Samuel Beckett's first novel, Murphy, published in 1938, follows the life of an unmoored and work-shy protagonist. Feeling untethered and yearning to be a passive bystander in his own life, Murphy withdraws, much to the chagrin of his fiancée, Celia. Murphy surrounds himself with similarly untethered friends, attempting to create a state of nonbeing.

Beckett’s ingenuity lies in the unusual language used to set forth this vision of isolation. The combination of existentialism and absurdity conveys Murphy's disjointed world, and the farcical energy of Beckett's prose liberates characters and readers alike.

• Paperback
• 224 pages
• ISBN: 9780571244584
• Publication: 21st May 2009