A Singular Man - Paperback

by J. P. Donleavy (Author)

An "excruciatingly funny" novel by the author of the classic The Ginger Man (Newsweek).

From "a comic writer rivaling Waugh and Wodehouse", this is the story of George Smith (Life). Mysteriously rich and desperately lonely, George appears to be under attack from all quarters. His former wife and four horrible children are suing to get his money. His dipsomaniacal housekeeper is trying to arouse his carnal interest. His secretary, the beautiful, blond Miss Martin, will barely give him the time of day. Making matters even worse are the threatening letters: Dear Sir, Only for the moment are we saying nothing. Yours, etc., Present Associates.

Despite such precautions as a two-inch-thick surgical steel door and a bulletproof limousine, Smith remains worried. So he undertakes to build a giant mausoleum, complete with plumbing, in which to live . . .

Hunter S. Thompson called reading this book "like sitting down to an evening of good whisky and mad laughter in a rare conversation somewhere on the edge of reality." A Singular Man is a deliciously dark comic novel by the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement honor from the Irish Book Awards.

"A wild romp . . . An important, first-rate novel by a gifted artist." -Chicago Tribune

"Rollicking, rambunctious . . . Sheer pleasure to read . . . Shatteringly funny." --The New York Times Book Review

Author Biography

J. P. Donleavy was born in New York City in 1926 and educated there and at Trinity College, Dublin. In 1967 he became an Irish citizen. Donleavy is the author of The Beastly Beatitudes of Balthazar B; The Destinies of Darcy Dancer, Gentleman; A Fairy Tale of New York; Leila; and A Singular Man.