The Neon Bible

Name: The Neon Bible
Brand: Allen & Unwin
SKU: 9781611854985
Price: 24.99 NZD
Availability: OutOfStock

By John Kennedy Toole

0.0 (0 reviews)

3.77

( 7,988 ratings, 683 reviews)

Summary

The Neon Bible by John Kennedy Toole tells the poignant story of David, a young boy growing up in a small Southern town during the 1940s and 1950s. Through David's eyes, readers experience the challenges of a troubled family life, societal pressures, and the influence of a domineering religious figure. This novel eloquently captures the struggles of yearning for escape and understanding.
Read More

Format: Paperback / softback

TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK Please add to wishlist to be notified when back in stock

Sorry, we're currently out of stock of The Neon Bible. Please add to your Wishlist and we'll send you an email as soon as it's back in stock.

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?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy Southern Gothic stories that explore the complexities of growing up in a small, oppressive town. With its richly drawn characters and poignant themes of isolation and longing, it's perfect for readers who appreciate a coming-of-age tale imbued with emotional depth and a sense of place.

The accomplished and evocative first novel by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Confederacy of Dunces.

Description

John Kennedy Toole wrote The Neon Bible for a literary contest at the age of sixteen. The manuscript was finally published twenty years after Toole's death.

The Neon Bible opens with the narrator, a young man named David, on a train, leaving the small Southern town he's grown up in for the first time. What unspools is the tender and tragic coming-of-age story of a lonely child, a story that revolves around David's unorthodox friendship with his great-aunt Mae—a former stage performer who is fiercely at odds with the conservative townspeople—and the everyday toll of living in an environment of religious fanaticism.

From the opening lines of The Neon Bible, David is fully alive, naive yet sharply observant, drawing us into his world through the sure artistry of John Kennedy Toole.

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?

John Kennedy Toole's The Neon Bible is praised for its heartfelt emotion and direct prose, marking it as a remarkable achievement. It is seen as a powerful novel that fits alongside works by Flannery O'Connor, Carson McCullers, and Eudora Welty, with a tender and nostalgic quality reminiscent of To Kill A Mockingbird. Reviewers commend Toole's maturity in conveying complex emotions through simple expression, even as a young writer.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781611854985

Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 02 May 2019

Country: United States

Imprint: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press

Edition: Main

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 11.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 127g

Pages: 176

Collections

Classic Fiction Fiction General Fiction John Kennedy Toole Literary Fiction

About the Author

John Kennedy Toole (1937-1969), a native of New Orleans, graduated from Tulane University and received a master's degree in English from Columbia University. He received a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for his only other novel, A Confederacy of Dunces.

Also by John Kennedy Toole

View all

A Confederacy of Dunces

The ordinary folk of New Orleans seem to think he is unhinged as well. Ignatius ignores them as he heaves his vast bulk through the city's fleshpots in a noble crusade against vice, modernity, and ignorance. But his momma has a nasty surprise in store for him. Ignatius must get a job. Undaunted, he uses his newfound employment to further...

By John Kennedy Toole

Paperback

$24⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$26⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
A Confederacy of Dunces: Popular Penguins

Meet Ignatius J. Reilly—flatulent, eloquent, and pretty much unemployable. The ordinary folk of New Orleans seem to think he is unhinged as well. Ignatius ignores them as he heaves his vast bulk through the city's fleshpots in a noble crusade against vice, modernity, and ignorance. But his momma has a nasty surprise in store for him. Ignatius must get a...

By John Kennedy Toole

Paperback

$15⁹⁹

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
A Confederacy of Dunces

Meet Ignatius J. Reilly—fat, flatulent, eloquent and almost unemployable. 'This city is famous for its gamblers, prostitutes, exhibitionists, anti-Christs, alcoholics, sodomites, drug addicts, fetishists, onanists, pornographers, frauds, jades, litterbugs, and lesbians... don't make the mistake of bothering me.' Ignatius J. Reilly—fat, flatulent, eloquent and almost unemployable. By the standards of ordinary folk, he is pretty much unhinged, too. But is...

By John Kennedy Toole

Paperback

$24⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$26⁰⁰~~

Available
Ships in 4-6 weeks
A Confederacy of Dunces

A stunning clothbound edition of John Kennedy Toole's savagely funny, satirical masterpiece. A monument to sloth, rant, and contempt, a behemoth of fat, flatulence, and furious suspicion of anything modern—this is Ignatius J. Reilly of New Orleans, noble crusader against a world of dunces. The ordinary folk of New Orleans seem to think he is unhinged as well. Ignatius ignores...

