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In One Person
- Narrated by: John Benjamin Hickey
- Length: 16 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Literature & Fiction, Genre Fiction
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- By Susan Whitehead on 22-05-16
Summary
A compelling novel of desire, secrecy, and sexual identity, In One Person is a story of unfulfilled love - tormented, funny, and affecting - and an impassioned embrace of our sexual differences. Billy, the bisexual narrator and main character of the novel, tells the tragicomic story (lasting more than half a century) of his life as a "sexual suspect," a phrase first used by John Irving in 1978 in his landmark novel of "terminal cases", The World According to Garp.
His most political novel since The Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving's In One Person is a poignant tribute to Billy's friends and lovers, a theatrical cast of characters who defy category and convention. Not least, In One Person is an intimate and unforgettable portrait of the solitariness of a bisexual man who is dedicated to making himself "worthwhile".
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What listeners say about In One Person
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Birgit
- 22-09-13
Pointless ramble
Any additional comments?
A very well narrated (apart from the German) but sadly mediocre story. Not one of Irving's better works. It rambles on and on without any apparent purpose accept to say that LGBTs (and Qs!) should be accepted in society. Hardly a novel observation. Ok, I'll be fair, I wasn't aware of the addition of the Q category. It seems like he was scraping the bottom of the barrel and found some scraps that didn't make it into Owen Meaney (for good reasons) and pasted them together. Either that or he found it necessary to indulge inand publicise his personal sexual fantasies. I can't imagine why audible have this in their catalogue instead of Garp, Cider House, or really any of Irving's other novels (which I really wish would be in the catalogue). Must have been going cheap. If you're new to Irving, don't start here! Get Owen Meany or Son of the Circus which are both great.
1 person found this helpful
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- Cams
- 08-02-18
Enjoyable
It’s no Owen Meany but it’s clearly an Irving novel. Europe, gender fluidity, family, New England, wrestling, death; love, loss, self discovery, novelist protagonist, teacher. It’s like a recipe, but, just like enjoy my favourite recipes, so too do I enjoy John Irving’s novels.
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- Adrienne
- 18-10-17
a nice long listen
I struggled with this story to begin with... it seemed to follow the plot of 'a prayer for Owen Meany' - a book I truly love, but after a short while the story deviated from what I thought I would be listening to and started off o a completely different tangent. this is a wonderful story of a boy and his journey discovering his sexuality and who he really is....,
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- Steve
- 01-07-15
An epic story of one boys life
What an incredible story of one boys long unusual brave life. A brilliant story well told and beautifully written.
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- Katie Price
- 07-04-13
Fascinating account of developing persona
John Irving always seems to float around certain themes and images: in this book, he gives us a full, believable, insightful story about the long term development of non-conformist lifestyles, struggles to find identities, and the support and barriers encountered along the way. Fun, too, easy to read, and tightly written.
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- Helen
- 09-11-12
John Irving does it again
A prayer for Owen Meany has been in my top 5 for many years so I was instantly drawn to this latest book by one of my favourite authors and I was not disappointed. Once again he explores our ideas of gender, sexuality and family relationships with a cast of characters that are rounded and real. The book covers decades and, as in real life, not all the ends tie up a nicely as you might hope and with other authors would have turned into a Hollywood style ending that never happens in reality. Thoroughly recommend it.
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- Rebecca cawley
- 20-07-15
Very good Irving
If you could sum up In One Person in three words, what would they be?
If I could sum up In One Person in three words I would say - Top Three Irving.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
I cried through a lot of this book
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- s
- 19-09-12
Gave up after the first part
Very Droll. Not at all what I was expecting. It just went on and on about a boy's fantasies about men. (could have changed later but I just couldn't bare to listen to the second part). Nothing romantic or unusual. Very boring!
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- Stephanie Smith
- 27-08-12
Irving at his best!
Any additional comments?
John Irving has returned to his earlier form with his favourite themes. Reminiscent of Garp and Hotel New Hampshire there are complex characters, wrestling, sexual ambiguity and wretched mothers. If you like Irving's earlier work and aren't concerned about profanity you'll love it.
1 person found this helpful
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- Les Ross
- 16-07-13
John Irving - Tormentor
Would you consider the audio edition of In One Person to be better than the print version?
I have text recognition issues so yes, the audiobook is better for me.
Who was your favorite character and why?
Grandpa.
What about John Benjamin Hickey’s performance did you like?
He's a great reader and characterises really well. He's a great actor too.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Irving manages always to skirt sentimentality (for me, anyway) yet draws sentiment in the most matter-of-fact way when announcing the premature deaths. Without wishing to spoil this story for those who've not read it, (self) deceit and death feature and the reader not spared.
Any additional comments?
I started to listen to this book when I bought it over a year ago. I really didn't like it. Listened for about 20 minutes. When I started it again a few days ago, it consumed me. I hugely enjoy Irving as a writer and story teller. I rate this among his best.
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- Anonymous User
- 13-08-12
Irving has lost his magic
Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
Irving's earlier books drew one into a surreal reality that was simultaneously wickedly funny and disquietingly wise - Garp, Cider House Rules, Hotel New Hampshire come to mind, and Owen Meany, and Son of the Circus. In fact, all of them, the earlier ones.
Somewhere between then and now he seems to have lost that magical edge. "Last Night in Snowy River" was a little better than "Until I find you", but this last offering is probably the last I'll read. Which is seriously sad.
Wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.
What could John Irving have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?
He should stop trying to be controversial and just tell us a story.
What does John Benjamin Hickey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
JBH is a great reader. His pace, inflections and voices always work. If it wasn't for his reading I wouldn't have finished the book.
If this book were a movie would you go see it?
Not a chance!