100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Enjoy overnight NZ-wide delivery from our NZ-owned independent bookstore! 🎉

Beautiful Losers

By Leonard Cohen
0.0 (0 reviews)
3.56 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating. ( 7,497 ratings, 715 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Beautiful Losers by Leonard Cohen is a surreal and poetic exploration of passion, religion, and identity. The story intricately weaves the lives of three central characters connected by a shared obsession with a 17th-century Mohawk saint. As these characters navigate their desires and losses, Cohen's rich prose delves into themes of love, madness, and spiritual longing.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2700
Elsewhere:
$2900
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by the blending of eroticism, spirituality, and political fervour, all while being woven into a tale of love and obsession. The narrative style, rich with poetic language, provides a profound exploration of human desire and cultural conflict, offering a read that's both provocative and immersive.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Combining spirituality with intense eroticism, wild and surreal humour with deadly serious intent, Beautiful Losers revolves around four characters - a husband, a wife, their ambiguous mentor, and a mythic seventeenth-century Irquois virgin.

Beautiful Losers leaps without caution between humour and tragedy, eroticism and vulgarity, deceit and the depths of true love.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Combining spirituality with intense eroticism, wild and surreal humour with deadly serious intent, Beautiful Losers revolves around four characters - a husband, a wife, their ambiguous mentor, and a mythic seventeenth-century Iroquois virgin.

The lives of the couple and their friend, F., are bound together by love, sex, and a lunatic spirit of experimentation, their relationship a tangle of jealousies, obsessions, and affections.

Cohen's brilliant and controversial book is characterised by a voice which is quite unique – lucid, tormented, nonchalant, and wry. The result is not just an extremely funny novel, but an incredibly original and explicit examination of friendship, sex, and spirituality.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Beautiful Losers by Leonard Cohen is celebrated for its explosive and brilliant style, drawing comparisons to literary giants like James Joyce and Henry Miller. The novel is a unique fusion of sexuality and mysticism, filled with humour and wit that borders on the obscene yet remains captivating. Critics highlight its blend of the mystical and profane, with an invitation to engage with its daring themes in a manner reminiscent of cultural icons like Easy Rider.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781921520402

Publisher: Text Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 05 December 2008

Country: Australia

Imprint: The Text Publishing Company

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 272

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Leonard Cohen Literary Fiction Penguin Books

About the Author

Leonard Cohen was born in Montreal in 1934. His collecitons The Spice-Box of Earth, Book of Mercy and the bestselling Collected Poems established his international reputation as a poet. Alongside his records he has published further collections of poetry and two novels. He lives in Los Angeles.

Also by Leonard Cohen

View all
  • Book of Longing: Popular Penguins
    Leonard Cohen made his name as a poet before he came to worldwide attention as a singer and songwriter. Book of Longing was twenty years in the making and written in Montreal, Mumbai, and during his retreat in Mt Baldy. These poems show the full range of one of the most influential and enigmatic writers of his generation.
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $1699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Flame
    The Flame is the final work from Leonard Cohen, the revered poet and musician whose fans span generations and whose work is celebrated throughout the world. Featuring poems, excerpts from his private notebooks, lyrics, and hand-drawn self-portraits, The Flame offers an intimate look inside the life and mind of a singular artist. A reckoning with a life lived deeply and...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $3400
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • A Ballet of Lepers
    In A Ballet of Lepers, Leonard Cohen explores themes that would come to permeate his later works—shame stemming from feelings of unworthiness; sexual desire, in all its sacred and profane dimensions; and longing, whether it be for love, family, freedom, or transcendence. A haunting examination of these elements in tandem, this novel and stories are about toxic relationships and the...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $3999
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Let Us Compare Mythologies
    First published in 1956 when he was twenty-two years old, Let Us Compare Mythologies is Leonard Cohen's first collection of poetry. It is an accomplished and passionate collection which demonstrates Cohen's remarkably assured voice, even as a young man. An unprecedented debut published to immediate acclaim, new generations of readers will now rediscover not only the early work of one...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • A Ballet of Lepers
    In A Ballet of Lepers, Leonard Cohen explores themes that would come to permeate his later works: shame stemming from feelings of unworthiness; sexual desire, in all its sacred and profane dimensions; and longing, whether it be for love, family, freedom, or transcendence. A haunting examination of these elements in tandem, this novel and stories are about toxic relationships and...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Hardback
    $5000
    Elsewhere:
    $5500
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Flame
    These poems and notebooks are the last word from the late, great Leonard Cohen. The Flame is a stunning collection of Leonard Cohen's last poems and writings, selected and ordered by Cohen in the final months of his life. The book contains an extensive selection from Cohen's notebooks, featuring lyrics, prose pieces and illustrations, which he kept in poetic form...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Hardback
    $5500
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Book of Mercy
    The poems in Book of Mercy brim with praise, despair, anger, doubt, and trust. Speaking from the heart of the modern world, yet in tones that resonate with an older devotional tradition, these verses give voice to our deepest, most powerful intuitions. Internationally celebrated for his writing and his music, Leonard Cohen is revered as one of the greatest writers,...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Book of Longing
    Book of Longing is Leonard Cohen's first book of new poetry since Book of Mercy was published two decades ago. It collects Cohen's poetry written between the 1980s and the present and also includes his wonderfully witty and sensuous illustrations, featuring numerous playful self-portraits. The illustrations interact with, and complement, the poetry in unexpected and fascinating ways. Book of Longing...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Favourite Game
    In this, his much-loved first novel, Leonard Cohen etches the youth and early manhood of Lawrence Breavman, the only son of wealthy Jewish parents in Montreal. Finding literary fame as a student, Breavman does penance through manual labour, before eventually fleeing to New York to escape the claims of his family and native city. In a tour de force of...
    By Leonard Cohen
    Paperback
    Sold Out

