The Incomparable Atuk
by Mordecai Richler
On This Page
Description
Transplanted to Toronto from his native Baffin Island, Atuk the poet is an unlikely overnight success. Eagerly adapting to a society steeped in pretension, bigotry, and greed, Atuk soon abandons the literary life in favour of more lucrative – and hazardous – schemes. Richler’s hilarious and devastating satire lampoons the self-deceptions of “the Canadian identity” and derides the hypocrisy of a nation that seeks cultural independence by slavishly pursuing the American dream.Tags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
Mordecai Richler sets out to skewer Canadian culture. Unfortunately the culture he skewers is that of fifty years ago, but a few of his barbs still hit uncomfortably close to home. Best read as broad satire.
bon et méchant
Jun 28, 2015French
1
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Lists
The Best of Canadian Literature
235 works; 33 members
New Canadian Library
191 works; 7 members
Author Information

53+ Works 9,078 Members
Novelist, journalist and screenwriter Mordecai Richler was born on January 27, 1931 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He attended Sir George Williams College for two years. He lived in Paris, Spain and England, and while in England worked as a journalist and radio and television scriptwriter. His fourth novel, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz show more (1959), was received with far more enthusiasm than previous efforts. He has written a number of screenplays (including Fun with Dick and Jane and the script for The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz). His awards include the Governor-General Awards, the Commonwealth Writer's Prize and the Ruth Schwartz Children's Book Award. (Bowker Author Biography) Mordecai Richler, the author of such distinguished novels as "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz," "St. Urbain's Horseman," & "Solomon Gursky Was Here," was born in Montreal in 1931. He has won the Commonwealth Prize, the Paris Review Humour Prize, & was nominated for an Academy Award for his screenplay of "Duddy Kravitz." Over the years he has contributed to "Atlantic Monthly," "GQ," "Esquire," "Harper's," "The New York Review of Books," "The New York Times Book Review," & "The New Yorker" (which will publish a portion of "On Snooker"). Richler is married & has five children; he now divides his time between winters in London & seven months at a cottage on Lake Memphremagog in Quebec. (Publisher Provided) show less
Some Editions
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
New Canadian Library (79)
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Incomparable Atuk
- Original title
- The Incomparable Atuk
- Alternate titles
- Stick Your Neck Out (1st American ed.) (1st American ed.)
- Original publication date
- 1963
- Important places
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Epigraph
- 'What would happen in Canada if full sovereignty were invoked and the southern border sealed tight against American mass culture – if the air waves were jammed, if all our comic books were embargoed, if only the purest and ... (show all)most uplifting of American cultural commodities were allowed entry? Native industries would take over, obviously. Cut off from American junk, Canada would have to produce on her own.'
Richard H. Rovere, Macleans, Nov. 5, 1960 - Dedication
- For my father
- First words
- Twentyman's dreadful equipment was unloaded at a dock in Montreal on a cold wet Wednesday.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)'Friends, Canucks, countrymen,' he went on, 'use your noggins...'
- Disambiguation notice
- First American edition (Simon & Schuster, 1963) had title: Stick your neck out.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 142
- Popularity
- 231,063
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.18)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 11





























































