A Son of the Circus

Rating:
Summary: Another delicious slice of life
Review: After re-reading this book, I have to say it is one of my favorites. I found it, as with all of Irving's stories, moving, tragic, and funny. It is filled with characters that, once the novel was finished, I missed terribly. I am eagerly anticipating my latest shipment from Amazon, as it contains, no doubt, another strange and wonderful John Irving adventure in "Widow for a Year". I can't wait.

Rating:
Summary: Trivial, with a capital "T".
Review: This book is to literature what candy floss is to food.. a whole lot of nothing. I felt totally ambivalent towards the characters, the plot was superficial, the humour puerile. I learned next to nothing about India. Hotel New Hampshire (which I know is highly regarded) lies in wait on my shelf but after this I just can't bring myself to pick it up.

Rating:
Summary: Worth a second start
Review: When I purchased A Son of the Circus 4 years ago, I didn't make it past the first 50 pages. I found it to be a bit slow. Now, 4 years later I (as a John Irving fan) am glad I gave it a second go. If one is discouraged upon starting A Son of the Circus they need only get past the first 80 pages or so and they are in for a treat. By no means is this a typical Irving novel. Yet it echoes his constant and wonderful talent and gift for storytelling. Circus's characters take a while to get to know, but once you know them it's hard to say goodbye. Vinod (the sensitive thug dwarf) brought a tear to my eye near the end. Be patient Irving fans, this book is worth the effort.

Rating:
Summary: adequate but not inspiring
Review: Having recently been introduced to his work by a friend, CIRCUS is the fourth Irving novel I have read in the past month. I must say I was a little disapppointed. The book is indeed a retread of his earlier work, lacking the charm that made his other novels so memorable. It is not bad, but certainly not compelling. I actually took three weeks to read it, usually saving the book to read myself to sleep. I even stopped in the middle of CIRCUS and read another novel before returning to it. When I resumed reading novel, I found I had no trouble picking up where I left off, because NOTHING REALLY HAPPENS IN THIS BOOK. This book was like an old familiar story you read to pass the time on a trip, except that I hadn't read the book before. Again, its not a bad book, its just like a filler Irving wrote to pass the time before his next novel. The Indian characters seemed stereotypical and silly, albeit mildly amusing. The Doctor himself is an absolutely bland person, even more bland than the narrator of OWEN MEANY. However, that character illustrated the more flamboyant people around him, while Doctor Darwalluh really has no one that interesting to highlight. I noted that one reviewer loved this book, but put down Owen Meany after 100 pages. While I respect everyone's right to their opinion, I cannnot see how one could like this mediocre effort more than MEANY, which is one of the most moving and memorable novels I have ever read. A Prayer for Owen Meany was my first experience with Irving, and my best. Garp and Hotel New Hampshire followed; I found both very good, if not as fine as Meany. It's fortunate that I did not read A Son of the Circus first, or I would have perhaps not been tempted to bother with him again. If you're an Irving fan, this book is readable, but certainly not a must-read. If you haven't read Irving before, start with Meany, or perhaps Garp, as Meany may spoil you for future Irving novels, or any other contemporary novels, for that matter.

Rating:
Summary: Great characters make for a wonderful story!
Review: I have read this book twice and am reading it again! From the opening line of the opening chapter I was hooked. Plot after plot. Moving back and forth from past to present Mr Irving kept me glued to this book! One cannot help but fall in love with the character of Dr. Daruwalla.Likewise, one cannot put this masterpiece down as the incredible story unfolds. Somehow we watch as Dwarfs, circus characters, a serial killer, twins separated at birth hollywood types, and the wonderful big-hearted, self-doubting, memory laden, stranger in any land Farrokh Daruwalla weave their way through this tale of a circus within a circus. I read this novel on the beach at Cape Ann, Mass. I was constantly laughing out loud (causing my wife and others to wonder what could be so funny), yet I had that sad feeling when I finished that I had lost some old and dear friends. I reread Garp and then everything else by this incredible writer! I recommend this book to everyone who has the patience to follow a twisting story line, and laugh at the surprises along the way. You too will immediately go out and read Mr. Irving's other masterpieces. I cannot wait to read Widow for A Day. Thank you John Irving.

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Summary: Irving in India is incredible entertainment.
Review: I've been an Irving fan since "Garp" and looked forward to "Son of the Circus" until I picked it up and started with .....oh, no! ...AN INDIAN DOCTOR IN TORONTO??!! Once I got past that, it was absolutely terrific. The book was such great fun, I didn't want it to end. He has a gift of spinning out diverse characters and setting; then tying up all the loose ends. His people descriptions are really wonderful. I still laugh thinking about "The Misunderstanding at the Urinal". This was John Irving at his entertaining best; terrific story telling. I look forward to his new book, "A Widow for One Year".

Rating:
Summary: A story set in motion by dwarfism
Review: A huge John Irving fan, I am distressed to read so many negative review of this, my second favorite Irving novel. Like the screenwriter Farrokh Daruwalla (offender of policemen, Parsis, eunuch-transvestite prostitues and more), I cannot understand the offence this novel has caused. It's supposed to be funny! The perverse Promila and Rahul Rai, the distant John D/Inspector Dhar and is verbose twin Martin Mills, the fussbudget members and staff of the Duckworth Club (not to mention the doctors' assistants--Ranjit and Mr. Subhash)...funny! And the alienation Farrokh feels in his home and adopted countries, the insecurity of Nancy, the tragic fates of the children (Ganesh and Madhu)... touching and compelling! Please, give the book a second chance. It is well worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: horrible!
Review: this is the second book of John Irving's that I have read, with Cider House Rules being the first. This book was so terrible that I could not even get past the first 100 pages. This is utter nonsense, and I regret even picking this book up from the library

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Summary: Sorrow of an immigrant
Review: Farrokh, the main character waits for his wife to pick him up on a dark corner in Toronto. It was snowing and he saw a young white woman with her little son.... She thought that Indian doctor was a pervert and was frightened. Everything he did to try making her feel safe worked in the opposite way. This part toward the end of the novel made me sob and laugh. It was a stunningly funny and beautiful prose. It shows Irving's great power of description. I believe this part alone makes the whole novel worth reading. And Farrokh also showed me the sorrow of an immigrant. (I am a new immigrant to HK.)

Rating:
Summary: UNTOUCHABLE
Review: After reading Owen Meany, I looked forward to reading the next John Irving novel. I rushed to the bookstore to buy A Son Of The Circus, and read it in less than a day. I want my money back, as well as the day I wasted on this miserable piece of trash. And this from a person who considers John Irving one of America's foremost authors. I love all his other work, and Son of the Circus seemed to me nothing more than a contractual obligation; something he was required to write in order to satisfy the whim of an idiotic literary agent. And to those who reviewed the book and said it was the best fiction they had ever read, or that it had changed their lives--I hate to imagine what kind of sorry world you live in, that this to you is great literature. If I were given the choice between reading this book again and picking up a copy of the latest Danielle Steele novel, I would break a lifelong vow and read Danielle Steele. Will there be a "lemon-law" attached to his next book?