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megklaughtland's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
christythelibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
In a nutshell:
Murray Tepper is a middle-aged denizen of New York City who works in the direct mail business and has recently started the habit of reading a newspaper in his parked car. However, he doesn’t need to park on the street as he pays for a garage.
This odd habit bewilders his family and also attracts the attention of strangers. Other drivers are confused and angry that he is not leaving the spot that they want. Members of the public find him either eccentric or a heroic figure: someone who is asserting his constitutional rights, someone who is somehow ‘sticking it to the man’. People seek him as one does a guru, and they sit in his car and tell them about their problems. The mayor, who finds hailing taxis from the street an act of anarchy, claims that Tepper is purposefully causing chaos. Tepper himself is a calm, placid enigma at the center of the hubbub.
Review:
I don’t read a lot of comic novels, so this book was a nice change of pace from my usual reading material. It’s not laugh-out-loud funny, but it is slyly humorous throughout the story. The comedy lies in how Trillin takes mundane things like parking or the direct mail business and makes them the main focal point of characters’ energy and strong opinions.
The mayor in particular is a figure of ridiculousness. He institutes a level of security in the city hall that is at a paranoid level, and fixates on parking as the root of all the city’s ills.
There were some comic bits that didn’t work well for me, such as a repeating joke involving a sushi restaurant, but the best parts were those involving Tepper himself and the ongoing parking saga. The punchline at the end, which ties together the parking and the direct mail themes, was clever. Tepper is made to be a folk hero by most characters but the end hints at a possible different interpretation, leaving it to the reader to make the final judgment.
This is not a book I can necessarily rave about but it was pleasant and enjoyable, and makes me think I should try more straight-up comic novels in the future.
Murray Tepper is a middle-aged denizen of New York City who works in the direct mail business and has recently started the habit of reading a newspaper in his parked car. However, he doesn’t need to park on the street as he pays for a garage.
This odd habit bewilders his family and also attracts the attention of strangers. Other drivers are confused and angry that he is not leaving the spot that they want. Members of the public find him either eccentric or a heroic figure: someone who is asserting his constitutional rights, someone who is somehow ‘sticking it to the man’. People seek him as one does a guru, and they sit in his car and tell them about their problems. The mayor, who finds hailing taxis from the street an act of anarchy, claims that Tepper is purposefully causing chaos. Tepper himself is a calm, placid enigma at the center of the hubbub.
Review:
I don’t read a lot of comic novels, so this book was a nice change of pace from my usual reading material. It’s not laugh-out-loud funny, but it is slyly humorous throughout the story. The comedy lies in how Trillin takes mundane things like parking or the direct mail business and makes them the main focal point of characters’ energy and strong opinions.
The mayor in particular is a figure of ridiculousness. He institutes a level of security in the city hall that is at a paranoid level, and fixates on parking as the root of all the city’s ills.
There were some comic bits that didn’t work well for me, such as a repeating joke involving a sushi restaurant, but the best parts were those involving Tepper himself and the ongoing parking saga. The punchline at the end, which ties together the parking and the direct mail themes, was clever. Tepper is made to be a folk hero by most characters but the end hints at a possible different interpretation, leaving it to the reader to make the final judgment.
This is not a book I can necessarily rave about but it was pleasant and enjoyable, and makes me think I should try more straight-up comic novels in the future.
soundslikesally's review against another edition
2.0
The main character reminded me *very* tangentially of A Man Called Ove, but the plot was not as dynamic, and at the end the whole thing seemed like sort of a self-indulgent commentary of a city I don't live in. I wonder if it was a Gulliver's Travels situation - conceptually, I pretty much like the story on its face, but I don't know enough about the underlying facts to appreciate the satire.
tfmcgill's review against another edition
5.0
Quirky, entertaining characters who brought some levity to my days. The misaligned conversations reminded me a bit of Catch-22 and Confederacy of Dunces. A fun read.
julieclair's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Strong sense of place - New York City
slerner310's review against another edition
4.0
An amusing and quick read, especially to those of us who line in New York. Not sure what someone who doesn't know New York City would make of this book. The send-up of Giuliani when he was mayor is rapier sharp and laugh out loud funny.
harvio's review against another edition
3.0
- cute, simple little novel
- the plot revolves around Murray Tepper, a small-business-owner and Manhattanite, whose hobby is finding the perfect parking space and then . . . just sitting in his car. Like the simple protagonist in Kozinski's "Being There" (the movie of which, I really loved), Murray's actions are misinterpreted by nearly everyone. His family thinks he's going crazy; the Mayor thinks that he's thumbing his nose at City Hall; a journalist projects his deep philosophical motivations onto him; and all the while Murray becomes a kind of guru to his fans.
- well done!
- the plot revolves around Murray Tepper, a small-business-owner and Manhattanite, whose hobby is finding the perfect parking space and then . . . just sitting in his car. Like the simple protagonist in Kozinski's "Being There" (the movie of which, I really loved), Murray's actions are misinterpreted by nearly everyone. His family thinks he's going crazy; the Mayor thinks that he's thumbing his nose at City Hall; a journalist projects his deep philosophical motivations onto him; and all the while Murray becomes a kind of guru to his fans.
- well done!
richardwells's review against another edition
4.0
Murray Tepper is either having a highly original late-midlife crisis, or he's just being a New Yorker; whichever, Calvin Trilling has written a highly amusing New York tale that may be the gentlest such to come out of the Big Applesauce.
Murray Tepper, moderately successful, devoted to family, easy-going, and easily misunderstood likes to spend his free time sitting in his car reading the paper. A life-long New Yorker, he knows the city's parking regulations, and best spots like the back of his hand. While exercising his right to park where it's legal, and his responsibility to feed the meter he manages to draw a considerable amount of unwanted attention from a host of fellow New Yorkers. Murray becomes a guru to some, a pain to others (especially the spot-on caricature of Mayor Guiliani,) and a puzzlement to friends and family.
"Tepper Isn't Going Out," is slight, but that doesn't make it less than delightful. Mr. Trilling is known as a food writer, and I don't think he'd mind someone using "Tepper..." as the sorbet between weightier courses
Murray Tepper, moderately successful, devoted to family, easy-going, and easily misunderstood likes to spend his free time sitting in his car reading the paper. A life-long New Yorker, he knows the city's parking regulations, and best spots like the back of his hand. While exercising his right to park where it's legal, and his responsibility to feed the meter he manages to draw a considerable amount of unwanted attention from a host of fellow New Yorkers. Murray becomes a guru to some, a pain to others (especially the spot-on caricature of Mayor Guiliani,) and a puzzlement to friends and family.
"Tepper Isn't Going Out," is slight, but that doesn't make it less than delightful. Mr. Trilling is known as a food writer, and I don't think he'd mind someone using "Tepper..." as the sorbet between weightier courses
kathleenish's review against another edition
2.0
I was initially drawn to this book because parking spots are scarce in my neighbourhood. The Guiliani satire is also pretty good.