Tepper Isn't Going Out

By: Calvin Trillin

Narrated by: Calvin Trillin

Murray Tepper would say that he is an ordinary New Yorker who is simply trying to read the newspaper in peace. But he reads while sitting behind the wheel of his parked car, and his car always seems to be in a particularly desirable parking spot. Not surprisingly, he is regularly interrupted by drivers who want to know if he is going out.

Tepper isn’t going out. Why not? His explanations tend to be rather literal: the indisputable fact, for instance, that he has twenty minutes left on the meter.

Tepper’s behavior sometimes irritates the people who want his spot. (“Is that where you live? Is that car rent-controlled?”) It also irritates the mayor—Frank Ducavelli, known in tabloid headlines as Il Duce—who sees Murray Tepper as a harbinger of what His Honor always calls “the forces of disorder.”

But once New Yorkers become aware of Tepper, some of them begin to suspect that he knows something they don’t know. And an ever-increasing number of them are willing to line up for the opportunity to sit in his car with him and find out.

Tepper Isn’t Going Out is a wise and witty story of an ordinary man who, perhaps innocently, changes the world around him.

Critic reviews

“Good for smiles, guffaws, and sometimes laughter that brings tears.”
—The Boston Globe

“Beginning, middle, and end are equally charming....Nothing can take away from this novel’s delight.”
—The Washington Post

“[Told] with great, cranky affection [and] an irresistible way of mixing the quotidian with the absurd.”
—The New York Times

“Trillin is at his charmingly funny best in this good-humored satire.”
—Los Angeles Times

To park or not to park...

Simply one of the most entertaining books I have read or listened to this year. Mr. Trillum delivery is dry but laced with humor and grace as he explores the ordinary life of Tepper as it turns very extraordinary by the most unusual of circumstances. His acerbic wit casts its gaze on all aspects of our modern life - work, family, politics and much more. Tis a book to curl up with in any convenient parking spot and enjoy.

One of my favorites

I read this book when it first came out in 2001 and laughed, a lot. I re read it every 2 or 3 years and I laugh about something new each time. It really is gold and never fails to put me in a good mood.

Constantly entertaining

Very funny. As a former New Yorker I enjoyed every minute of it.

New York in the ‘90’s

A brilliant folk tale about parking in NY, a paranoid mayor, an obsequious attorney general, a psuedo-folksy mayoral candidate, the press, literary agents, delis, and the nature of fame. Fabulous from start to end. Perfectly written and narrated. Does require something of an East Coast sense of humor.

Great Listen

This is the funniest laugh out loud book I have read since Confederacy of Dunces. You can see every character in the book as if they were in your living room.