Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh

46 reviews

zara89's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Violence, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Vomit, Rape, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Incest, Domestic abuse, Confinement, and Child abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

tacochelle's review

challenging dark tense 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

4.0

Oh Eileen, you nasty bitch.

This is primarily a character study of a young woman in 50s Massachusetts, who works as a secretary at a youth correctional facility. While there is some commentary on the state of these places, how the young men are treated, that statement is almost heightened by the fact that as the narrator, Eileen doesn't linger on it. She simply doesn't care about them, and that's kinda the point. Eileen is passionate, lonely, pathetic, and disgusting. She is both self-loathing and self-centered. The way she describes herself in extreme detail, hyper-focused on every bodily function, whether anyone else notices her in that way- it's very gross, but somewhat relatable? Like I get it, as someone who spent a long time feeling absolutely digusted with my physical existence, those parts got to me. Eileen also latches on to the tiniest bit of affection shown to her, which leads to an obsession with her new coworker and getting caught up in a crime. Eileen doesn't do any of this because she gives a shit. She is just chasing that high of feeling loved.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Incest, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Murder, and Rape

Minor: Confinement, Vomit, Child abuse, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, and Car accident

emmablue's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

2.5

i enjoy awful women very much but its less fun when they are so ashamed of their own awfulness

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Child abuse, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Eating disorder, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Confinement, Drug use, Stalking, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Excrement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, and Terminal illness

illgiveyouahint's review against another edition

challenging 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

2.0

There was one too many talks of bowel movements.
I'm sorry, but I just didn't vibe with the book. I see so many people praising it but to me it was a book where it took forever for something to start happening. The first half of the book was just so boring to me with burst of disgust whenever bowel movements were mentioned. Seriously I started to really detest the word bowels.
 I recognise that this book is just not for me and if I was not given it by my friend I would never have read it. But hey maybe a film adaptation with foxy Anne Hathaway will change my mind, who knows.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Murder, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Child abuse, Confinement, Eating disorder, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Police brutality, Toxic friendship, and Vomit

Moderate: Fatphobia, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Death, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, Terminal illness, Violence, Body shaming, Death of parent, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Rape

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Miscarriage, Medical content, and Torture

bookishbrenbren's review

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

3.5

I really like Ottessa Moshfegh but this book was a miss for me. I've read two others of her work but this lacked the engrossing, drawing in of the other two. In fact this book was pretty repulsive not just in that it describes a lot of gross, pitiable things, which it does, but also in that it feels like she didn't want the reader to get into Eileen's shoes, she wanted to keep the reader at older-narrating-Eileen's head, which looks back on her former self with judgment, disgust, and pity. The propulsive conclusion felt forced, although I liked Rebecca's neurotic spiral, I didn't see the need for

the mother's version of the incest rape story, I think it cheapened the story and sensationalized the rape, which I can never respect.

. All said, I enjoyed the character Eileen and the grimy, gritty inner life she leads. Ottessa has such a talent for these kinds of stories but to me the ending felt like any old paperback thriller and I was left feeling disappointed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Addiction, Alcohol, Confinement, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, and Rape

Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Eating disorder, Excrement, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Gun violence

dale1997's review

challenging dark mysterious sad tense 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Alcoholism, Toxic friendship, Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Racism, Body shaming, Death of parent, Ableism, Confinement, Misogyny, and Physical abuse

lauramparis's review against another edition

dark 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Alcoholism, Body horror, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Death, Eating disorder, Death of parent, Excrement, and Body shaming

Minor: Blood, Miscarriage, Rape, Confinement, Gun violence, Murder, Vomit, and Kidnapping

celbl8o's review

dark mysterious reflective sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Grief, Gun violence, Body shaming, Incest, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Fatphobia, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, and Animal death

katieohara's review

dark mysterious 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

4.25

I think that this book is one of the best examples of a character study that I have read this year. As a native New Englander if also has a certain sense of for lack of a better word, dark charm for me. However, the book is hurtling you to this big bad moment that it hints at, but it just didn’t feel as bad as I was expecting. But honestly I might just be a spoiled reader to used to the horrifying details of murder podcasts and criminal minds. Perhaps what happened is sick enough and the author is making a subtle point that if you are looking for perversion you are no better than the spoiled rich girl not realizing her idealism has consequences.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Fatphobia, Death of parent, Classism, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Lesbophobia, Terminal illness, Gun violence, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Torture, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Incest, Animal death, Stalking, Murder, Eating disorder, Confinement, Rape, and Alcoholism

ardour's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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

5.0

i legit felt reborn as the novel ended

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Addiction, Eating disorder, Police brutality, Murder, Misogyny, Death, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Body shaming, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Rape, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Incest, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Vomit, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Self harm

Moderate: Body horror, Grief, Confinement, Gore, Antisemitism, Lesbophobia, Gun violence, Homophobia, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, Stalking, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Animal death and Blood

Extra content warning for the existential dread that’s portrayed for the most part of the novel (I’m thinking of others with existential OCD like me)—HOWEVER important to note that everything changes for Eileen at a certain point in the book and she undergoes a paradigm shift where one (seemingly insignificant thing) makes her realise that her life can have meaning. I found it SUPER cathartic in this way so I’m glad I kept going even though up until then her existential angst was hard to read. ~~~ Why there’s so many TWs - read to get a more accurate perspective on whether it’s the kind of book for you (spoiler free): This book is written from the perspective of Eileen writing about her young adulthood—as an elderly person. A lot of her dark thoughts & xenophobia come from the time when she grew up and the lack of love/care she received as a child. In this way I found it somewhat easier to suspend my reaction to some of the awful things she said. Additionally, Eileen, at the age she is writing the story, wants to portray what kind of person she was back then—warts and all—without trying to distract from what she feels are negative & toxic traits by inspiring sympathy. In this way it’s aggressively honest and Eileen doesn’t want to shield her past self from the judgement she feels she deserves.