Rating: 
Summary: This is my favorite book of all time, bar none.
Review: The first time I read this book, I thought it was about Owen Meany. I loved it. I laughed out loud until tears rolled down my cheeks, and then I cried like a baby. The second time I read this book I realized that it is really the narrator's story. And I loved it more. I still laughed. I still cried. (Note to the person below who mentioned that the Toronto segments were not necessary--read it again. They are!) This story is brilliant on many, many levels. I know I will read this book time and time again throughout my life. I recommend it above all others. (See the ParentsPlace.com book club archives for a great discussion on this book!)
Rating: 
Summary: A Little Too Much Liberal Politics
Review: I wanted to read this book because of all the people I had read that listed this as one of their favorite books. It was a readable book. Not a "Can't put down" book. I would have enjoyed it more if the author hadn't used it as a forum for his liberal politics. After seeing the movie "Simon Burch" which was based on this book, I understand why the author wanted to distance himself from the movie, since the book was quite different from the movie. Overall the book was enjoyable just not one of my all time favorites.
Rating:
Summary: The most rewarding book that I've ever read!
Review: If you only read one more book in your life, make it A Prayer For Owen Meany. I read this book in March and I still find myself logging on to the web to read the reviews of those who have also been lucky enough to experience the magic of this wonderful novel. I tell EVERYONE who enjoys reading that this one is a MUST! I joke that I will name my first child Owen, whether it be a boy or girl! I miss Owen Meany! I will read this book again, probably before the end of the year - making it the first book that had ever touched my heart enough to make me want to read it again and again...
Rating:
Summary: A brilliantly conceived novel
Review: What I found most riveting by "A Prayer for Owen Meany" was the construction of the story. Most novels run in chronological order but Irving chooses to reveal things more subtly by moving forward at times and flashing back after the full meaning of the events can be drawn, from what we know of what will happen. This is hardly a new idea but it works very well in "Owen Meany". It's like a breath of fresh air in a miasma of often murky writing. I was taken with the richly drawn characters and locales. Few novels have made it so easy for me to picture its places and people in motion. The relationship between Owen and John Wheelwright is the novel's focus but the core rests in the definition of faith, real faith in something that can't be proven. The narration of the novel occurs in 1987 during the Iran-Contra affair, and there are some startlingly prophetic statements about where our nation is heading (I especially liked how the Owen predicts a future president being similar in nature to a "televangelist" whose libido is out of control; sound familiar?). His indictment of America is harsh, but fair. The character of Owen is fully realized. He carries the novel from its odd, enigmatic beginning to its final revelations. His diminutive size and oddly pitched voice are only the most superficial aspects to his character. There is a strong sense in this novel that "the Lord works in mysterious ways." A lot of it boils down to whether you believe in miracles or if the mysteries of life can be explained away with so much reasoning. Irving finds a way to straddle the fence between these two extremes. This is one of the most satisfying novels I have read in a long time.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Book I will ever Read
Review: there is nothing else to sa
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful reading
Review: As a fan of John Irving, I had picked up Owen Meany several times only to put it down again because I'm not religious and the thought of reading a book about god and faith was not enticing. When I picked it up this final time and started it, I couldn't put it down. I didn't want it to end. I was laughing out loud throughout the novel and was teary eyed at the end. You don't need to believe in god in order to fall in love with Owen Meany. Another masterpiece by John Irving, although I didn't think the "Toronto" segments were necessary or even enhancing to the book.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite books.
Review: This is one of the best books I have ever read. I never know what I'm going to get with a John Irving book--very often, his characters or situations are just too bizarre for me to wrap my brain around. But this book was just great--sympathetic characters, realistic situations--I read it several years ago, and I'm still excited about this book. Read it; you won't regret it.
Rating:
Summary: What can I say?
Review: What can I say, this is a major masterpiece. One of the few books worth reading. I really did enjoy reading this book so much, that I was sad to reach the last page. You don't need to be a religious person to understand the deep religious emotions involved, the anger, the disappointments, the WHY's...........Magnificent.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent!
Review: I began this book around Christmastime of 1998 because I had chosen to take part in a literary competition comparing this novel, and The Giant's House by Elizabeth McCracken. I had never before heard anything about this wonderful novel, or of John Irving. I began the journey, at once captivated. Needless to say, I spent the majority of my vacation reading this delightful novel. I have never felt so strongly about a piece of fiction, and perhaps I won't again. But it has inspired me to pick up more Irving, which I also enjoyed. Before the novel ended, I almost stopped -- I was so moved that I didn't want the adventure to end. I had fallen in love with Owen Meany, just as so many others have. He was indeed a noble boy. I can only hope that John Irving has some of his characteristics, because he has certainly influenced as many lives as Owen.
Rating:
Summary: Do your self a favor: Buy this book.
Review: I cannot say too many good things about "Owen Meany". I picked it up on a whim nine (?) years ago, with very little prior knowledge of who Irving even was. This is Irving's masterpiece, and certainly one of the best books I've ever read. It will linger with you for a long time. THIS IS WHY THERE ARE BOOKS. PERIOD.
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