Setting Free The Bears

Rating:
Summary: early John Irving material confuses, bores...
Review: 'Setting Free the Bears' is an early work by John Irving that would have been normally out of print, and deservedly so, if it were not for his later fame from 'The World According to Garp'. In some ways the book is similar to 'The New Hotel Hampshire', a book I actually didn't care for, but lacks the humor or the huggable characters (or the curious incest sub-plot, thank goodness). So what exactly is wrong with 'Setting Free the Bears'?

Well the plot itself is rather strange and somewhat incomprehensible. A young Austrian college student bumps into a very quirky fellow, and together the tour Austria on motorcycle. Just when you think the book will turn into a funny road story with an Austrian twist the author decides to split the story in two, with the a narrative of the main character camped out at a zoo and his strange friend narrating his (pre-war) family history. Very disappointing, and very dull. The ending concludes in comical fashion back at the zoo. But this fun ending is too little, too late.

Bottom line: a very amateurish effort by the often outstanding John Irving. A definite miss.

Rating:
Summary: Slightly disappointing
Review: After reading the wonderfully Irving's imaginative, captivating and sometimes zany books, The World According to Garp, A prayer for Owen Meany, The Cider House Rules, Hotel New Hampshire and Widow for One Year, Setting Free the Bears was a let down. The characters were extremely annoying and hard to stomach. After reading about Siggy for 150 pages I was ready to put the book down. I don't know much about motorcycles, and dodn't care to learn. I'll admit, maybe Setting Free the Bears just wasn't a book for me. Whatever you do, don't let reading this bland novel turn you off to John Irving's other novels. Most of them are supurb.

Rating:
Summary: The rest of you are lying; you couldn't finish it.
Review: There's no John Irving novel I don't love, except this one. Most of them, I have re-read about five times. Even "The Water-Method Man", one of his weaker novels, I read twice.

I couldn't finish this one, not in THREE separate attempts, at three very different times in my life, three different frames of mind. There's nothing wrong with my reading skills. I'm forced to conclude the rest of you are lying.

Siggy and Hannes are simply not characters one can care about, and the actual writing is wretched.