First published 1992
Samuel Beckett's debut novel follows the aimless meanderings of Belacqua, a young Irishman adrift in 1930s Paris. Belacqua finds himself entangled in a bizarre love triangle, torn between the ethereal Smeraldina-Rima and the more pragmatic Laura. As he drifts through cafes and apartments, Belacqua grapples with his own ennui and existential malaise, seeking meaning in the mundane. Beckett's singular prose paints a vivid, absurdist portrait of a man unmoored, yearning for connection in an indifferent world.
Genres: literary-fiction, 20th-century, adult-fiction
Vibes: atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: aimless-protagonist, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Dublin (Ireland), Paris
Period: 1930s
256 pages · Hardcover · The Black Cat Press