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Queen Esther

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Queen Esther

By: John Irving
Narrated by: Ari Fliakos
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“Few skewer sanctimony quite like Irving at his best. More important: I fell in love, once again, with his people.” —Peter Orner, The New York Times Book Review

After forty years, John Irving returns to the world of his bestselling classic novel and Academy Award–winning film The Cider House Rules, revisiting the orphanage in St. Cloud’s, Maine, where Dr. Wilbur Larch takes in Esther—a Viennese-born Jew whose life is shaped by anti-Semitism.

“A story that’s unmistakably Irving—amiably peopled, compellingly plotted and, above all, compassionate for its characters” (NPR).

Esther Nacht is born in Vienna in 1905. Her father dies on board the ship to Portland, Maine; her mother is murdered by anti-Semites in Portland. Dr. Larch knows it won’t be easy to find a Jewish family to adopt Esther; in fact, he won’t find any family who’ll adopt her.

Not just a story of survival, but a profound exploration of coming of age, identity, belonging, and the enduring impact of history on our personal lives, Queen Esther “is richly textured with unforgettable characters, vivid settings, and familial love that will stay with you long after you put the book down” (The Jewish Book Council), showcasing why Irving remains one of the world’s most beloved, provocative, and entertaining authors—a storyteller of our time and for all time. Political World Literature Royalty Middle East Portland
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Critic reviews

"Narrator Ari Fliakos brings a compassionate tone and exquisite pacing to Irving’s sequel to THE CIDER HOUSE RULES—40 years in the making. Complicated, quirky, and enigmatic characters highlight this exploration of anti-Semitism and how Esther Nacht, a Viennese-born Jewish orphan, ends up at an orphanage in St. Cloud’s, Maine, where Dr. Wilbur Larch takes her in. Fliakos portrays Esther with a tinge of melancholy and world-weariness as she ages out of the orphanage and is then taken in by the Winslows, a wealthy family strongly opposed to anti-Semitism. Irving delivers this exploration of identity and belonging in a story that mirrors the creation of the State of Israel. Fliakos’s dexterous vocalizations of the men and women in Esther’s life create a compelling and entertaining world."
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