This is the second John Irving book I've read. I started collecting everything I came across by him after reading THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, which I loved. Either it's just been a long time since I read Cider House, or this book is just really different. Not to say I didn't enjoy it, because I did. The narrative is somewhat disjointed and bounces back and forth between first person and third person POV, and between the past and the present, so at times it was a little confusing. I didn't love it as much as Cider House, but I did like it enough to want to read more from Mr. Irving.

One of the most random books I've ever read. It was my first John Irving novel...and my last.

Jest tylko jedno słowo, które w pełni odda charakter tej powieści : wyjątkowa. Choć czytałam parę książek Johna Irvinga ta jest czymś innym, unikatowym, muszę przyznać, że nie spodziewałam się czegoś takiego po jednym z moich ulubionych autorów. Jak każdy z wielkich pisarzy, Irving w swoich początkowych dziełach poszukiwał własnego stylu. "Metoda wodna" jest drugą po debiucie powieścią autora i choć uważny czytelnik dostrzeże pewne nieścisłości i błędy stylistyczne (szczególnie Ci którzy sięgną po powieść w oryginale) to jednocześnie zda sobie sprawę, że czyta geniusza literackiego. To słodka, zabawna historia z niezapomnianymi postaciami i jestem szczerze zdziwiona, że żaden producent filmowy nie połakomił się na ten gotowy scenariusz. Film o książce o kręceniu filmu.

Doktorant Fred "Blagier" Trumper idzie na konsultację do znanego urologa Jean-Claude Vignerona, ze względu na problemy ze strony układu moczowego, które nękają go od czasu kiedy był nastolatkiem. Będąc dość pesymistycznie nastawionym do zabiegu chirurgicznego postanawia
poddać się nowatorskiej "metodzie wodnej", która ma go raz na zawsze wyleczyć z problemu. Jednak problemy z oddawaniem moczu nie są jedynymi, które dręczą naszego bohatera. Rozpad małżeństwa, uzależnienie od kłamstw, męcząca praca nad tłumaczeniem poematu z języka staro-dolno-nordyckiego to wszystko sprawia, że nasz bohater przeżywa kryzys.

Jak na jedno z pierwszych dzieł przystało , książka nie jest wolna od błędów, które mogą drażnić tych mniej wyrozumiałych czytelników, którzy zaczęli przygodę z Irvingiem od jego nieco późniejszych powieści. Po pierwsze brak tutaj wyraźnych ram czasowych. Autor operuje w przeszłości i teraźniejszości w sposób dość chaotyczny i wymagający od czytelnika nie dość, że pełnego skupienia to jeszcze zmysłu intuicji. Takie podróże w czasie są częstym zabiegiem w literaturze jednak tutaj dochodzi również czynnik przemieszczania się w przestrzeni oraz częsta zmiana sposobu narracji, która wprowadza dodatkowe zamieszanie. Wraz z naszym bohaterem (bohaterami) odwiedzamy Wiedeń, Iowa, Nowy Jork czy stan Maine i muszę przyznać (choć czytałam uważnie), że na początku nie było dla mnie oczywiste kto był kim. Zajęło mi kilka dobrych rozdziałów rozszyfrowanie przedstawionej przez autora chronologii i poznanie głównych bohaterów. W przeciwieństwie do późniejszych książek Irvinga tutaj postacie są mniej rozwinięte a fabuła, choć wiele obiecuje, rozczaruje niejednego czytelnika. A dlaczego? Ponieważ autor przyzwyczaił nas do epickich, monumentalnych dzieł w stylu "Co gryzie Gilberta Grape'a" i bezwiednie będziemy wszystko do nich przyrównywać zapominając, że każdy musiał kiedyś zacząć.

