My Year of Rest and Relaxation is the second Ottessa Moshfegh book I’ve read, and I’m a bit sad to say it didn’t live up to Lapvona, which I really, really liked. (I feel like I keep saying that all the time in this blog.) Creativity-wise, this one felt toned down. I was expecting something more twisted and unexpected, but the story mostly stayed within the lines of what I already imagined it would be.
The novel follows a woman struggling with grief who decides to spend most of her time asleep, aided by prescription drugs. The novel follows a woman dealing with grief who decides to sleep her life away with the help of prescription drugs. That concept alone sold me because I’m a sucker for a good female self-destructive story. But it lacks the grotesque and wildly imaginative flair that Lapvona had. I know these two books have very different intentions, plots, and tones, but I can’t help but compare. I just really love Lapvona. (Okay, enough, that’s the last time I’ll mention that).
I think this novel was intentionally slow-paced and repetitive to reflect the protagonist’s mental state. That choice makes sense, but it also made the reading experience feel stagnant at times. I found the main character bland. She’s just constantly angry and annoyed at the world. What bothered me most is how she looks down on others, particularly her friend Reva. She sees people like Reva, who seek validation through appearance or social approval, as lesser. Meanwhile, she takes pride in “being herself” and doing whatever she wants, even if it means being completely awful.
She’s unlikable and kind of a terrible person. Reva was her only real friend, but treated like a nuisance. The protagonist even implies Reva only visits her to feel better about herself, which felt really cruel.
I don’t think her depression justifies how terribly she treats people, and I think that’s one of the points of the story (?). If Moshfegh’s goal was to make her insufferable, then she definitely pulled it off.
One of the most absurd and striking parts of the novel is the protagonist’s therapist. She’s portrayed as a total fraud. She’s clearly just in it for the money. She hands out medications with barely any evaluation, and the protagonist easily manipulates her into giving stronger prescriptions every time.
As many readers have pointed out, Moshfegh is satirizing a broken mental health system here. The therapist represents how some professionals overprescribe meds without ever addressing root issues. Her strange beliefs and lack of ethics turn her into a caricature of the problem.
I think the book touches on something important, like how mental health struggles are often treated with medication alone, while deeper causes like alienation, loneliness, or a lack of meaningful support go unaddressed. The book doesn’t exactly spell this out, but it lingers in the background.
Another thing that really stood out is the protagonist’s privilege. She’s able to take an entire year off to do nothing, without worrying about money or consequences. Yet she still acts like she’s rejecting wealth and luxury, even as she benefits from them. This contradiction adds complexity to her character but also makes her feel even more disconnected from the world and annoying.
She’s isolated, self-centered, and privileged. Yet she sees herself as superior to people who actively chase status or material success.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation is interesting in a twisted way, and I kind of love how much I hate the protagonist, LOL. (I really enjoy unlikable characters.) The writing itself didn’t stand out that much, and what kept me going wasn’t the plot. It was the protagonist’s sheer recklessness with drug abuse. That stuff was genuinely entertaining to read. It actually reminded me of the movie Requiem for a Dream. Please, please check it out if you haven’t.
Have you read this book? If you have, share your thoughts in the comments! If not, let me know if it’s on your list! ❤️
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