全书由八个短篇组成，分别从八个位于童年、青春期和青年等不同阶段的男性视角出发，以意识和潜意识交接地带的经验为揭示对象，有时荒唐，有时伤感，有时温柔，有时骇人，有时魔幻，却都无限接近真实，接近每个人的内心。 麦克尤恩素来擅长以冷静细腻的笔触打磨幽暗题材，赋予其精妙无双的质感。八个故事各如黑晶棱镜之一面，折射出日常生活中平凡人性所可能误陷的种种魔怔与梦魇。平地与深渊，生与死，真实与玄幻，伦常与变态之间的界限恍若蛛丝般轻薄，看后令人或怅然或倒吸凉气，同时又觉得其魔力不可抗拒。 以如此短薄篇幅，麦克尤恩却惊才遽现，征服了文坛。所录每一篇都可谓杰作，令人过目难忘。此书是阅读和了解这位天才作家的最佳切入点。 《最初的爱情，最后的仪式》是麦克尤恩的处女作与成名作。

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1991. High school freshman Charlie is a wallflower, always watching life from the sidelines, until two senior students, Sam and her stepbrother Patrick, become his mentors, helping him discover the joys of friendship, music and love.

2017 animated film directed by Masaaki Yuasa

At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.

1995 film by Shunji Iwai

2011 South Korean film directed by Kang Hyeong-cheol

小说的主人公是一位自称名叫田村卡夫卡——作者始终未交代其真名——的少年。他在十五岁生日前夜独自离家出走，乘坐夜行长途巴士远赴四国。出走的原因是为了逃避父亲所作的比俄底浦斯王还要可怕的预言：尔将弑父，将与尔母、尔姐交合。卡夫卡四岁时，母亲突然失踪，带走了比卡夫卡年长四岁、其实是田村家养女的姐姐，不知何故却将亲生儿子抛弃。他从未见过母亲的照片，甚至连名字也不知道。仿佛是运命在冥冥之中引导，他偶然来到某私立图书馆，遂栖身于此。馆长佐伯女士是位四十多岁气质高雅的美妇，有着波澜曲折的神秘身世。卡夫卡疑心她是自己的生母，佐伯却对此不置可否。卡夫卡恋上了佐伯，并与之发生肉体关系。小说还另设一条副线，副线的主角是老人中田，他在二战期间读小学时，经历过一次神秘的昏迷事件，从此丧失了记忆，将学过的知识完全忘记，甚至不会认字计数，却获得了与猫对话的神秘能力。中田在神智失控的情况下杀死了一个自称焦尼·沃卡（Johnny Walker）、打扮得酷似那著名威士忌酒商标上所画的英国绅士的狂人，一路搭车也来到此地。小说共分49章，奇数章基本上用写实手法讲述卡夫卡的故事，偶数章则用魔幻手法展现中田的奇遇。两种手法交互使用，编织出极富强烈虚构色彩的、奇幻诡诘的现代寓言。佐伯是将这两个故事联结为一体的结合点，而弑父的预言似乎最终也未能避免，因为狂人焦尼·沃卡居然是卡夫卡生父乔装改扮的，真正的凶手也并非中田……

After learning that a boy their age has been accidentally killed near their rural homes, four Oregon boys decide to go see the body. On the way, Gordie, Vern, Chris and Teddy encounter a mean junk man and a marsh full of leeches, as they also learn more about one another and their very different home lives. Just a lark at first, the boys' adventure evolves into a defining event in their lives.

A young American studying in Paris in 1968 strikes up a friendship with a French brother and sister. Set against the background of the '68 Paris student riots.

Heroin addict Mark Renton stumbles through bad ideas and sobriety attempts with his unreliable friends -- Sick Boy, Begbie, Spud and Tommy. He also has an underage girlfriend, Diane, along for the ride. After cleaning up and moving from Edinburgh to London, Mark finds he can't escape the life he left behind when Begbie shows up at his front door on the lam, and a scheming Sick Boy follows.

我是路小路，我在这里 我上班下班，我跑来跑去，我不知道为什么 我想写诗，我不怕被人扁，但怕人笑,所以请原谅我的怯懦 我想去远方，可远方太远 我想伏地生活，但心有不安 我在迷雾中穿行 我不知道我会成为什么人，但我知道我不能成为什么人 我只是要拒绝庸常 后来，我明白了年轻时缘何有那么多的时间，像是空虚的情绪，永无尽头 后来，我知道了生活的真相，我不会再去嘲笑一个二十岁的莫名痛哭的少年