Books › My Year of Rest and Relaxation
My Year of Rest and Relaxation
356 pages
A pitch-black, narcotic comedy about checking out of a superficial world to find a blank-slate salvation.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like sinking into a plush, velvet-lined void. It is a masterclass in the darkly absurd, wrapping you in a hazy, narcotic atmosphere where the protagonist's extreme apathy becomes strangely intoxicating. The prose is razor-sharp and clinically detached, delivering misanthropic observations and grotesque details with a deadpan elegance that will make you laugh out loud even as you cringe. It moves at a steady, hypnotic pace, mirroring the repetitive cycle of pills and sleep, yet it never loses its magnetic grip. This is a novel for those who delight in unapologetically unlikable narrators and pitch-black humor. It offers a bizarrely cathartic exploration of late-capitalist exhaustion, inviting you to embrace the ultimate fantasy of simply turning off the world.
- Mood
- hazy
- claustrophobic
- narcotic
- absurdist
- Tone
- deadpan
- cynical
- darkly comedic
- detached
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- desire for oblivion · late-capitalist malaise · alienation · female unlikability · performative grief
- The writing
- Sharp, unsparing, and clinically precise, delivering grotesque observations with deadpan elegance.
- The arc
- A descent into complete narcotic detachment that culminates in a bizarre, ambiguous awakening just before a collective tragedy.
- Who it's for
- Readers who relish unapologetically unlikable narrators, pitch-black humor, and sharp critiques of modern superficiality.
Content notes
- substance abuse
- eating disorders
- depression
- parental death
- 9/11 references
About the book
It's early 2000 on New York City's Upper East Side, and the alienation of Moshfegh's unnamed young protagonist from others is nearly complete when she initiates her yearlong siesta, during which time she experiences limited personal interactions. Her parents have died; her relationships with her bulimic best friend Reva, an ex-boyfriend, and her drug-pushing psychiatrist are unwholesome. As her pill-popping intensifies, so does her isolation and determination to leave behind the world's travails. She is also beset by dangerous blackouts induced by a powerful medication.
Description from Open Library.
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