eilonwyhan

Ignatius J. Reilly is not like anyone you have ever met. Over-educated (according to him), opinionated (his life is one big episode of schadenfreude), and celibate. He lives with his mother and has quite a cozy existence, holed up in his room and writing in his notebooks. Until his mother needs him to get a job to help pay for damage she inflicted with her car. Then everything goes to hell.

Reilly has many adventures in New Orleans, courtesy of his visits to the Night of Joy bar, his job at Levy Pants, and his stint as a hot dog street vendor. None of these experiences alter Reilly's world-view; in fact, he becomes more and more convinced of his moral and intellectual superiority with every passing day. His distraught mother ultimately decides it is time Ignatius gets a "rest" at the Charity Hospital, but he will have none of it. He makes his escape via deus ex machina, in the form of his ex-girlfriend with whom he has refused all sexual contact.

I started this book some time ago, and I really enjoyed it. It is full of interesting characters and hilarious situations. I hate to admit it, but I wonder if it took me so long to complete the book because I saw myself in Ignatius, and I really didn't like what I saw. I hope my world-view changes as my life goes on, but every time I encounter cretinous behavior in public, the image of me dressed in Reilly's green hunter cap and snow boots rears its ugly head.