Welcome to Litsy!

So many people I know love Moshfegh, and I‘ve loved some of her books, but this didn‘t do it for me. There were some great stories but I dislike prose that really insists on being gross, all about bodily fluids and smells etc. I feel like it‘s trying to be literary, honest, forthright but un always just like ‘this is exhausting. Sometimes things are nice. Some things don‘t smell. Can we have one thing that doesn‘t smell just for some variety?‘

I made it through the first short story and it was problematic at best. It contained a brief but completely inappropriate conversation with her high school class (she was a teacher). Just yuck. I'm not a prude, but that was just too high on the creep factor for me.

“My brain hurts and I cry all the time. I don't want to be here on Earth for one moment longer.”

“But I never did try very hard to please my mother. In fact, I never tried hard to please anybody at all after that day in the locked room. Now I only try hard to please myself. That is all that matters here. That is the secret thing I found.”

“It's a lonely life.”

Not for me. I bailed most of the way through the first story. Couldn't take the voice of the character. Wasn't about to waste my time struggling through something that I wasn't finding value in

Moshfegh‘s characters tend to be amoral, frank, bleakly funny, very smart, and perverse in their motivations, in ways that destabilize the reader‘s assumptions about what is ugly, what is desirable, what is permissible, and what is real. In her collection of short stories, “Homesick for Another World,” a girl is convinced that a hole will open up in the 🌍 and take her straight to paradise, if only she murders the right person. - Ariel Levy @NYer

“Experiences are just time passing in different ways. Time passes and continues on and on. It has nowhere else to go.”

“I listened to some hip-hop songs. I liked hip-hop songs because they stirred up my spirit without messing with my mind.”

You know that feeling you get, walking at twilight, no one is in sight.....then suddenly, a dark stranger appears?? That's how I feel reading Moshfegh. And why I love her style....cuts through to the truth by creating scenes you decide about.....if you like twisted, sometimes hilarious and always crucial...you think alot. Laugh alot. Cry alot. That's Ottessa. 4.9 /5.0 🌟
#wintergames #ReadNosedReindeer @Clwojick @StayCurious #HolidayRead

I am superduper late to the party, but I had to give it some thought. Surprisingly hard to narrow it down. These books are all high on my tbr, and the me that I am right now would pick them for #myidealbookclub

Thanks for the tag @Addison_Reads 😊📚

Although incredibly written, these stories just didn't do it for me. Some of them were just a little too weird... but not is any way bad, I will still read anything she puts out there. These stories focus on the outcasts, those ostracized and alienated (however, always privileged) who are left in the margins to desire and long for "another world"...
Still a fan, still recommend!

Hmmm... I admired her story-craft but didn't actually enjoy the stories all that much. She's great at presenting off-kilter characters and showing all the ways in which they delude and sabotage themselves and each other but a whole bookful of such got rather wearing.

A collection of short stories. I wasn‘t crazy about every one of them, but overall this was a good read. This woman has undeniable talent and her novel ‘Eileen‘ was a prize winner. These stories have quirky characters and odd plots, but don‘t let that deter you.

End of day one, and I‘m reading these four books. I just finished a nap, and I‘m ready to be up all night! Headed for 24 hours!! 🥳🥳 #24in48

"And anyway, there is no comfort here on Earth. There is pretending, there are words, but there is no peace. Nothing is good here. Nothing. Every place you go on Earth, there is more nonsense."

These short stories certainly pack a punch! I'd rate this collection a 4/5.

My favourites were, 'Bettering Myself', 'Slumming', 'The Beach Boy', 'Nothing Ever Happens Here', and 'A Better Place'. Has anyone else read this? What did you think? I'm curious!

Great stories that kept me interested and were crafted well but I wouldn‘t say they‘re anything too special. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Another Ottessa Moshfegh winner

I know you probably aren‘t going to believe me, but this was the perfect book for #audiowrapping! Ottessa really has become one of my favorite authors. And I strongly recommend the #audiobook over print.

Also, wrapping is finished! 🎉🎁🎄

4.5⭐️ #MonthofRereads

The last couple of days have been busy. I got a license plate for Kentucky‘s libraries 🎉🎉 #litsyloveslibraries

I‘ve been wrapping presents. I‘m the family gift wrapper, even now when we‘re mostly using bags.

