The Moviegoer

Walker Percy (1916–1990) was an American novelist born in Birmingham, Alabama, who trained as a physician but turned to writing after contracting tuberculosis. His debut novel, The Moviegoer (1961), won the National Book Award for Fiction, and he authored philosophical novels exploring existential themes, Southern life, and Catholic faith, including The Last Gentleman and Love in the Ruins. He also wrote influential nonfiction like Lost in the Cosmos and mentored writers such as John Kennedy Toole.