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A Prayer for Owen Meany

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A Prayer for Owen Meany

By: John Irving
Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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About this listen

Earphones Award Winner (AudioFile Magazine)

Of all of John Irving's books, this is the one that lends itself best to audio. In print, Owen Meany's dialogue is set in capital letters; for this production, Irving himself selected Joe Barrett to deliver Meany's difficult voice as intended.

In the summer of 1953, two 11-year-old boys – best friends – are playing in a Little League baseball game in Gravesend, New Hampshire. One of the boys hits a foul ball that kills the other boy's mother. The boy who hits the ball doesn't believe in accidents; Owen Meany believes he is God's instrument. What happens to Owen after that 1953 foul ball is extraordinary and terrifying.

As an added bonus, when you purchase our Audible Modern Vanguard production of John Irving's book, you'll also get an exclusive Jim Atlas interview that begins when the audiobook ends.

©1989 Garp Enterprises Ltd (P)2008 Audible, Inc. Christian Fiction Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Funny Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Tear-jerking Witty Vietnam War

Critic reviews

“John Irving, who writes novels in the unglamorous but effective way Babe Ruth used to hit home runs, deserves a medal not only for writing this book but for the way he has written it. . . . A Prayer for Owen Meany is a rare creation in the somehow exhausted world of late twentieth-century fiction—it is an amazingly brave piece of work . . . so extraordinary, so original, and so enriching. . . . Readers will come to the end feeling sorry to leave [this] richly textured and carefully wrought world.” (Stephen King)
"Roomy, intelligent, exhilarating, and darkly comic...Dickensian in scope....Quite stunning and very ambitious." ( Los Angeles Times Book Review)
"This moving book comes across like a concerto in this audio version, with a soloist—Owen's voice—rising from the background of an orchestral narration. This book, one of the finest of its time, gets the narration that it deserves." ( AudioFile)
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Prepare to be irritated, infuriated and enchanted by Owen Meany in equal measure. This is a book about friendship, love, religion and war - all the big themes - but beautifully woven into a vivid story about a charismatic boy in small town America, spanning the Fifties to the Eighties. Joe Barrett does a marvelous job of narrating this lengthy story, particularly in tackling Owen's screechy voice in an honest and unfliching way.

I recommend you listen to the final chapter, which is an interview with John Irving and an amazing insight into how an author understands his own work.

This a big time investment but probably one of the best you will ever make.

Such an annoying boy - but totally captivating...

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Absolutely amazing, have just finished it and want to start it all over again. , this is the first Irving novel that I have read and cannot wait to read another. He is a modern master story teller, a la Dickens. Intellegent and spell binding and beautifully narrated.

Amazing

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This audio book was recommended to me and I was new to John Irving. The novel is compelling and carries you through the life of the narrator from his early years to middle age jumping from the past to the present.
Joe Barrett reads this beautifully. It is crystal clear and the listener is carried through the story by his wonderful reading. Owen Meaney himself has to have a very distinct voice and Barrett creates a character with truth and credibility.
A fantastic, absorbing novel enhanced by being so well read.

A PRAISE FOR OWEN MEANY

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a fabulous book read many years ago. I thought it probably was the best candidate for a John irving audio book and was not disappointed! 27 hours flew by and were over all too soon. The narration was superb.

outstanding!

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I rarely write reviews of the audiobooks I have listened to, but in this case I feel compelled to say how much I enjoyed it. It is now several weeks since I finished listening and the character of Owen Meany is still with me. I think this is because he was such a compelling character but it is also a tribute to the narrator and his ability to portray 'the voice'. There were a few points where I felt the story was developing rather slowly but when I look back I realise how important all elements were. It took me a long time to be able to listen to another book afterwards as I felt almost as if I had lost a friend.

Captivating

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