The World According to Garp

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Summary: dreams
Review: This book is all about the dreams we lost and "lost dreams " we had.

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Summary: I didn't want this book to end
Review: It is a rare treasure that can make you laugh until you hurt in the midst of weeping; this book is one such treasure. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

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Summary: My all-time favorite
Review: It isn't easy to write about the book you like the most, but I'll try it. This is the ultimate novel by John Irving. It is his fourth book and this was the book that made him famous - he deserved it.

The book is about a guy called Garp, his life, his friends, his wife, and last but not least his mother and his relationship with them. The first chapters are about Garp's mother, Jenny Fields. Jenny isn't the usual women, she has strange ideas of the world. She is a feminist but she denies to be one. She thinks it is the natural way of thinking. She doesn't want to have a husband but she does want to have a child. She manages to have one - I'd rather not tell you how. Then she raises little Garp alone and starts writing her book - thet becomes a bestseller in the moment of publishing. She becomes a feminist star and she still can't understand why she becomes one. She houses all sort of deserted and sick women, the craziest characters of the book. For example there is a group called Ellen Jamesianists who think they can join the sufferings of a little girl who was raped and her tongue was cut out. So they let their tongues cut out. Then there's a basketball star called Robert who becomes Roberta... and that's only a part of the crazy characters.

So poor Garp hasn't got an easy mother. Anyway he gets on well with her. He wants to be a writer and he starts writing books at an early age. His books (in a book in a book structure) are contained in he novel. Garp becomes a good and respected writer though he is always compared to his mother and he is crazy about this thing - he thinks her mother isn't a writer so he shouldn't be compared to her. As Jenny isn't the usual women, Garp isn't the usual man. His thoughts and his reactions differ from the ones we are used to. It is understandable considering he was raised by Jenny. He is a very complex character as well.

Other characters are fantastic, too, my favorite is a woman called Alice who has a speech problem and is a lover of Garp. The way Irving describes her is unbelievable. You can imagine her easily. My favorite line is also about her. "She couldn't thtop". And I couldn't thtop laughing. The story itself can't be told in 1000 words, it couldn't be told in 10000 as well. It is one to be read. The book features many word jokes and real jokes. It describes horrible things in a way you can laugh at them. You can't help laughing all the time though you should feel like crying. That's why it is my all time favorite - life is just like that. If you learn to laugh at things that are inevitable and shocking then you learn how to live your life better. Garp helps in this process a lot. I think this book is a must-have for everyone.

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Summary: Magnificent
Review: I'm writing this review quite a while after I read the book, but looking back on it, it is simply an excellent book. Why? Because it's real. The story line may be outrageous at time, but when it all comes down to the basics of it and it's true meaning: it's real. I know this because often through my every day life there are situations which remind me of this book. Often, I am able to understand the situation I'm in much better.

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Summary: Strong writing, memorable characters, but shaky plot
Review: The craft of the novel is simply amazing. Irving manages to design a universe that you tend to believe is some kind of parallel universe to our own - a place where people do things that are slightly off-balance, slightly out-of-kilter. The way the book is put together, how the book comes full circle, and how the events are variously foreshadowed throughout the book, the multifaceted layering and meta-theatrics is simply amazing. And I can appreciate that, and be in awe of that, from the perspective of someone who wants to understand craft as well as the plot itself.

The plot is, perhaps, what makes it both good and bad. Irving takes on a book that has a huge scope. What is it about? Irving himself seems to be struggling with it in his Afterword. It's about life. It's about coming-of-age. It's about death. In a sense, it's about every human experience we feel: love, loss, rejection, remorse, and hate. The novel's quirky plot makes it somewhat hard to absorb, because half the time you are held overly incredulous about what happens to the characters.

The novel takes to long to kick into gear. Perhaps Irving wanted the reader to be really familiar with the characters the way we might be familiar with a family member that we love but take for granted. Unfortunately, it started too slow for me, and for too long, it seemed to be a book about nothing. Simply put, it took too long to get to the point, and although the point in the end is somewhat redeeming, it has come too late.

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Summary: Brilliance in the guise of accessible language
Review: I'm currently reading The World According to Garp for the fifth time and the story still offers up wonderful complexities and new details that reinforce my love of this book. John Irving explores some incredibly complex subjects; among them, life, death, and the nuances of love. He accomplishes this through language that is easy to read (no Rushdie-esque plot stumpers) yet covers these issues thoroughly. Irving's ability to continually tie in themes and bring the story full circle makes this book a literary treasure hunt of word-plays, metaphors, and an overall clever use of language. Irving can have a very dark sense of humor at times and it comes through beautifully in this novel.

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Summary: Well written, but couldn't make a connection...
Review: The story - I just didn't enjoy it. John Irving is a fine writer, and I am not knocking his abilities.

Some people enjoy a particular story, others do not. I just didn't fine Garp all that interesting. I thought the beginning of the book was the strongest. But I didn't think this book was "hilarious" or exceedingly funny. Irving CAN be extremely funny - almost as funny as Vonnegut, but he just didn't do it for me here.

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Summary: Unforgettable!
Review: Irving has created characters and plot twists that are so crazy, you have to believe them! From the moment of his unconventional conception, Garp's life is full of unusual events and characters. Through it all he maintains a zest for life and embraces it wholeheartedly, along with a strong love for his family.

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Summary: Thick . .but yes, it is certainly entertaining!
Review: I will be the first to admit that this rather thick read was intimidating and hard to commit to in the first couple of chapters. But the humor is there. Garp says what everyone thinks but never really says. Anything by Irving (in my opinion) is by far and away the easiest read. I read this one on the morning commute and was able to fly right through it. I will admit though. . .this is for the mature reader. I don't think that I would have found it as humorous at a young age. Thus, the reason I think so many students bash it.

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Summary: A Wild Ride
Review: This book was very entertaining and filled with great quotes worth pondering. Garp lives quite an interesting life, and the characters around him all have their own very unique personality traits. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a good laugh.