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Jerzy Kosinski
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Being There Hardcover – Import, January 1, 1973

by Jerzy Kosinski (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 883 ratings
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Dust jacket design by Hal Siegel. His third book and basis for the Peter Sellars movie.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    171 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Harcourt Brace Jovanovich
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 1973
  5. Dimensions
    8.27 x 5.51 x 0.79 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0151117004
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0151117000
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harcourt Brace Jovanovich; First Edition (January 1, 1973)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 171 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0151117004
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0151117000
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.27 x 5.51 x 0.79 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 883 ratings

About the author

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Jerzy Kosinski

Jerzy Kosinski

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
883 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

invisible
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing little book!
Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2024
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I read this book after watching the movie of the same name. After reading it I can well understand why Peter Sellers haunted the author until Mr. Kosinski agreed to allow movie rights and write a screenplay.

This is a charming story of a man, a gardener, who has lived a sheltered life in the home of a wealthy man, without money, ID, nor record of his existence. We never learn whether he is the son, grandson or friend of the wealthy benefactor, but we do learn that he is very simple and concrete in all his dealings with others.

Some people have complained that the book left them with a sense of incompleteness. They should go back and watch the movie, because that incompleteness was corrected in the script.
One person found this helpful
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Charles Schroen
4.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat disappointing
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2024
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This novel is the basis for the film version and it is intriguing in several ways, maybe even more today considering the current state of politics in this country. This is a relatively short novel and the story is told in a straightforward manner but the sexual activity seems out of place. There are more significant themes going on in the novel that the sexual activity detracts from instead of enhancing. For that reason, the novel loses one star. Succinct and straightforward writing that is clearly focused without distractions is much appreciated. Without the sexual activity the focus of the novel would be significantly enhanced. If a segment of any novel can be removed without disrupting the focus of the novel, one wonders why that segment was included.
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TonySueB
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the greatest movies ever made
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2020
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My title is not hyperbolic. This is one of the rare movies that manages to convey what is in its characters’ core.

I recommend Roger Ebert’s two reviews he wrote (the first when the movie came out, and the second, years later as a reflection). They are far more articulate than I could hope to be.

This movie, to me, is a gently cynical and sarcastic evaluation of the superficial reality of television and its impact on, or reflection of our culture. This has become magnified by the internet. And for this reason remains relevant.

We are deeply affected by appearances and often build our relationships and values upon such sand.

