Looking for Mr. Goodbar [Paperback]

Judith rossner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 3, 1980

This book is a replica of the original from the collections of The New York Public Library; it was produced from digital images created by The New York Public Library and its partners as part of their preservation efforts. To enhance your reading pleasure, the aging and scanning artifacts have been removed using patented page cleaning technology. We hope you enjoy the result.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Pocket (June 3, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671418432
• ISBN-13: 978-0671418434
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,448,559 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The two faces of Theresa, November 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Looking for Mr. Goodbar: Looking for Mr. Goodbar (Paperback)

This was a disturbing book in many ways--not because of the subjectmatter or the storytelling, but because it reaches out to anyone who reads it, forcing them to confront their darker, hidden sides. As the story begins, Theresa Dunn is a 10-year-old child who comes from a large Irish Catholic family and frequently gets overlooked. The degree to which her parents pay her little attention while lavishing affection on her older sister, Katherine, is shocking, because Theresa's spine curvature could have been corrected immediately had they noticed. This, of course, adds to Theresa's self-loathing and her feeling that she is insignificant. The operation is a success, but Theresa is not quite the same. Katherine gets emotional and tells Theresa that she looked like she "came back from the dead". Theresa also has a slight limp to show for it, a constant reminder of her unimportance. From this point on, anyone who makes a reference to Theresa's limp, however casual, is basically striking Theresa in her most vulnerable place. Her failure to come to terms with her self-loathing eventually will lead to far more trouble in the future.

Theresa is still very much the good Catholic girl, however, and she still loves children. Her decision to become an elementary school teacher allows her to temporarily step into the role of "Mother" (nurturer) and "Father" (educator), to be simultaneously the parents she wished she had. It is during her college years that she meets Martin Engle, a sardonic English professor who will have a profound effect on her already shaky self-image. Martin is married, but he is still very much adored by his female students, and he does nothing to overtly discourage them. Theresa soon finds herself the object of Martin's affection, although he teases her for having such a "serious Catholic girl" personality. Rossner includes a number of vivid images in this section; for instance, Theresa, about to be seduced by Martin, watches coffee dripping from the coffee-maker, looking like brown mud. Their affair lasts for four years, until one day when Martin casually shrugs her off. She is simply another fling to him; he openly informs her that he will probably have another one by this summer. Theresa goes into a deep depression and again, comes out of it permanently altered. Now she is "soiled goods" in every sense of the word, and as her casual alter ego "Terry", she begins to behave recklessly, seducing strangers and bringing them to her apartment at night. During school hours with the children, however, she is still very much "Theresa", the "good" Catholic girl who lavishes affection on her students.

The "Mr. Goodbar" of the title is simply the name of one of Terry's haunts. Her double life is two such extreme opposites, that on the rare occasions when one element appears in another, it often leads to disaster. For instance, she meets a "nice" gentleman, James, who turns her off sexually, but who is comforting because of his unconditional love for her. This, of course, is beyond Theresa's comprehension, and in her perverse way, she often strives to push him away by acting "hard", swearing too much and being sardonic in much the same way as Martin. It is during one of these phases that Theresa attends a wedding in a "slutty" black dress that "Terry" would wear. At the sight of James' mother, Theresa is suddenly filled with shame, to the point where she feels physically ill. Likewise, with her "regulars", she is careful not to let them intrude into her "other life"; after sex, she immediately demands that they leave.

The most painful aspect of reading the book is the loneliness Theresa experiences. She has no close friends, her parents are remote and distant, and her older sister is flighty and cannot be depended on. Theresa's life is a dark abyss that she gradually sinks into, and she is a tortured, conflicted woman to the end. This can be a very depressing story, in spite of the vivid sexual imagery. Living in Theresa's skin is like going to a wild party every night, only to wake up with a horrendous hangover the next morning. The late 60's sensibilities are very much in evidence here, also; none of the so-called "peace and love" generation are any more successful at intimacy and committment than Theresa. James is a symbol of a more noble, idealistic time, when "old-fashioned" values like honesty and chivalry were treasured. Theresa herself is symbolic of people's best and worst selves; the tragedy is that the worst will often win out.

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Back To the Future, August 15, 2001

By 

Gypsychick "gypsychick" (miami, fl USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Looking for Mr Goodbar (Washington Square Press.) (Paperback)

It's the 1970's and the world has lived through the sixties and exploded into a one big wild and careless party. The vestiges of responsibility and family begin to tear and no where is it better illustrated than in depicting the life of Theresa. Theresa is a lonely single girl, teaching underprivledged kids during the day and cruising the bar scene looking for love after dark. Living in the shadow of her seemingly fabulous sister, Theresa born the shame of spine curvature (eventually corrected by surgery), the indifference of her parents, lack of friends, and the pain of empty love relationships. Theresa during the day, Terry is her night time persona who takes the young teacher to levels she never dreamed off as the story unfolds. Theresa is at odds with the good girl vs. bad girl images and yet is spurned by physical pleasure and the thought of a lasting and pleasurable relationship. The book's end is shocking and inevitable as Theresa looks for love in all the wrong places. A cautionary tale which rings true today, a copy should be given to every Washington intern.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Penetrating Glance into the Psyche of a Fallen Woman, January 14, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (NYC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Looking for Mr. Goodbar: Looking for Mr. Goodbar (Paperback)

Theresa is a teacher by day, and a bar cruiser by night. It's the seventies, and everybody's doing it, and as often as they can. I first read Goodbar a few years ago and have read it a total of 5 times since. It's a haunting story, one that gets into your blood and won't let go of your concious thoughts for days after finishing it. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading about the inner turmoil women face when confronted with situations where their sexuality faces off with their morality. I would also like to point out that the film based on this book and of the same title confronts the issues of sexual independence with stark and vivid imagery. I would recommend reading the book, though, before seeing the film as the book delivers a real kick to the theoretical groin while the movie doesn't delve as deeply into the mind, the heart and motivation of its main character.