Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

내 휴식과 이완의 해 by Ottessa Moshfegh

136 reviews

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... 

---

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

ashley_turch's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

3.5

Definitely a difficult read, kind of in a good way. Make sure you’re in a good mental state. Written from narrator’s POV, so there’s lots of internal reflection of what’s going on inside her head while in a extreme depressive state. I definitely see the benefit of this, but sometimes I just wanted to skip over it. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Eating disorder, Drug use, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Suicide, Mental illness, Vomit, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Confinement, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Body shaming

Minor: Infidelity, Excrement, and Abortion

Content warnings: Heavy drug abuse and depression (this is the entire plot) eating disorders parental death (multiple cases) 9/11 Domestic abuse animal cruelty (somewhat graphic discussion in the first chapter, but easy to skip over since it’s only about a paragraph. The narrator does not partake in it and instead is just describing something someone else did. Short mentions of the same situation about two more times through the book. Also easy to skip over. As someone who can’t handle really any mention of animal cruelty, I was able over easily and ignore.)

angietheace's review against another edition

dark 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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Drug abuse, Vomit, Drug use, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Death of parent

Minor: Racism, Animal death, Ableism, Abortion, and Death

spooderman's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Death, Vomit, Animal death, Alcoholism, Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Cancer, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, Mental illness, Abandonment, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Violence, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Gaslighting, and Grief

Moderate: Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Ableism, Homophobia, Misogyny, Antisemitism, Sexism, Cultural appropriation, Xenophobia, and Lesbophobia

Minor: War, Racism, Cursing, Abortion, Miscarriage, Classism, Confinement, Medical trauma, Islamophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Medical content

sorenzs's review against another edition

dark reflective tense 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

3.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Mental illness, Vomit, Addiction, Animal death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, and Fatphobia

Moderate: Abortion, Infidelity, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Body shaming, and Pregnancy

notjillsanders's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

I really didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did. Moshfegh’s protagonist is somehow completely irredeemable and someone we root for at the same time. I wouldn’t go so far as to call her an anti-hero, but I was quite pleased with her character development.

Also, the people saying they didn’t expect this to be a 9/11 book do not live in NY. As soon as they made mention to it being 2000 in NYC, I knew what was impending.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Terminal illness, Animal death, Body shaming, Abortion, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Addiction

taylorbrooke's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Grief, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Mental illness, Infidelity, Addiction, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, and Drug use

Moderate: Vomit, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Sexual assault

marns20_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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

5.0

Honestly? This is the most UNHINGED book I’ve ever read and probably will ever read??? but I loved it sooo much and I can’t even tell you why. Every 5 pages I literally said ‘Wtaf’ to myself out loud. It’s truly bizarre, in the best way. There were so many moments that you couldn’t help but laugh that had me thinking omg am I crazy too, I definitely shouldn’t be laughing at that. Her perplexing friendship with Reva was my favourite thing to read. The complex feeling of loving someone but not liking them, your friendship evolving past having nothing in common anymore because you have both grown separately yet you are still inextricably linked by history alone, not being able to let them go even though they’re no good for you and vice versa. 

The weird candid way she describes her parents and her relationship with them throws you off balance because she says really deep and personal things but in a detached, emotionless way that keeps you at arms length almost like when someone is crying but they don’t want you to hug or comfort them and you just stand there awkwardly staring at them. As unrelatable as the main character is (white, rich, privileged) her experience of the lethargy and apathy towards life was very relatable. Her crazy experiment is probably something we have all wished we could do at some point. I know I have. At parts, I found myself desperately rooting for her experiment to work, for her to be able to pull herself out of her despair and then other times you really couldn’t ignore what a truly terrible person she was, terrible friend she was. This struck a chord thinking about how mental health affects your relationships, your inability to show up or want to show up for people, it makes you irritable and mean, only willing to do the bare minimum despite how much you hate it or how much you love them. The complex nature of the human condition

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Drug abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder, Toxic friendship, Animal death, Grief, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Death of parent

Minor: Vomit, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Suicide, Abortion, Chronic illness, and Terminal illness

archerisonline's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective 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

4.5

after hearing lots of mixed opinions about this book, i was ready to dislike it. but i loved it. so sharp and oddly satisfying, ‘my year of rest and relaxation’ is by far the most compelling book i’ve read in a while. our central character is awful but so so interesting. i loved the way the book slipped in and out of her present and her reminiscing about the past. i loved the descriptions and the metaphors. i thought the ending was satisfying and vague and beautiful and twisted all at the same time. moshfegh stirs up so much unease throughout this book so deftly. i would thoroughly recommend it!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Eating disorder, Toxic friendship, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Drug use

Moderate: Body shaming and Animal death

Minor: Infidelity, Alcohol, and Abortion

lauchpferd's review against another edition

dark 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

!Spoilers!

I don't know why this book exists, this should've been a short story and even then the plot is extremely flimsy. It took me 6 months to finally finish because of how much it drags it's feet. Most of the characters are completely unlikable and don't change or develop at all over the course of the story.

The main character does a 180 in her personality once the author realises the book is almost over but there are no in-story justifications for it. Reva dying is cliché, of course the best friend has to die for the betterment of the main character. Using 9/11 and her subsequently buying a new DVR to record it as a metaphor just seems crass, as does the very last line: "There she is, a human being, diving into the unknown, and she is wide awake."

While the occasional sentence or image might be interesting, (the arctic fox freezing to death) it's immediately undermined by whatever comparison to genitals the author can come up with.

The book was recommended to me for being "deep" and "real" but I'd say it's the exact opposite.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Drug abuse, and Mental illness

Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Pregnancy, Abortion, Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Terminal illness, Vomit, Infidelity, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Grief