I was listening to Homesick in the car with my dad today, and I‘m surprised he liked it! Maybe he does have a freak flag 🤣🤣 #BOTMchallenge flashback

And of course, I‘ve been spending time with Henry ❤️🐩❤️

I can‘t stop reading...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The stories in this collection are tonally similar to Moshfegh‘s two novels. She has a penchant, & knack, for writing about the dredges, the weird, & the common. Descriptions of bodily functions, orifices, smells, & tastes are always present. I like that she‘s gritty & shocking. To write an effective short story, the author has to accomplish so much in just the first couple of lines. An entire collection is quite impressive.

I‘m reading the 5th short story and this is at least the 3rd one to mention blue eye shadow .... which makes me wonder if it‘s a description in every story and I‘ve missed a couple? 🤔🤨

Celebrating Kanelbullens Dag (Cinnamon Bun Day) at our local Swedish bakery was the perfect excuse to have one more quiet coffee date with Simon before he starts school next week.

Backlist came today! #bookmail

Book haul from vacation! This ottessa has been on my list for a while ❤️

“He eats his rice straight backed, unconcerned, secretly enraged with happiness.”

Train read...some short stories for a short work week. Got this one in my Mothers Day bundle from @pageonebooks

#page1books #literarylife #booksandtrains #bookishtuesday

This book was the recommended read from David Sedaris at his reading last night in Nashville- he read pages from this short story collection and it is bonkers!!

Really excited to go back to #powellscityofbooks and pick this cutie up.

This short story collection has been on my TBR since it was published. Finally going in!

I was hoping there would be more aliens in this book, based on the title. Some of the stories were very good. I liked the collection, but felt left wanting in the end.

Wasn't quite sure what to expect from this collection of short stories, but ultimately enjoyed the ride with these flawed individuals.

I'm glad I didn't spend money on this dud. These stories are all #awkward and creepy- consistently so. I'm having trouble understanding this as a #botm choice 🤔
#botmchallenge 34/45

#fallintobooks

Picking up my January 2017 #botm selection...I'm thinking short stories may be a good idea as I also need to think about starting my Book Club's next read. 📚📖

I think given the title and the cover I was expecting stories more along the lines of alien/sci-fi. That was not the case at all. Some of the characters in the stories were odd/disturbed but that was it. I found none of them compelling or in a hurry to finish because they were so good. I just really wanted to be done with it.

Ottessa Moshfegh has one of the most unique voices I've ever read. Her stories are full of grit and the nastiness that comes with being human, and I especially loved the first and last stories in this collection. I do wish that I had read each story individually rather than binged them, though, because about half way through it seemed like each story came from the same checklist or grab bag of unfavorable traits/details. I'm a fan of her though!

"Experiences are just time passing in different ways. Time passes and continues on and on. It has nowhere else to go." ⏳

Decided to hang out with some short stories for a little bit. I loved 'Eileen' by this author, and five pages into the first story, I'm already obsessed with her voice.

Up to bat ...

Moshfegh's short stories felt more earnest than Eileen, but for me the connection was hit & miss. The physicality and humor that made Eileen pop exist here, but the profuse loathing throughout make it a collection readers like me (annoying, empathetic types) may want to read slowly and sparingly.

Finished this in one day!

This book just confirmed how much I dislike short stories. I can't connect with them. These were actually pretty good, although every single one featured a really dysfunctional, perverted person. Not sure what to make of that. 🤷🏼‍♀️ I read just enough to count it for #botmchallenge (22/25). #botm

#currentlyreading

There are 2 ways, stylistically, to write about the ugliness of the world. The writing can be harsh, cruel, gross & dark, or it can be inappropriately beautiful; the writing can dance. It can start "at the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta." I prefer the latter, contrasting way. Moshfegh does the former. However, the collection is smart & made me think about self-censorship.

"I come from some other place. It's not like a real place on Earth or something I could point to on a map... There's no map... It's not somewhere or anywhere, but it's not nowhere either. There's no *where* about it. I don't know what it is. But it certainly isn't this place, here on Earth, with all you silly people. I wish I knew what it was, not because I think it would be great to tell you about it; I just miss it so much."

Great collection of short stories that extend the author's obsession with pus, pit stains and penury after the weird delights of Eileen. These stories were remarkably readable despite their often unsavory nature. Not necessarily the kind of thing you'd look forward to reading or that I could recommend to others, but there's enough genuine talent coupled with a revolting sensibility to make me wonder what Ms Moshfegh will do next.