Binx Bolling, a compulsive moviegoer, lives a quiet life in the New Orleans suburb of Gentilly, but then his existence is disrupted by his cousin Kate. The understanding he achieves of her, and hence of himself, takes him nearer to finding what he has been seeking - an anchor in the real world.
The Moviegoer
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This elegantly written account of a young man's search for signs of purpose in the universe is one of the great existential texts of the postwar era and is really funny besides. Binx Bolling, inveterate cinemaphile, contemplative rake and man of the periphery, tries hedonism and tries doing the right thing, but ultimately finds redemption (or at least the prospect of it) by taking a leap of faith and quite literally embracing what only seems irrational.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From the Back Cover
"Mr. Percy is a brethtakingly brilliant writer." --The New York Times Book Review
"Clothed in originality, intelligence, and a fierce regard for man's fate. . . . Percy has a rare talent for making his people look and sound as though they were being seen and heard for the first time by anyone." --Time
"A brilliant novel. . . . Percy touches the rim of so many human mysteries." --Harper's --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
"Clothed in originality, intelligence, and a fierce regard for man's fate. . . . Percy has a rare talent for making his people look and sound as though they were being seen and heard for the first time by anyone." --Time
"A brilliant novel. . . . Percy touches the rim of so many human mysteries." --Harper's --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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First Sentence
This morning I got a note from my aunt asking me to come for lunch. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt
This morning I got a note from my aunt asking me to come for lunch. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By J.Jones
Format:Paperback
The Moviegoer strikes the perfect balance between ideas and people. He succeeds in writing a book about loneliness and isolation without ever seeming sappy or sentimental; he creates a whole cast of fully developed characters who are deeply flawed but always sympathetic. And one is always struck by the strangeness of the characters. They are absolute originals. I haven't met anyone like Kate in the pages of a novel before or since, but one still somehow relates to every one of them, and can feel connections with their longing for . . . in any case, all of that is irrelevant. It is a great book, I encourage everyone to read it. Also try Jackson McCrae's "Children's Corner" or his "Bark of the Dogwood" for equally great southern reads-intricate and haunting all of these.
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Subtle, well-crafted, and entertaining, certainly this multifaceted and edifying story is well worth the reading. The fuel that propels this story is Percy's unique narrative style in using both present and past tenses. Perhaps his medical training or his three years spent in psychoanalysis during his residency had had an influence. At any rate, as the first-person narrator, Binx Bolling's present tense narration draws the reader close in "real time" and be intimate with the former in thought and action. When Bolling finds it necessary to digress or to fill-in the reader on the particulars of the past, he tells it in past tense. But Percy's writing is so good, the two tenses blurred as one. Aspiring writers who struggle with writing in present or past tense should take note. Would also recommend another stellar read, full of psychological and emotional intrigue, that is suspenseful yet well-written---THE BARK OF THE DOGWOOD--A Tour of Southern Homes and Gardens. Enjoy!
By Michael G.
Format:Paperback
If a novelist, any novelist, could put down on paper an exact representation of human thought, he or she would automatically be elevated to the very pinnacle of the literary world. But because language has limitations, this very desirable circumstance is, unfortunately, not possible. Walker Percy has nonetheless tried valiantly to do this very thing. In The Moviegoer, the reader is made privy to the articulated thoughts of Binx Bolling, a young New Orleans stockbroker. Binx explicitly tells us he is on a search. A search for something outside the everyday things that make up his life. Something that will ultimately give his life meaning and thereby fill the emptiness in his heart.
Of course, there really isn't anything outside everyday existence that can measure up to what he is seeking. The meaning of life, if indeed there is any, can only be found in the everyday things Binx regards as completely unfulfilling. This existentialist outlook is the underlying theme of The Moviegoer.
The plot (if that's even the right word) is a minimalistic one that very much suits this novel of the mind. Binx himself provides the narration. In doing so he affects a very formal, unnatural manner of speech, in which words like "thenceforward" and "eschatological" can and do appear.
The Moviegoer is a challenging work of fiction which gives the reader an authentic, nuanced description of life among New Orlean's upper class. Many readers, if not most, are likely to be turned off by its slow pace and seeming wordiness. A thoughtful, thought filled novel, not for everyone.
Of course, there really isn't anything outside everyday existence that can measure up to what he is seeking. The meaning of life, if indeed there is any, can only be found in the everyday things Binx regards as completely unfulfilling. This existentialist outlook is the underlying theme of The Moviegoer.
The plot (if that's even the right word) is a minimalistic one that very much suits this novel of the mind. Binx himself provides the narration. In doing so he affects a very formal, unnatural manner of speech, in which words like "thenceforward" and "eschatological" can and do appear.
The Moviegoer is a challenging work of fiction which gives the reader an authentic, nuanced description of life among New Orlean's upper class. Many readers, if not most, are likely to be turned off by its slow pace and seeming wordiness. A thoughtful, thought filled novel, not for everyone.
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3.7 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lost on Bourbon Street
Walker Percy wrote the Moviegoer, a Southern novel with William Faulkner and Truman Capote in mind. The latter writers were certainly more famous though Percy won the National... Read more
Published on July 10 2004 by R. A Rubin
3.0 out of 5 stars
Where happiness costs so little
The Moviegoer, ranked the #60 book of the 20th Century by the Modern Library, is definitely worth reading -- yet not as profound or intense as I had hoped it would be. Read more
Published on Jun 8 2004 by Chris Salzer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent American Existentialism
Percy's book is astonishingly brilliant! This book is the purest and best example of American Existentialism I have ever read. Read more
Published on Jun 6 2004 by Jon Linden
4.0 out of 5 stars
It really is "Catcher in the Rye" for adults!
The moviegoer is the story of a man who manages to put off questioning his life decisions until his 30th birthday, when they all come into question. Read more
Published on Mar 10 2004
4.0 out of 5 stars
Still here
This book came out quite a while back and it's still around. The reason for this probably has more to do with the wonderful character of Binx Bolling that it does with the... Read more
Published on Feb 19 2004
4.0 out of 5 stars
Couldn't relate
This novel is good but I never got into it. It has too many references to movies and pop culture from that time that went over my head since I haven't seen any of them. Read more
Published on Feb 16 2004 by John I. Provan
5.0 out of 5 stars
My Favorite Novel
Last June (under a year ago), I read this novel for the first time. I just finished reading it for the fifth time. I have never read a novel with which I related more. Read more
Published on May 11 2003 by John
1.0 out of 5 stars
slow, dull and directionless
Maybe that's what Percy wanted it to be, like Binx himself, but as such, it's pretty dang dull. And that's hard to do when you set the story in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Read more
Published on April 8 2003 by dudesimon
4.0 out of 5 stars
Flashes of greatness, but uneven, and a little odd.
This novel is number 60 on the Modern Library's list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century, and it is the only Walker Percy novel on that list. Read more
Published on Mar 13 2003 by K J Foehr
2.0 out of 5 stars
Slow Paced
I read this book with a friend who I discuss books with at the library every month and I have to say I had to really struggle to finish it. Read more
Published on Feb 6 2003 by Deborah Di Gioia
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