Brilliant as Always

I'm not an academic and not a regular reader of novels. This is the 4th John Irving I have read and I loved it.

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Superb

Having read this book when younger, the beautiful characters which Irving wrote come out in this audiobook. Well read with loads of feeling and character voices.

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Sprawling saga

This was a sprawling saga about the life of Garp and his family. It wandered off into his own stories along the way but it still somehow keeps the reader interested enough to stay along for the ride even though it wanders far far from the story sometimes
It was worth sticking with it though and would recommend.

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Totally engaging!

Wonderfully written!
Thoroughly engaging set of characters and an underlying theme that is especially relevant in 2022, 40ish years after it was first published. I rarely re-listen to books but this has the potential (after a bit of time) to be an exception. Nothing speaks more for a story than the sense of loss after finishing it.
Adam Sims has a fantastic narration voice.

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Beautifully written, poignant, creative.

This is one of the best novels I have read. As Garp says “A writer must love and worry each detail” (he writes.) Irving has fulfilled Garp’s instruction.

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Maiming is the name of the game

Irving shouldn't need any introduction: he is obviously a masterful storyteller. Like Paul Auster, he isn't exactly a stylist, but for narrative drive and human observation he can go the rounds with almost any writer (O.K., maybe not Nabokov, Bowles, Mishima or Mary Gaitskill...). Adam Sims' reading is quite simply superb: he manages to modulate every character's dialogue or interior monologue with ever-so-subtle inflections without ever being arch, self-conscious, or irritating. (Would have to go a long way to beat Jeremy's Irons' reading of 'Lolita', but that's a very high bar). Should be noted that, previously, the ending of two chapters were lopped off, but Audible reacted and have restored the full intended unabridged version.

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Loving it

I saw the film a long time ago but it never really registered. This was awesome- from the story, the subject, the performance - all on top of their game. Right up there with the Book thief. Well done all involved

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Classic John Irving

I read this book years ago, now revisiting on audible. absolutely loved it, even more this time. The voice performance brought nuance I had missed the first time.

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Outrageous and wonderful

One of my favourite books! So progressive and still very relatable today. I loved how the outrageous story lines revealed messages and commentary on womens rights.

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A novel that demands a response

Listened to the book in record time. An unusual but compelling read.. I've been building up to reading this book for years.. Now that I've taken the plunge a sense of having been cleaned has come over me. And a reminder of the sexual oppression and violence that millions of women still face today.

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