Mental illness, Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Toxic friendship, Body shaming, Eating disorder, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Excrement, Infidelity, Suicide, and Vomit

nessidy's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Drug use, Vomit, Eating disorder, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Cancer, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Abortion

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? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Addiction, Drug use, and Mental illness

Moderate: Death, Grief, Suicide, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Animal death, Death of parent, and Eating disorder

Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, and Toxic friendship

gmtietz's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

it was, in fact, not a year of rest and relaxation, but rather a year of turmoil and taxidermy dogs. this was as apathetic and disturbing as it was tender and emotional. this novel held my attention from start to finish, and i’m so excited to explore more from moshfegh. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Body shaming, Child abuse, Ableism, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship

fromatreebranch's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-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

3.0

hm.

it was easy to finish.

and difficult to read.

easy: i really like
the pacing, voice,
characterization.

difficult:
1. I... am studying my eye
for desire politics...

this book was useful
in this regard --

the narrator's discussion
of self, Whoopi
("magical negro trope"/fixation
with Whoopi and her body),

and/in relation with every other
person/subject in the book.

2. This person 
is really hurting.

p.s.
did not realize
until now that 

i wasn't forgetting
her name -- we do
not ever get it!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Grief, Self harm, Drug use, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Abortion, Medical content, Misogyny, Child abuse, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Addiction, Animal death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, and Cancer

scarfires's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Vomit, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Alcohol, Cancer, Grief, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Animal death, and Eating disorder

Minor: Terminal illness, Abortion, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

ada_henry's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

*PSA-- this is not a healthy way to live. You WILL die if you take that many medications at once.*

Hmm...

This book was really gosh darn good. It was such an interesting examination of love, friendship, and femininity with great commentary on mental health, art, and privilege. There were a lot of hot takes in this book, and I was here for all of them.

It felt like a mashup between The Catcher in the Rye and The Bell Jar, which might make it one of the best pieces of fiction ever written. It follows a wealthy and privileged but depressed young woman as she attempts to sleep for a year. It was brilliant, witty, and incredibly funny at times. Anyone looking for well-written, engaging prose would find this book satisfactory.

That being said, it was veering on annoying. If I didn't like it, I would've hated it. It's like that one friend everyone has who is effortlessly pretty, kind, and good at everything, but doesn't seem to recognize how lucky they are. The main character is bratty and self-centered, which was a very purposeful decision, but it can become exhausting nonetheless.

I found a few things to be particularly interesting:
- The narrator's name is never revealed. I found this to be similar to books that don't mention a specific time period or location-- it makes the book more readable and it allows readers to connect more. I don't think anything would have been taken away from the story had the main character had a name, but I do think the lack of a moniker really added something to it.
- Interesting how her [narrator's] mother died from combining alcohol and sleep medications and all she wants is more sedatives.
- I wasn't expecting this book to be so sad-- girlie is seriously traumatized and needs a better therapist to help her process her very tragic life.
- Books always have such extreme takes on mental health. This book is interesting compared to others I've read recently: it is undeniably focused on mental health, but it doesn't have a direct approach to it, like Girl in Pieces does and it while it's the central part of the story, it's not explored in great depth. The narrator's reaction to her past experiences is almost the opposite of that in A Little Life. This book was especially interesting to read in the context of A Little Life.
- I could see that ending coming from a mile away. That was my only complaint with the book and the reason why it's getting 4.5/5 stars. The ending felt rushed and unnecessary. And it was so predictable.

All I can say is that I will definitely be reading more of Moshfegh's writing in the future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, and Animal death

crazytourists_books's review against another edition

sad fast-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

I have to admit that I stand with the minority for this one. I found it pointless. It wasn't deep, it wasn't weird, it wasn't disturbing. Not even dark. 
It deals with depression in a very shallow way if you ask me. The protagonist, obviously depresed and traumatised (I'll go as far as to say abused), decides to spend a year asleep (by using all kinds of prescription pills) in order to restart her mind and get over her mental issues. And behold, what a miracle! The end was completely bonkers, as everything else and don't get me started on the psychiatrist... 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Vomit, Eating disorder, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Confinement, Death of parent, Drug use, and Emotional abuse