Murray is a fantastic writer, and this first novel of his is an incredible accomplishment--made me laugh, cry, all that.

The thing is...I read it after I read his second novel, "Skippy Dies," which is just about one of the best novels I've ever read (made me both laugh and cry harder). So I think reading "An Evening of Long Goodbyes" made me both more charitable toward Murray but also a little disappointed that his first novel isn't as good as his second. No real surprise there, though.

This novel is told entirely in the perspective of Charles Hythloday, a spoiled 24-year old who wants to recreate the world of living as a gentleman, without having to work or really do anything at all. He is, in a word, insufferable. That makes the first hundred or so pages of the book a little tedious as his ignorance is both hilarious and annoying.

Then things turn serious, but there are so many turns and little pieces that the plot feels like so many frayed bits of string keeping together a tattered clothesline. But still, the ending was heartbreaking, surprisingly so.

Do I recommend this book? I recommend you read "Skippy Dies" first, decide if you love Murray as much as I do, and read this next to keep your spirits up until he published a third novel.

I liked this, although is often the most overlooked of his novels. I really liked the strength of the comic narrative voice - I found it genuinely laugh-out-loud quite funny.

Not as good as his other 2 novels - doesn’t really crackle as much and doesn’t have the sort of madcap movement. A little navel-gazey amd just plods - was kind of a chore to finish it

Not as good as "Skippy".

I finally put this one down, unfinished. I found it boring, too cute, old humor.

It's a hard review for me to leave - I'm conflicted because I dislike the ending a lot but am very taken by Murray's style of telling.

If you are considering reading it, I would say: expect dark/tragic elements. I went in expecting whimsical satire where the stakes are low and laughs are high throughout. I was thrown off balance by how the novel ramped up in seriousness. I would not have chosen it as a holiday read had I known it had these qualities.

very disappointing after the wonder of Skippy Dies. Reads like a less funny PG wodehouse.

This book feels like it was written during two different periods of the author’s life. It almost feels like it is two different and incompatible moods, blended into one. Even still, An Evening Of Long Goodbyes really is superb. Poetic and hilarious and imbued with heartbreaking pathos. Somehow this book strikes a chord that reminds me of Hrabal—and this is the very highest praise possible. A curious and perhaps inconsistent book, but for me, utterly superb. A joy to read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"An Evening of Long Goodbyes: A Novel" is supremely well-written, I'll give it that much.

Not a complete waste of time if you're looking for something frivolous and you've never read Confederacy of Dunces.

This book took me a bit to get into. You either like the beginning or you like the second part of the book. I am the latter. The first part is the main characters rendition of the world as he sees it. Which I know was meant to be humorous. But made it hard for me to like the character. Second part puts him in the real world. Please don't disregard this book because of my spin. You could have a different sense of humor then I. I did enjoy the second part. Takes place in Ireland close to Dublin when it was becoming a rising star location.

Hmm. This one didn't quite do it for me. I expected a highly funny read like the blurbs and quite some reviews here promised, but I felt it all fell a bit flat. Charles, the main character / narrator, was too much of a caricature to me, which would have been fine had the rest of the book not been quite so serious. Still, 3 stars for writing, originality and helping me read Frank in an Irish accent.

I enjoyed the first half or so, but then as the story got more complex and serious, I felt like it got bogged down. The humor throughout is enjoyable, and the device of the narrator revealing his boorishness through what others say to him was well done.