This reminded me of Ottessa Moshfegh’s Eileen. Mostly because every time I read it I felt dirty and depressed but there is a huge target audience who will absolutely adore this. It’s not necessarily the unlikeability of the main character but an utter contempt for the world and a lack of love for anything in it that really bothers me about these, which is largely a personal issue. I would say overall this book is not for a general fiction audience, it’s for a very specific audience who will love it and outside of them it will be hated I think. The cover is gorgeous though and I definitely expect to see it everywhere this summer because that very specific audience is very influential.

I had read The New Me by Halle Butler and really enjoyed it. I am a big fan of Ottessa Moshfegh and other writers that are great at formulating the unlikable, almost cringe-worthy narrator/supporting characters. The premise of this book was relatable to me, as I had broken off an engagement and moved to a Midwestern town. I, unlike the character was not FROM the Midwest but it became a home away from home for me. I was able to see, that no matter where you're from, you have reason to avoid returning to your hometown. I wouldn't be able to recommend this book to everyone. But I do know it will appeal to the patron/reader of a certain taste. You have to have a morbid curiosity/fascination with characters, etc.

This book is full of miserable unlikeable people floundering without much of a plot. I couldn’t put it down and will be dreaming of Moddie tonight.

I received this ARC from Netgalley prior to its July 16 publication! Thank you, Netgalley and Halle Butler's team for allowing me early access!

If you're a fan of Anna Dorn, Lisa Taddeo, or Ottessa Moshfegh, look no futher!

I read 'The New Me' last year, and I really enjoyed Halle Butler's writing style. I wasn't obsessed with that one, but I knew I wanted to give Halle Butler another shot with a different plot. Banal Nightmare follows a cast of characters in a Midwest town called 'X', primarily Moddie, a listless and dynamic character who is spiraling shortly after a break up with a long-term boyfriend that has caused her to flee her comfortable life in Chicago to the comfort of her childhood 'friends'. Though much of Banal Nightmare follows Moddie herself, Halle Butler also ushers us into the perspective of other side-characters, their failing marriages and their shameful sexual fantasies alongside the satirical interpersonal relationships with one another. I loved this omniscient narrator view of the friend group that gives each character so much more depth. All of these characters are tantalizingly hateable and unreliable. Relatable in one breath followed by a monologue so fucked up it could knock you off of your feet. Truly. Halle Butler's writing style has gotten funnier and smarter overall. The wit and charm and edge in this book is amazing.
I waffled back and forth on giving this one a 5 star. I feel like my dilemma with this one is not a dilemma I typically have with books.
- There were a LOT of characters. I could NOT keep some characters straight. Pam or Kim? Craig, David, Bobby? Bethany? Nina? Chrissy? TOO MANY. At first I got really hung up on keeping them all straight and making sure I was connecting each character to their back story, but after a while I decided to just keep reading even when I was a little lost. That made it so much more enjoyable for me, because I could spend more time enjoying the scenes and dialogue I was in.
This book made me laugh out loud several times. It took me a minute to get into it, but by the time I got to about the 50% mark, I had trouble putting it down.
Make sure to check trigger warnings. There's a pretty descriptive scene of SA in this one. Very poignant and though-provoking, but its in there nonetheless for those who may find that hard to read!

Banal Nightmare lived up to the title. This is a story about adults who have no idea how to handle being an adult. When life is not the picture perfect magazine spread you thought it would be and then decide to give up, that is this book. It is full of drama, chaotic intrigue, revenge, pettiness, sooo much pettiness. It was phenomenal! The car crash you can not turn away from because you have to see the carnage. It was brutal and honest. Did I mention petty?

It was uncomfortable to read because it call life out for what it happens to be for some at times. There were vibes of "The Big Chill" and "Thirty-Something" for me. Recommend to anyone who does not mind being reminding that life is not all it is cracked up to be. The whole book should be a trigger-warning so be careful and read the warnings before you pick up. 4.25 ****.25

(3.5) this was like whatever the opposite of a self-help book is & i throughly enjoyed it. it was fun to commiserate with a cast of characters who are all equally unlikeable and want to escape their own lives. at times it was tough to get through because of all the meandering tangents, but the relatable parts (both hilarious and sad) hit hard.

