The Incomparable Atuk, Richler, Mordecai. Published by McClelland & Stewart Limited, Toronto, 1963. First Edition. 12mo – over 6¾ – 7¾” tall., 192pp. Red boards with gilt spine titles. Name and whiteout marks to free endpaper and otherwise contents are in fine condition. Dustjacket has light wear and a small closed tear front lower edge.
Transplanted to Toronto from his native Baffin Island, Atuk the poet is an unlikely overnight success. Eagerly adapting to a society steeped in pretension, bigotry, and greed, Atuk soon abandons the literary life in favour of more lucrative – and hazardous – schemes. Richler’s hilarious and devastating satire lampoons the self-deceptions of “the Canadian identity” and derides the hypocrisy of a nation that seeks cultural independence by slavishly pursuing the American dream.