Cechą dość charakterystyczną dla naszego autora jest kreowanie postaci "wadliwych" i dziwacznych. Niestety widać, że ta umiejętność nie została jeszcze przez niego udoskonalona więc nasi bohaterowie nie są kompletni i do końca ludzcy. Autor, często w jednym zdaniu, posługiwał się różnymi pseudonimami tego samego bohatera. Choć wprowadzało to zbędne zamieszanie to celem Irvinga było podkreślenie braku tożsamości i głębi kreowanych postaci.
Jak zawsze kluczowym tematem u Irvinga jest porzucone dzieciństwo i ojcowie, którzy odchodzą lub są po prostu nieobecni. Tym razem to właśnie głos ojca jest motywem przewodnim narracji i to z jego perspektywy poznajemy całą historię. Jednak postać ojca w "Metodzie wodnej" jest postacią w pełni zagubioną, która sama nie jest w stanie zrozumieć pobudek swoich czynów i zachowania. Śmiało można powiedzieć, że to publika, cała rzesza postaci drugoplanowych, pociąga za sznurki naszego głównego bohatera. Trumper nie musi borykać się z żadnymi realnymi konsekwencjami swoich czynów a jego charakter jest po prostu niewiarygodny, spontaniczność czynów sprawia, że bez zastanowienia rzuca się na głęboką wodę by później żałować, jednak w ostatecznym rozliczeniu żyje długo i szczęśliwie. Choć nasz bohater zachowuje się jak dziecko we mgle to jest doskonałym prototypem późniejszych postaci w powieściach autora. Na podstawie "Metody wodnej" możemy analizować proces powstawania irvingowskiego bohatera. Z każdą kolejną książką autor dodaje mu charakterystyczne cechy by w końcu powstał dziwak doskonały.

Powieść ta z pewnością zostanie w mojej pamięci przez długi czas. Choć nie pozbawiona błędów jest wspaniałym studium ludzkiej porażki i późniejszego odkupienia. Choć nasz główny bohater może irytować, choć to swoiste katharsis wydaje się zbyt łatwe to książka ta oprócz sporej dozy rozrywki, dostarczyła mi tematów do rozmyślań. Z pewnością sięgnę po inne, wcześniejsze dzieła Johna Irvinga gdyż wierzę, że kryją się wśród nich drogocenne skarby. Co wam również polecam.

Not for me....


Just didn't care for the writing. Stopped reading after 1st chapter. I usually plow through a book to the.end,..but too many good ones out there to.waste my time on some.that.I can't get interested in

This is the seventh Irving novel I've read. I would put it in second place. The other six are tied for first place. I just could not get to the point where I cared at all what happened to the protagonist.

It didn't take long to get into this one, but the character depth was a bit lacking. I never really felt too much for any of them, but maybe Irving intended to write a story about people who aren't especially good or bad. Just people.

The story follows Fred Trumper during a period of being rudderless through college. Becoming a hapless half of a pair of accidental parents. Feeling smothered. Leaving his wife and son and running off to Europe for an extended period seeking to reconnect with an old friend, and, by extension, his former carefree life. After a time, though, he feels compelled to find redemption -- to finish something, and, in the way of later Irving novels, at the end, you don't get that everything-will-be-okay feeling. You just have the feeling that, though the story is over, the characters live on... We're just not privy to anything out of the scope of the story that's been shared.

I liked it.

Questo libro parla di un uomo e il suo problema: la prostata storta.Una sofferenza troppo grande da sopportare, per cui l’unica soluzione è un urologo. Il padre dello stesso protagonista è urologo ma il rapporto tra i due è talmente devastato che lui mai si potrebbe rivolgere al padre. Decide di rivolgersi a uno specialista che gli consiglia tre soluzioni: astinenza dal sesso operazione cura dell'acqua pura, bere tanta acqua per urinare via i batteri che infestano la sua prostata. Sceglierà questa terza via, mentre scorrono flashback del suo passato e del suo futuro, fra personaggi grotteschi e situazioni assurde.Fin quando non comprende che la sua vita e puro fallimento e deve dare una svolta, ma come? Quale morale migliore di un “uccello” nuovo, vita nuova?" ...

I have always loved John Irving's works. My wife's relative told her they're all alike. So I told her just to read one.... By the way, the relative is wrong.
I love how this was a book of layers (including differing timelines) with relationships of the protagonist to his significant others, his family and literature.

Su falta de pretensiones, fluides y escritura amable , sumado a algo de suspenso y giros inesperados lo transforman en una grata lectura que nunca cansa e incuso deja algún sabor agradable en la boca...

