Tepper Isn't Going Out Author:Calvin Trillin Murray Tepper would say that he is an ordinary New Yorker who is simply trying to read the newspaper in peace. But he reads while sitting behind the wheel of his parked car, and his car always seems to be in a particularly desirable parking spot. Not surprisingly, he is regularly interrupted by drivers who want to know if he is going out. — Teppe... more »r isn’t going out. Why not? His explanations tend to be rather literal -- the indisputable fact, for instance, that he has twenty minutes left on the meter.
But once New Yorkers become aware of Tepper, some of them begin to suspect that he knows something they don’t. And an ever-increasing number of them are willing to line up for the opportunity to sit in his car with him and find out what it is.
Tepper Isn’t Going Out is a wise and witty story of an ordinary man who, perhaps innocently, changes the world around him.« less
A mild-mannered New Yorker raises all kinds of disturbances by simply choosing to sit in his legally-parked car and read his paper. Echoes of the Peer Sellers movie "Being There" as various people attempt to interpret his actions in different ways.
This is a great book. He reminds me quite a bit of Magnus Mills, although this story is definitely a touch less wacky than, say, "Restraint of Beasts". It is a light read, very amusing, I recommend it.