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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
I remember a few years ago when My Year of Rest and Relaxation was EVERYWHERE. You truly could not walk into a bookstore without seeing this book. I liked it - it was different and accurately captured the weird idea of just pausing all the annoying things that are a part of daily life. I also think its prominent placement in all bookstores was partially due to the fantastic book cover. So when I saw that someone was making another Ottessa Moshfegh book into a movie starring Anne Hathaway, I wanted to read the book before seeing the movie. I still haven’t watched the movie but it is on my list. Eileen is very dark but more importantly, I just didn’t get the point of the story. I kept reading because I wanted to see if the twist or ending would justify the rest of the story but I wasn’t impressed. The main “twist” happens in the last 10% of the book, with the other 90% setting up the all unlikeable characters. So basically, if you love Ottessa Moshfegh’s style of story (very unlikable characters, very graphic descriptions, low action plot) then I would check this out.
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dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I wouldn‘t say it was bad but i was really happy when i was done reading this book.
Eileen is a deeply depressed, misunderstood and troubled young woman – and i alternated between epathizing with her and disliking her. The story unfolds in a slow pace and from the beginning leads up to an event that finally happens in the last twenty pages. Which felt kind of unsatisfying to be honest.
While I liked the way the whole atmosphere, the bleak New England, was crafted and how honest Eileen was as a narrator, the novel left me feeling uneasy and down. But although I like heavy, dark and character-driven narratives, this one was kind of disappointing.
Eileen is a deeply depressed, misunderstood and troubled young woman – and i alternated between epathizing with her and disliking her. The story unfolds in a slow pace and from the beginning leads up to an event that finally happens in the last twenty pages. Which felt kind of unsatisfying to be honest.
While I liked the way the whole atmosphere, the bleak New England, was crafted and how honest Eileen was as a narrator, the novel left me feeling uneasy and down. But although I like heavy, dark and character-driven narratives, this one was kind of disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pacing is a bit off. The majority of the book is spent with Elieen who is in various states of depression. Elieen driving, Elieen at work, Elieen buying booze. The inciting incident does not occur until the last 25 pages or so and then everything happens in a whirlwind. I wish we spend more time unpacking the inciting incident or with Rebecca. Elieen was such a difficult character to like, but the femcel, depressive New Englander is what I expect from Mosfegh.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Pedophilia, Excrement
Moderate: Body shaming, Incest, Mental illness, Death of parent
Minor: Fatphobia
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
emotional
tense
slow-paced
How often do we harbour such unsavoury and inking thoughts, the ones we use as a vault to secure our insecurities?
Aimless, unloved, unseen, Eileen is a thorough character study of the parts of ourselves we dare not reveal to others. And it makes me feel seen.
Aimless, unloved, unseen, Eileen is a thorough character study of the parts of ourselves we dare not reveal to others. And it makes me feel seen.
3.5 ⭐️ this book was pretty slow but the last 20% redeemed it for me. eileen is recalling events that happened 50 years ago & i liked how she was honest about not remembering certain aspects of the story. she didn’t feel unreliable but moreso just an authentic storyteller. she is very strange & transparent abt taboo topics which ive noticed is a trend in the ottessa novels that ive read. not much happens in this book though so wouldn’t recommend if that’s not your speed
Grim and creepy - reading about the sinking Lusitania is actually a pick-me-up in comparison!
The writing was lovely, I'm just giving two stars because my main takeaway from the contents was feeling uncomfortable/unsettled.
The writing was lovely, I'm just giving two stars because my main takeaway from the contents was feeling uncomfortable/unsettled.
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
meh. i’ve seen it compared to shirley jackson a lot, and i see how you could think that, but this book is deeply not like shirley jackson— more like sarah johnson.