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A review by lit_laugh_luv
McGlue by Ottessa Moshfegh
3.0
McGlue was the last of Moshfegh's work I had on my TBR and I was apprehensive given its generally poor reception and the fact it was her first published writing. I ended up enjoying this more than I expected - it is definitely most similar to Lapvona thematically, and her disturbing and grotesque atmosphere is once again at the forefront here.
The non-linear style works quite well in this case given our protagonist is drunk (or suffering from withdrawals) for the majority of the book in combination with a traumatic brain injury. Despite being generally vile and irritable, McGlue is layered enough that you feel some sympathy towards him regardless. As always Moshfegh excels in her character development, and with a higher page count I could totally see McGlue being one of her stronger exemplars.
Stylistically you can tell the writing is a bit weaker here and that Moshfegh is finding her footing, but I enjoyed this for what it was. The limited setting and ancillary characters detracted from my enjoyment of this a bit, but the ending was interesting enough that I would potentially enjoy this more after a re-read with further context to some of the scenes.
The non-linear style works quite well in this case given our protagonist is drunk (or suffering from withdrawals) for the majority of the book in combination with a traumatic brain injury. Despite being generally vile and irritable, McGlue is layered enough that you feel some sympathy towards him regardless. As always Moshfegh excels in her character development, and with a higher page count I could totally see McGlue being one of her stronger exemplars.
Stylistically you can tell the writing is a bit weaker here and that Moshfegh is finding her footing, but I enjoyed this for what it was. The limited setting and ancillary characters detracted from my enjoyment of this a bit, but the ending was interesting enough that I would potentially enjoy this more after a re-read with further context to some of the scenes.