“I am normal… I am relaxed.”

After finishing a Halle Butler book I am always left feeling full and empty all at once.

Banal Nightmare follows a variety of women and men who are simply trying to navigate life, trauma, death and suffering — which is actually just all apart of life.

Going into this book I figured this would be a strange sci-fi book but as I read more into it the title of this book was incredibly fitting. Their lives (which are very reflective of our lives) are so very dull and depressing but incredibly interesting?!? It’s crazy how Halle Butler can take something so mundane and make it so abnormal that you can’t help but be anything but interested.

It took me a moment to get into this book but once I hit chapter 5 I was hooked. I throughly enjoyed how introspective each character was. It became ridiculous and borderline insane (yet realistic) how quickly they all spiraled into their thoughts.

I enjoyed getting POV’s from all of the characters, even those we didn’t know or care much about. It let me see outside of what just Moddie thought of these people, this life and all that goes on it.

If you are looking for a good laugh but also some intense introspection/reflection this is the book for you!

***please check tw’s before reading!!

Thank you Net Galley and Penguin Random House for providing me with this arc in exchange for a honest review!!

I've been excited for Halle Butler's new novel since I put down THE NEW ME back in 2019. I was so impressed by that book, so I knew BANAL NIGHTMARE would be a banger.

The hardest part about this book is being in the mind of our protagonist Moddie, who hates absolutely everything and it's depressing and dark to be privy to her thoughts. To be fair, most of the characters in this book are also negative and sad and unhappy with their lives. It's the opposite of a happy and bright book, so be fore-warned!

Moddie leaves her life in Chicago, along with her terrible boyfriend of 10 years, to move back to her hometown which is centered around a liberal arts college. She has friends in town already, and also meets new people through them which sometimes changes the POV. It can be hard to follow occasionally since it can change from paragraph to paragraph, but Butler does an incredible job giving insight into all these different characters and their unhappy lives. They are eclectic, yuppie-leaning group of folks in 2018 feeling sorry for themselves while sending passive-aggressive emails to each other. It's a smart book, but unsettling and makes me sad for all of us in our 30s. It's a good book, but one that might not be for you depending on your mood.

Sharp, smart, mean--if you´ve read Halle Butler´s work before (Jillian, The New Me), you know the deal, but here she´s better than ever, richer, deeper, most confident. If you know you know.

literally insane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! most unlikeable narrator i have EVER read, i think this book will be really decisive and hard to find its reader but slots in nicely with all the unhinged women vs the void tiktok books tbh. cover is so evocative too! interested to see what kind of reception this gets.

Book Review: Banal Nightmare by Halle Butler

For fans of…
• stream of consciousness
• millennial malaise
• toxic relationships
• no plot, just vibes

Synopsis: Thirty-something, small-time artist Moddie has just left a toxic relationship in Chicago and returned to her hometown where her old friends are older and much, much sadder. Giving herself a year off from reality/work, Moddie passes her days chain-smoking on her couch, awkwardly socializing, and torturing herself over leaving her ex—who she pines over while, in the same breath, comparing the man to Jeffrey Dahmer. With her fresh start, Moddie re-examines her life, leading her to unravel traumatizing events from her past and a potential new outlook on her future.

Though Moddie is the star of this show, Butler head-hops through a dozen or so other characters with jarring POV changes. Each character feels so real that as they mourn the lives they’d once dreamt of and face the banal nightmares of their realities, their meandering misery and vapid hostility are palpable.

Banal Nightmare is dryly funny at times, but overall, I kept hoping that more would happen.

(TW: sexual assault)

Not the best book I’ve read, not the worst. If you like authors like ottessa moshfegh or melissa border, you will probably like this!

Halle Butler’s novels are unique. The task of reading a story that is genuinely banal and entertaining at the same time can be difficult for some readers. But this novel certainly captures a recognizable feeling of malaise and anxiety that permeated throughout the 2010s. Not always fun to read, but glad that I finished. Has me thinking about how this novel fits in with her earlier works, especially since the main character leaves Chicago and returns to her hometown outside of the city or suburbs. While it didn't resonate with me as strongly as "The New Me," I appreciate this novel for all it does well.

