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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
John Irving is one of my favorite authors, but this book was a bit of a let down for a few different reasons. We have three different types of writing in this one, his biographies, short stories, and his non-fiction. For me the biographies were the most fun because his writing was concentrated and it was enjoyable to find more about the author I respect so much. The short stories were hit and miss (and it's disappointing to read a story that was in one of his novels already), then we get his non-fiction...which I'm sorry to say, I'm not a fan. It just feels like he misses the mark on each essay. Like he was focused on the wrong things to really get the point across. Still it's Irving and I just adore his writing.
Imagine the scene; browsing through a second hand bookshop in Wexford and I come across a book by one of my favourite authors, John Irving (read nearly everything he has written). Not just that but it’s a book I’d never heard of (a bonus book!). And not just that, but the book turns out to be one part memoir (LOVE IT!!), one part short stories and one part homage to Charles Dickens, who only happens to be another of my other favourite authors and is also one of JI’s. There isn’t much point in me saying any more about this book, is there? It might as well have been written specifically for me.
I enjoyed the short stories in this collection, some of which I was already familiar with, and I often enjoy author’s notes on stories.
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A