Notice

Marilyn liked a good book, too

I've read all sixteen of John Irving's books, starting with Setting Free the Bears (1970) The Water Method Man (1971) The 158 Pound Marriage (1974) and so on.  The World According to Garp in 1978.  I was the only person in our book group who managed to make it through the enormous Son of the Circus in the 1990's. The strange setting was India, and I was on an "India book" kick at the time which helped.

Some of his dense novels are now considered American literary masterpieces (Prayer for Owen Meany, Widow for One Year, Cider House Rules).  Others are more like screenplays (The Fourth Hand) but they're all entertaining because of his fine writing.

John Irving is a little older than me, but not much, so it's a "growing up together" feeling through the decades even though we have nothing in common.  New England? Wresting?  Vienna?  Bears?  Missing parent? Deadly accidents?  Those are recurring themes from his personal history that he draws on again and again in his writing. And his fans don't get bored-- they expect it! 

Irving is one of a handful of authors whose books I gladly buy hot off the press, and I just finished his latest novel called In One Person.  I won't reveal the story (Amazon.com is teeming with reviews) and if you like his writing, you'll get around to reading it in paperback or from the library. I'll just say this-- sometimes there is more truth buried in fiction than you'll ever find in non-fiction.

Here's one wonderful line from the book:

"Before you can write anything, you have to notice something."