Tuesday 25 September 2012

On the kindle Setting Free the Bears John Irving

So I came to John Irving late in life, starting with Last Night in Twisted River - a ripping yarn. Moved on to Hotel New Hampshire and the fabulous A Prayer for Owen Meany. Thought I might try his first novel published in 1968. This is one for the true fans. It is a bit rambling which is in the authors style, but without the interest that is strong in his later novels. As usual, there are stories within stories and people come to amusing but rather nasty ends, but the whole thing seems disjointed. Can't recommend, sorry and didn't find a particular quote for this that I liked. But here is a quote from the author that he uses regularly in interviews:

 "For 12 novels the last sentence has come first, and not even the punctuation has changed. From that last sentence I make my way in reverse through the plot, because there always is a plot—I love plot—to where I think the story should begin."

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