Eileen

A novel which deliberately induces discomfort would perhaps be the best way of describing Eileen. This debut novel by Moshfegh (I loved her more recent but also deeply wrong My Year of Rest and Relaxation) shows her raw potential and deeply original way of looking at the world. Eileen is perhaps let down by two elements; first, the promising start and captivating final 50 pages are let down by a middle which sags unnecessarily; and the boundary between shocking for the sake of doing so rather than trying to create a distinct feeling/impression seems to have been too heavily overstepped by Moshfegh. Eileen is a fascinating literary creation (one critic's comparison to Plath's Esther in The Bell Jar seems a good one). Similarly, her desire to escape from small town Massachusetts and her dead-end life characterised by self-loathing is highly plausible. However, the arrival of Rebecca (a somewhat clichéd character) as the necessary prod to get Eileen to leave felt contrived and less believable. While Eileen — probably deliberately so — is not likeable, by the conclusion the reader is willing her to succeed. She is stronger (than she) believes even though the retrospective telling of her story (in the novel) leaves the reader wondering how happy her adult life was. This is a love–loathe novel in many respects; black and compelling, with some redemptive notes. 7/10.

By Ottessa Moshfegh