More from General Fiction

View all
  • The Wedding People
    'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people — but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...
    By Alison Espach
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
    Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...
    By Sarah J. Maas
    Set
    $12400
    Elsewhere:
    $15500
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Goal
    Welcome to Briar U!Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy!Read The Goal now for the perfect forced proximity romance! She's good at achieving her goals . . . College senior Sabrina James has her whole future planned out: graduate from college, kick...
    By Elle Kennedy
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Red Rising
    The first book in the incredible New York Times bestselling series Darrow is a Helldiver, toiling beneath the surface of Mars. As a member of the Red caste, he performs grueling labor in the belief that his sacrifice will enable future generations to one day inhabit the surface of the Red Planet. The Reds are humankind's lowest caste, living in...
    By Pierce Brown
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Ballad of Falling Dragons [Special Deluxe edition]
    The No.1 Sunday Times bestselling sensation When the Moon Hatched continues with the second book in The Moonfall Series, The Ballad of Falling Dragons… Raeve’s thirst for vengeance continues to burn, as does her love for Kaan Vaegor – a staunch beacon from a past she’s yet to face. With Rekk’s blood still fresh on her hands, she learns the...
    By Sarah A. Parker
    Hardback
    $5999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Project Hail Mary
    Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, the SUNDAY TIMES and NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of The Martian, offers a gripping new adventure in hard science fiction. With endorsement from notable figures such as Barack Obama and a slew of five-star reviews, this novel promises a thrilling and intellectually stimulating journey. Ryland Grace, a lone astronaut, finds himself on a...
    By Andy Weir
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2400
    (4)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Carl's Doomsday Scenario
    Join Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat Princess Donut as they fight fantastical creatures and deadly mobs in the second book in the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl series -now with bonus material exclusive to the print edition Now on the third floor, Carl and Donut have to fight harder than ever. They've already proven that a Coast Guard vet and once-and-forever...
    By Matt Dinniman
    Hardback
    $4699
    Elsewhere:
    $6000
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Score
    Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession... Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Score now for the perfect friends with benefits romance! He knows how to score, on and off the ice... Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn't have...
    By Elle Kennedy
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Golden Son
    ENDER'S GAME meets THE HUNGER GAMES in this, the second in an extraordinary trilogy from an incredible new voice.'I'm still playing games. This is just the deadliest yet.' Darrow is a rebel forged by tragedy. For years he and his fellow Reds worked the mines, toiling to make the surface of Mars inhabitable. They were, they believed, mankind's last hope....
    By Pierce Brown
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Dylan's Pick Dylan's Pick
    Theo of Golden
    THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON'For anything to be truly good, there must be love in it. Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core.' One morning, a stranger arrives in the town of Golden. No one knows who he is or where he came from…His name is Theo and he's arrived there by chance –...
    By Allen Levi
    Paperback
    $2899
    Elsewhere:
    $3499
    (5)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    On Mystic Lake
    One of the greatest storytellers of our time - Delia Owens, author of Where the Crawdads Sing Annie Colwater's only child has just left home for school in England. On that same day, her husband of twenty years confesses that he's in love with a younger woman. Left alone in the beautiful California house which was once a home, Annie...
    By Kristin Hannah
    Paperback
    $3100
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • East of Eden
    Set against the backdrop of the fertile Salinas Valley in California, East of Eden is a profound and compelling novel by John Steinbeck, one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. This masterful narrative charts the intertwining destinies of two families—the Trasks and the Hamiltons—across multiple generations. Steinbeck's intricate portrayal of human nature and enduring exploration of moral themes...
    By John Steinbeck
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.

General Fiction lists from the team

Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!

The Latest at Book Hero

View all