Peter Sellers is brilliant and profoundly controlled and understated in this most amazing performance.
6 people found this helpful
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Davie
3.0 out of 5 stars Other reviewers miss the point
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2003
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During the time period portrayed by the book, people would hide and not acknowledge their retarded offspring. The author goes to great lengths to show physical similarities between the "old man" and Chauncey "the gardener". The old man's discarded clothing fit Chauncey absolutely perfectly as if they were tailored for Chauncey. Chauncey was not listed as an employee. No one knew who Chauncey's father was. There was no records for Chauncey. People of that time period were not known for taking in retarded strangers, the retarded were either institutionalized or otherwise hidden away. Not even the old man's business parter knew about Chauncey. The only possible explaination for these facts would be that Chauncey was the old man's child. Otherwise you would have to credit the old man, a retired lawyer, of having Chauncey working in his house as a gardener for over 40 years, starting when Chauncey was a little boy, as unpaid slave labor. At the end of the book, Chauncey is himself an old man visiting his garden, just like the "old man" used to do (another parallel drawn by the author). When reading this book, please keep it in perspective of the time period that is represented.
22 people found this helpful
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kenny davis
5.0 out of 5 stars easy to enjoy similar to the movie
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2023
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Enjoyed the movie for years. Decided to read the original and enjoyed learning background on Chance.
Writer has an easy flow and I will pick up more of his novellas.
4 people found this helpful
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Old dad
5.0 out of 5 stars Economical and beautiful--not one extra word and not short on words.
Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2016
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Captured the concept of the blank man, the cipher, the mirror man, the man who is there to reflect others.
A fast read, but with rich imagery. A tour de force, but not yet dated. His books were taught in college in the 1970s and 1980s, and, as much as some professors tried, they really couldn't ruin him.
This book is for everyone, including very young kids.
Deserves its high ranking in the Modern Library top 100.
4 people found this helpful
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jonathan briggs
4.0 out of 5 stars Being There
Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2012
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A venerable old lawyer dies, and the executors of his estate find an odd man wandering around his house. Chance Gardiner claims to have been tending the garden ("Gardiner," get it?) since he was a little boy, yet there are no records of his employment. Chance has no contract, no pay stubs, no ID. He has no mother, no father, no family. His name is Chance "because he had been born by chance." He has no existence outside the garden and no knowledge of the outside world that doesn't come from his television. He's adopted and introduced into high society by a rich woman who runs over him with her car. Chance proceeds to impress the members of the loftiest sociopolitical strata who see him as a genius and an expert on pretty much everything despite his oft-professed desire to simply watch TV. His cheery optimism and ability to talk a lot without actually saying anything (Conservative friends, insert your Obama jokes here) propel Chance into the upper echelons of money and politics, an empty and empty-headed symbol of power (Liberal friends, insert your George Dubya jokes here). Suggesting that our politicians are vacant vessels and that our celebrity-obsessed culture feeds off vapidity is hardly revelatory, but that doesn't make Jerzy Kosinski's sharp little novel any less pointed or accurate. In fact, DC life went on to imitate art. Thirty-odd years after "Being There" was published, Dubya unwittingly echoed Chance's innocent declaration of ignorance: "I don't read newspapers." A fawning media usher Chance into prominence in much the same way that Barack Obama took office almost 40 years later. Today, "Being There" almost reads like straight-faced biography. As politicians and pundits continue to grow ever more cartoonishly ridiculous, is there anything left to satirize?
11 people found this helpful
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nanajudi
5.0 out of 5 stars A great satire on the power of TV.
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2022
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I taught this novel to a variety of high school students decades ago. I selected it this year for book club. Kosinski's target is more relevant than ever.
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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luis carlos cruz torrero
5.0 out of 5 stars las historias que gestamos
Reviewed in Mexico on March 17, 2022
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Obra maestra de los malos entendidos o sobrentendidos.
No decir nada parece significar todo.
A donde podremos llegar en una sociedad que solo escucha lo que desea escuchar?
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Dominik Ziller
5.0 out of 5 stars Sagenhaft
Reviewed in Germany on March 23, 2024
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Ein Mann, Chance, wächst im Haus eines reichen alten Herren auf, isoliert von der Außenwelt, er arbeitet dort als Gärtner, ohne Gehalt, nur Kost und Logis erhält er. Chance ist Analphabet und man weiß nicht woher er kommt, warum er dort ist. Der alte Mann stirbt und unser Held findet sich auf der Straße wieder. Doch nicht für lange, durch eine Verkettung unwahrscheinlicher Umstände landet er im Haus eines Wirtschaftsmagnaten, wo er sehr bald auch den US-Präsidenten trifft.

Chance wird in Gespräche über Politik verwickelt, zu denen er nichts beitragen kann, weil er über keinerlei politische Bildung verfügt. So antwortet er mit Geschichten zu seinem Garten, die als sinnbildliche Anspielungen auf die Regierungsgeschäfte missverstanden werden. So zitiert der Präsident ihn, stellt ihn als wichtigen Berater dar, der Wirtschaftsmagnat will Chance in seinen Aufsichtsrat berufen, die Zeitungen berichten über Chance, das Fernsehen macht ihn zum Stargast in der wichtigsten Talkshow und am Ende wird er als Präsidentschaftskandidat gehandelt.

Eine herrliche Farce, mit leichter Feder geschrieben, schon vor 50 Jahren. Nur etwa 100 Seiten umfasst der Band und ist dabei ausgesprochen gehaltvoll. Natürlich hat das Buch etwas ungemein Aktuelles, kann man sich doch kaum des Gedankens erwehren, dass viele heutige Politiker auch nicht kompetenter sind als Chance und mit ähnlich dünnen Sprüchen durch die Talkshows kommen. Nur dass sie dies mit voller Absicht verfolgen, während Chance die Dinge ausgesprochen unfreiwillig zustoßen.

Weltklasse!
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Mukhlis M.
5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2023
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I decided to read this book after I watched the film by the same name. I was not disappointed. The story has a deep meaning behind the American and business cultures, which reflect the shallow nature of their thinking.
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Derrick Daniels
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Reviewed in Canada on June 7, 2020
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A great quick read. It’s a masterwork of observation. Loved every page. Great books have no best before date. Read it.
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Jonathan Mercer
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
Reviewed in France on May 26, 2018
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I love the book and its my prefered one from Kosinski as far as I can recall all I have read beforehand.
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