Review by strgzng - My Year of Rest and Relaxation

strgzng 's review for:

My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh

4.0

dark funny 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

Extremely grating characters that make you wonder if anyone like this truly exists in real life. That did not take away from the book for me as I can appreciate shitty people as main characters. Transactional relationships galore. Yes the main character is entitled, whiny and out-of-touch, but it's funny. I did not appreciate the mild antisemitism and fatphobia toward the main character's 'best friend'. The characters' actions and mannerisms were expressively written and fun to imagine playing out, though. I quite liked the therapist scenes and found her quirks hilarious. I was disappointed in the ending and character 'arcs', no semblance of any real character growth. But perhaps that is a better perspective on addiction and apathetic narcissistic depression anyway, especially with this being a dark comedy.

Content Warnings