By John Kennedy Toole

Hardback

$36⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$40⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
A Confederacy of Dunces (35th Anniversary Edition)

After more than three decades, the peerless wit and indulgent absurdity of A Confederacy of Dunces continues to attract new readers. Though the manuscript was rejected by many publishers during Toole's lifetime, his mother successfully published the book years after her son's suicide, and it won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. This literary underdog and comic masterpiece has sold...

By John Kennedy Toole

Hardback

$79⁰⁰

Available
Ships in 2-3 weeks

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 tomorrow
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 tomorrow
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 tomorrow
New Release

Land

Inspired by the mapping of Ireland in the mid nineteenth century, Land, the new novel from the author of Hamnet, is at once intimate and epic: a portrait of a family navigating a legacy of upheaval and loss with love and hope. On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great...

By Maggie O'Farrell

Paperback

$31⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$37⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
Signed Bookplate
New Release

Light Wielder

THE EPIC CONCLUSION TO METAL SLINGER, AKA THE BOOK WITH THE PLOT TWIST THAT BROKE THE INTERNET Sail the seas. Master the blade. Protect your heart. What would you do to have it all? READERS ARE GOING WILD FOR *METAL SLINGER* ‘The BEST plot twist to ever grace my Kindle’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘The author is a mastermind. Romantasy is back!!!!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐...

By Rachel Schneider

Paperback

$31⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$37⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
Tim's Pick

Mistborn Trilogy Boxed Set

The Mistborn Trilogy Boxed Set by Brandon Sanderson is a landmark fantasy series that has captivated readers worldwide. Renowned for its innovative magic system, intricate world-building, and compelling characters, this trilogy is a must-have for any fantasy enthusiast. Immerse yourself in a world shrouded in ash, where a once-hopeful land is ruled by the tyrannical Dark Lord, known as the...

By Brandon Sanderson

Set

$64⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$75⁰⁰~~

(2)

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
Project Hail Mary

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING NOVEL A BARACK OBAMA READING PICK A lone astronaut. An impossible mission. An ally he never imagined. 'The most enjoyable hard SF I have read in years' GUARDIAN 'Weir's finest work to date... This is the one book I read last year that I am certain I can recommend to anyone, no matter who, and know...

By Andy Weir

Paperback

$20⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$28⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
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 tomorrow
The Deal

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 Deal now for the perfect fake-dating romance! She's about to make a deal with the college bad boy . . . Hannah Wells has finally found someone who turns...

By Elle Kennedy

Paperback

$24⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$27⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
New Release

The Bookshop Detectives 3: Murder and Mojitos

Art Deco glamour, a Cuban crime queen and a grammar-obsessed killer collide in the #1 best-selling Bookshop Detectives’ high-stakes final instalment. The Bookshop Detectives are on the case! Booksellers Garth and Eloise Sherlock (and their cowardly dog, Stevie) have been roped into hosting Murder and Mojitos, a glamorous Art Deco festival event starring Cuba’s queen of crime fiction. Between flapper...

By Gareth and Louise Ward

Paperback

$30⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$38⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
On Sale
20% off

The Wrath of the Fallen

SAMKIEL AND DIANNA WILL RETURN in the next sizzling, dark romantasy series from Amber V. Nicole. EPIC. SPICY. ADDICTIVE. Embrace the darkness . . . 'If you like romantasy, read this!' RAVEN KENNEDY 'A wicked ride from beginning to heart-shattering end. Leaving me literally screaming for more' HANNAH NICOLE MAERHER 'This is perfection. Amber Nicole's Dianna is the FMC of...

By Amber V. Nicole

Paperback

$24⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$37⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships tomorrow
New Release

Lizzy's Pick

Yesteryear

A BOLD AND BITING SATIRE. WILL HAVE YOU GASPING TO THE FINAL PAGE — Nita Prose WICKEDLY FUNNY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND FRIGHTENINGLY PERCEPTIVE — Abigail Dean INVENTIVE, ADDICTIVE, A WILD RIDE — Ashley Audrain SHOT THROUGH WITH HUMOUR AND LACED WITH DARKNESS — Clare Mackintosh The Stepford Wives meets The Handmaid's Tale — Hannah Deitch My name was Natalie Heller...

By Caro Claire Burke

Paperback

$29⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$36⁹⁹~~

(2)

In Stock
Ships tomorrow

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

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

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.