The Last Taxi Driver
The Last Taxi Driver by Lee Durkee, published by National Geographic Books on September 13, 2022, is a literary work that explores the life of Lou, a lapsed novelist and struggling Buddhist who drives for a taxi company in a north Mississippi college town. As Uber disrupts his way of life and personal challenges mount, including a breakup and the return of a rival dispatcher, Lou navigates a chaotic shift filled with eccentric passengers and unexpected dilemmas.
This edition, comprising 250 pages, delves into themes of psychological struggle and biographical elements as Lou encounters a range of characters that reflect a gritty, often humorous perspective on contemporary America. The narrative takes readers on a journey through highways and back roads, capturing the essence of a man grappling with his identity and the changing landscape around him. The Last Taxi Driver presents a vivid portrayal of a forgotten America, blending dark comedy with poignant moments as Lou confronts the madness and heartbreak of his circumstances.
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A Kirkus Best Book of 2020
“A wild, funny, poetic fever dream that will change the way you think about America.” —George Saunders
Hailed by George Saunders as “a true original—a wise and wildly talented writer,” Lee Durkee takes readers on a high-stakes cab ride through an unforgettable shift. Meet Lou—a lapsed novelist, struggling Buddhist, and UFO fan—who drives for a ramshackle taxi company that operates on the outskirts of a north Mississippi college town. With Uber moving into town and his way of life vanishing, his girlfriend moving out, and his archenemy dispatcher suddenly returning to town on the lam, Lou must finish his bedlam shift by aiding and abetting the host of criminal misfits haunting the back seat of his disintegrating Town Car. Lou is forced to decide how much he can take as a driver, and whether keeping his job is worth madness and heartbreak.
Shedding nuts and bolts, The Last Taxi Driver careens through highways and back roads, from Mississippi to Memphis, as Lou becomes increasingly somnambulant and his fares increasingly eccentric. Equal parts Bukowski and Portis, Durkee’s darkly comic novel is a feverish, hilarious, and gritty look at a forgotten America and a man at life’s crossroads.
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