Minnie's Fiction Addiction

👀 First impressions:
When I picked up My Year of Rest and Relaxation, I expected something bleak, but what I got was both unsettling and oddly captivating. Published in 2018, Ottessa Moshfegh’s novel follows an unnamed narrator in early 2000s New York who decides to sleep for a year, aided by a cocktail of dubious prescriptions and the world’s most questionable psychiatrist. It’s a strange premise—part satire, part tragedy, and one that immediately intrigued me.

✅ What I Liked:
Moshfegh’s writing is razor-sharp, blending dark humour with biting social commentary. The narrator’s detached, sardonic voice makes the book compulsively readable, even when she’s at her most unlikable. I especially appreciated how the novel skewers the shallow consumer culture of the time, with references to fashion, art, and pop culture that feel both of their era and timelessly ridiculous.
The relationship with Reva, the narrator’s needy best friend, stood out as one of the strongest elements, tragic, hilarious, and painfully real.

❎ What I didn’t Like:
The protagonist’s extreme detachment can make it difficult to emotionally invest. At times, I felt like I was watching events through frosted glass, fascinating, but at a distance. The pacing also drifts in places, which fits the theme of sleep and withdrawal, but occasionally slowed my reading momentum.

📚 Why You Should Read This Book:
If you enjoy novels that are offbeat, clever, and a little uncomfortable, this one is worth picking up. It’s not a book that offers comfort, it’s more of a mirror, reflecting back the absurdities of life and the ways people try (and fail) to escape it.

💭 Final Thoughts:
My Year of Rest and Relaxation is not for everyone, it’s strange, unsettling, and at times deeply unlikable, but that’s what makes it so powerful. I closed the final page both disturbed and impressed, still thinking about it days later.

🛍️ Where to buy
To buy your own copy click HERE

Final Rating ★★★★ – Dark, strange, and unforgettable