Reviews tagging 'Fatphobia'

Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh

145 reviews

jnestwd's review

dark mysterious 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

5.0

Well, Ottessa, you are "quite a gal!"

No one manages to simultaneously repulse and intrigue me quite like Ottessa Moshfegh. When I read her work, I know I'm about to be thoroughly disturbed and I am here. for. IT.

Eileen did not disappoint. The story of Eileen Dunlop's miserable life spent living with her emotional (and at times, physically) abusive, alcoholic father and working at the local Boys Prison was exactly as uncomfortable as I've come to expect from Moshfegh's work.

Moshfegh somehow manages to get right under your skin and touch nerves you never thought existed. Reading Eileen move through life selfishly and disgustingly (intentionally ripping clothes in a store, wiping her dirty mouth on scarves for sale, touching herself and then shaking hands with someone before washing them... that sort of thing) somehow had me absolutely hooked and I could not put the book down before finding out whether or not Eileen managed to find happiness or not.

Ottessa's work is not for the faint of heart.

Often the reviews are scathing of the body horror and grotesque descriptions.

But that is part of the magic in my opinion.

I read Ottessa Moshfegh when I want to be disturbed. And she never ever fails to disappoint!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Vomit, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Rape, and Sexual assault

imicklav's review

challenging dark mysterious 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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia

Moderate: Eating disorder and Rape

ricketycricket's review

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Death of parent, Child abuse, Grief, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, and Vomit

amsswim's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

I'm not sure really what to say about this. I enjoyed it. This is the second book by the author Ottessa Moshfegh I have read, the other being 'My Year of Rest and Relaxation', and just as that one this book is just unhinged. I think this one may be more based in reality but still gave me the feeling of unsettlement. If you like weird things this may be for you. 

I am now very interested in watching the movie they made recently based on this starring Anne Hathaway.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Excrement, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Terminal illness, Violence, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Rape, Addiction, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Incest, Dementia, Vomit, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Cursing, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Animal death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, and Homophobia

Minor: Child abuse, Miscarriage, and Car accident

alexandrabelze's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

i liked this a lot more than i thought i would! as usual, i loved moshfegh’s writing style and style of storytelling. i think she laid out the setting very well. once again, she utilized an unlikable character as her protagonist, but this one was much easier to “put up with,” so to say, compared to the protagonist in mcglue. there was this minute feeling of boredom i felt throughout the entire novel, and i caught my mind drifting every once in a while. though that seems to be a trend with moshfegh’s novels due to how she likes to dwell on certain things, similar to the “violet prose” style often seen in classics. the ending was kind of disappointing as well? though i’m not sure what i expected or what could’ve been done differently for me to feel satisfied. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Death, Death of parent, Alcohol, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Eating disorder, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Murder, and Violence

Minor: Gun violence, Blood, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

gracefulege's review

dark 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

2.5

Really rough read. The writing is fantastic but the story itself made my skin crawl in ways I haven’t experienced. The deep level of insecurity and self-loathing experienced by the main character truly reaches through the pages. Would not recommend to someone unless they are looking for a dark, twisted, perverted read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Rape, and Pedophilia

janienejulia's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Incest, Vomit, Pedophilia, Murder, Gun violence, Confinement, Death of parent, Violence, and Rape

Moderate: Fatphobia and Blood

Minor: Miscarriage

kmcgraw's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.25

I felt at times it was slow and repetitive but I was truly enthralled from the beginning. I read this in two days and couldn’t put it down. Deals with very dark/heavy themes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Incest, Murder, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Excrement, Suicide, Body shaming, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Addiction, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Miscarriage, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Abortion, and Police brutality

riotgrrrl92's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense 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

4.25

Ottessa Moshfegh lets us into the minds of people we would never want to get to know in real life. Her narrators are fascinating, horrible, darkly satirical, and sometimes relatable in very shameful ways. In fact, I think shame is the main theme of this book. I typically don’t like slow-paced novels but every sentence of this book kept me hooked. Eileen’s inner world is twisted and disturbing, making even the most mundane tasks a freakish horror. I love it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, Toxic friendship, Incest, Eating disorder, Excrement, and Vomit

Moderate: Medical content, Rape, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

hurlyburlywitch's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

Being told from the perspective of an older, wiser self is always an interesting framing. That being said, Eileen's self loathing is both pathetic and all-consuming, as well as contagious. I found that I loathed both her and myself, both for judging her and for the parts of myself that were emboldened by her own flaws and self loathing.

The eventual pay off was rewarding, but it felt like it was a real slog getting there followed by a manic dash to the finish. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Rape, and Alcoholism