Lucky Jim
by Kingsley Amis · first published 1953
83% recommend17% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Funny campus novel about an overworked junior academic, praised for making readers laugh out loud; often suggested to graduate students and anyone who enjoys sharp, satirical comedy of university life.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Amis’s debut novel, published in 1954, is a satire on academia. The protagonist is a bored and disinterested history lecturer at a provincial university, trapped in a joyless and sexless relationship with a depressive fellow lecturer. The book immediately elevated Amis to fame as one of the leading writers of his generation.
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What Hacker News says
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…story. - Good Omens: Gaiman and Pratchett team up, what’s not to love? - Moby Dick: And so the universal thump is passed round, and all hands should rub each other’s shoulder-blades, and be content. - Lucky Jim: grad school, a survival guide. Come in on the fa la la las, there’s a good chap. This doesn’t include poetry, which is also in my head constantly.
on “Ask HN: Great fiction books that have had a positive impact on your life?” ↗"Lucky Jim" by Kingsley Amis should be essential reading for grad students. This author's story sounds pretty familiar, but without the comedic revenge denouement.
on “Why I left Academia: Part I” ↗Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis is the only book I've ever read that actually made me laugh out loud. I'm told Catch 22 is like that, but I haven't read it.
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books of all time, and why?” ↗You probably know this but for others, Lucky Jim was written by his father Kingsley Amis, who was also a popular author in his time. Reading Martin’s memoir about his relationship with his dad is pretty good.
on “Martin Amis, era-defining British novelist, dies aged 73” ↗In this vein of work, I also heartily recommend Kingsley Amis' "Lucky Jim" (1954), which arguably began the "campus novel" genre.
on “David Lodge, British novelist who satirized academic life, has died” ↗…Poverty, and War" as a bathroom reader, and although I don't recall the specific section, it was through their friendship that I was introduced to Martin's father's works. The glue binding my copy of Lucky Jim dissolved in the back windshield of my car one summer, and I remember chasing the pages at the Indian mounds where I'd go after school to read. I'll have to give Time's Arrow another read.
on “Martin Amis, era-defining British novelist, dies aged 73” ↗I first encountered his novel "Small World" in graduate school, and immediately became a fan. (It was on the reading list for one of my girlfriend's courses.) Along with other novels like "Lucky Jim" and "Straight Man" (and the other two novels in Lodge's campus trilogy), it was a hilarious look at campus life. He will be missed.
on “David Lodge, British novelist who satirized academic life, has died” ↗Also, it has been a very long time since I read Lucky Jim, but I don't remember it mentioning Wales or the Welsh. Amis's The Old Devils is set in Wales, and makes a certain amount of sport of both.
on “Novelists as Schoolmasters” ↗This is a great story. Just reading it made me think of "Lucky Jim", not for the details but for the general level of absurdity. Somehow Apple has gotten out of touch with this particular market.
on “Apple now censoring dictionaries in the App Store” ↗