I've read from this author before, and I feel the same way about her previous novel as I do about her upcoming novel. Halle Butler has talent, but her writing tends to be long-winded and unsatisfying. She has a lot to say but her prose feels like one big, long rant session. I enjoy unlikeable protagonists, so I should've enjoyed "Banal Nightmare" much more than I did. Her books always start out promising but start to unravel around the halfway mark. There's scenes and elements I liked about this book, but overall, I didn't feel connected to any of the characters. Everyone felt so interchangeable and over-the-top. This book is decent, just not anything to write home about. Such a disappointment. I did think the ending was funny though. Butler has a wicked sense of humor.

Thank you, Netgalley and Random House for the digital ARC.

Joke-dense, witty, and biting. Chug the haterade!

BANAL NIGHTMARE, I'd argue, marks an important formal development in the genre of 'sad woman unhinged ennui': it's a social novel! There's a crowd of characters mired in misery—about academia, creativity, ambition, long-term relationships—and we get to see their inner monologues and outward appearances, jealousies and rivalries and resentments and superiorities. Nobody is thriving; the center does not hold, Moddie's life isn't that much more exploded than anyone else's, people are complex but also bad, and their complexity doesn't give them carte blanche absolution....etc. etc. Bring back the 3rd person!! It's great!

It's more fun (and, I think, realistic) to watch a group squirm and snipe at each other, and recognize that the hinges are coming off us all. I did keep mixing up a few of the female friends (Kimberly and Bethany?) but that's the price to pay for reading a novel with so many characters (a good thing.)

I loved the shifting POVs which felt really fun, and an effective way to subvert characters' various misinterpretations of events and build tension. Really funny moments, especially in Moddie's weed-induced epiphanies, and characters' late night emailing. The gradual realization of trauma felt really unsettling, giving new meaning to Moddie's actions and behaviors. I loved all of the petty drama, however, I was not sure what to make of the ending! The information we learn sort of came out of nowhere which was perhaps the intended effect... but an enjoyable book overall.

I really enjoyed her last book, but I cannot connect with the characters in this one. They all seemed a little tiresome and blended together. I kept putting the book down and picking it back up since October and it really felt like homework to finish it. I’d be interested to see what she writes in the future cause I liked her first book but this one didn’t really work for me I didn’t really like anyone. I thought the writing was choppy. It wasn’t bad but I didn’t love it like I thought I would.

"Banal Nightmare" by Halle Butler is a darkly comedic exploration of returning to one's roots and confronting the complexities of relationships and personal identity. The story centers around Margaret Anne “Moddie” Yance, who moves back to her Midwestern hometown after ending a tumultuous relationship. As she reconnects with old friends and navigates the dynamics of their changing lives, Moddie finds herself immersed in a world of parties, resentments, and simmering tensions.

Halle Butler excels at portraying unlikable yet compelling characters, each grappling with their own flaws and insecurities. Butler's writing is sharp and incisive, capturing the absurdity and disillusionment of contemporary life with precision. However, I did find that at times the book was filled with meandering passages that delve into the characters' inner thoughts and elaborate revenge fantasies, which added some depth to the story, but occasionally slowed down the pace for me.

Despite its occasional meandering, "Banal Nightmare" is a captivating read that offers a darkly humorous take on the complexities of human relationships and the search for identity. Butler's keen observations and vivid characterization of unlikable and messed up people make for an engaging and thought-provoking exploration of modern existence.
Rating: 3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the digital arc in return for an honest review! Banal Nightmares comes out July 16th!

I really enjoyed this book. It felt like if Seinfeld was about a group of women in their thirties in the Midwest. If you identify as a woman, a person in their thirties, and/or a millennial, you will see facets of yourself and your friends in all of these messy but real characters. It felt very real, which I can't say about a lot of characters or plots these days. Thanks to NetGalley for the Advanced Copy.

For those like me who enjoyed Jillian, the “feel bad book of the year”, is another satire infused stream of consciousness work of fiction from one of the most unique voices today, albeit not always the most enjoyable. Definitely one to keep an eye on moving forward. Perfect Hansel.