Midnight Cowboy cover art

Midnight Cowboy

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Midnight Cowboy

By: James Leo Herlihy
Narrated by: Michael Urie
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About this listen

Midnight Cowboy is considered by many to be one of the best American novels published since World War II. The main story centers around Joe Buck, a naive but eager and ambitious young Texan, who decides to leave his dead-end job in search of a grand and glamorous life he believes he will find in New York City. But the city turns out to be a much more difficult place to negotiate than Joe could ever have imagined. He soon finds himself and his dreams compromised. Buck's fall from innocence and his relationship with the crippled street hustler Ratso Rizzo form the novel's emotional nucleus. This unlikely pairing of Ratso and Joe Buck is perhaps one of the most complex portraits of friendship in contemporary literature.

The focus on male friendship follows a strong path cut by Twain's Huck and Jim, Melville's Ishmael and Queequeg, Fitzgerald's Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby, and Kerouac's Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarity. Midnight Cowboy takes a well-deserved place among a group of distinguished American novels that write - often with unnerving candor - about those who live on the fringe of society.

©1965 James Leo Herlihy (P)2018 Audible, Inc. Classics LGBTQIA+ Creators Heartfelt Friendship cowboy

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All stars
Most relevant
Not quite what I like expected but a good listen. A perspective on how a mind works.

Thoughtful…

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Having just finished listening to this brilliant reading I feel so flat I am starting it again. Everything about the writing is brilliant but the delivery is a piece of magic. The voices all so pitch perfect on accent you can visualise the characters. The nuances with which the narrative develops Joe Buck's being is masterful and compelling. Its years since I saw the film and I don't remember it being as gripping as this. Just mindblowing, funny and sad .

Utterly brilliant in every respect.

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Absolutley brilliant. This is so well written I couldn't stop listening. It is touching, funny, gritty and real. I had a tear in my eye at the end of the book, I wish it didn't finish. I would have to agree that Hurlihy's book is one of the best written since WW2. MIchael Urie's reading and interpretation is one of the best out there, his voice alone is worth the listen alone, he definately is one of my favorite readers. This has been an absolute gem of a find for me - read it, you won't be disappointed.

Modern Classic

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It's a good, well written story. For some reason it didn't make me emotional at all though, not sure why. There were times when I was a little confused, not sure if it was the story or the narration that did it. I think the narrator muddles the voices a bit at times, it felt like there were kind of hollow moments that felt a bit random and unnecessary. Also Joe sounded somewhat like he had special needs, but not always...From his thoughts I had an impression of some personality disorder.Maybe I'm missing something? Will have to go and do some research.

Good classic American novel

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Every now and then I find a book that stays with me, and this is one. It looks at the human condition from a funny, touching and beautiful way. It looks at some unglamorous, lost and more ‘real’ people, showing the depth of their character and experience. The narrator does a fantastic job of the characterisations. I loved it and wish I could experience it all over again for the first time.

Beautiful

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