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The Cider House Rules

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 'The reason Homer Wells kept his name was that he came back to St Cloud's so many times, after so many failed foster homes, that the orphanage was forced to acknowledge Homer's intention to make St Cloud's his home.'

Homer Wells' odyssey begins among the apple orchards of rural Maine. As the oldest unadopted child at St Cloud's orphanage, he strikes up a profound and unusual friendship with Wilbur Larch, the orphanage's founder - a man of rare compassion and an addiction to ether. What he learns from Wilbur takes him from his early apprenticeship in the orphanage surgery, to an adult life running a cider-making factory and a strange relationship with the wife of his closest friend... Classics Coming of Age Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Inspiring Heartfelt Tear-jerking Feel-Good Thought-Provoking
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At once intimate and humane, this book gets to the heart of love, life and all the moral dilemmas we can face, and as a consequence the messy ‘imperfect’ lives we lead. How we all rub almond together, accepting or fighting one another, trying to do the best we can.
The narrator was brilliant, at times I thought we had a bigger group of readers... a prayer for Owen Meaney remains my favourite Irving.

Irving always delivers

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I love every novel of John Irving. This was possible one of the best. Zeus reads with such a fantastic storytelling voice, I just loved everything about it.

Amazing

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I read this years ago and had, mostly, forgotten it.

It is a beautiful book extremely well rendered and performed. It’s slow and ponderous pace highlights the beauty and tragedy of everyday life, or at least every day life of the time.

I’m 50 and I still cried at the end, just like I did with the book 20 years ago.

Beautiful.

Review for whole book

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Disclaimer. I love John Irving books. This is no exception. The characters he creates and the narrative of the story keeps you captivated throughout.

John Irving is a master of character

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I have always loved this book but read by Jared Zeus its even better. Beautifully narrated, thank you

Fantastic!

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