The Water-Method Man, John Irving's second novel, published before Irving became a best-selling author, is likely a book sought out by those, like me, who have been long time Irving fans. As an early work it is amazing to see how much of Irving's style was already established at this stage, and maintained throughout his long career. Like many of Irving's novel's, the main character here shares lots of Irving's biography: attended Exeter, did two trips to Iowa's creative writing workshop, grew up in New England, wrestled, writes, father abandons mother and child, etc. In this one there's even an adviser who may share characteristics with Irving's adviser, Kurt Vonnegut. It's always a guessing game where the autobiographical matters ends and the imaginary parts begins. In this one Irving teases us by having the main character, in the last few pages of the book, think up what turns out to be the opening sentences of this book "Her gynecologist recommended him to me. Ironic: the best urologist in New York is French. Dr. Claude Vigneron: ONLY BY APPOINTMENT. So I made one."

The main character is named Fred Trumper but throughout the book all call him by his nickname, Bogus. Everyone has figured out that he is often lying and making things up. Not a great personality trait for someone we're going to follow throughout the book. Normally we want to see the main character in a more positive light. That's hard to do here. This guy is definitely dysfunctional and prone to doing things which hurt people, such as abandoning his wife and kid. Eventually we realize how totally dysfunctional he is. He can never make any important decision, he is afraid of many things most would consider simple. We realize the lying is his way of defending himself from people thinking even worse of him. In some sense he becomes lovable as people realize he's not actually trying to be mean. He's just in hyper avoidance mode.

The book weaves back and forth between several subplots. He has a gynecological condition which he tries to avoid by drinking excessive amounts of water which will allow him to avoid facing up to his need for surgery. He avoids getting serious about a career by becoming a perpetual comparative literature student. He chooses a thesis topic that no one can judge him on so he makes up parts of it whole cloth. He translates an ancient saga which we get in bits and pieces and eventually want to know where it's going. He reads Moby Dick to his son and we see at the very end that Bogus identifies with the Whale. He is estranged from his wealthy parents and their expectations of him. He has a diabetic friend in Austria who disappears. He has another friend who makes films. And another who is a caretaker in Maine. Lots of ways to keep us intrigued.

And of course there's sex, breasts, lots of breasts, penises, pubic hairs, whores, virgins, nipples, orgasms, clap, and adultery. Amazingly beyond a couple of guys who enjoyed being with him Bogus was able to show enough of his softer side to attract women who found him lovable. He wins over the woman who has just become the best woman downhill skier in the world. She also has a nickname, Biggie. She indeed was a large woman standing taller than Bogus but when an interviewer asks why people call her Biggie she pushes her large breasts into his face to make her point. She immediately finds herself pregnant, marries Bogus and goes with him to Iowa. Eventually even her tolerance runs out telling him to get out and he immediately abandons her and their child and runs to Austria. Bogus tells no one where he is for six months. Biggie gives up on him and marries his childhood friend. Once again tangled relationships and abandonment. Plot thickens when Bogus returns and realizes what he's lost. He goes to NYC and works as the soundman on indi movies with an old friend from Iowa. Again a beautiful woman finds him lovable. Eventually he abandons her as well.

This continues getting even weirder but you get the picture, It's a worthwhile read.

This is Irving's second novel, and, while interesting, it does not have the brilliance of his mature work, like "The World According to Garp" and "Cider House Rules." The focus of "The Water-Method Man" lacks the sweep of most of Irving's later books, and it's difficult to imagine the more seasoned novelist writing platitudes like "he was actually at peace with himself for the first time in his life." There are also disappointing lapses in originality. The multiple accounts of an innocuous activity (a ski trip, selling novelty items at a university football game, a visit to a bar with a diabetic friend) which spirals wildly out of control seem just like warmed-over borrowings from "Lucky Jim." On a personal note, I find the character of the American man-child who won't grow up to be a really unappealing figure, and the protagonist and his adored best friend are two of the more tiresome examples of this stereotype which I have encountered.

I've not read many Irving’s, definitely The World According to Gary and ‘Owen Meaney’, and possibly a couple of others pre-bookcrossing/pre-journal … I need to set myself the task of making my way through his back catalog.

This is his second novel written mostly for laughs, which follows the richly comic and chaotic history and present of Fred ‘Bogus/Thump-Thump/Thumper’ Trumper, his friends, family, career, and constant battle with his failings, inconstancy, lack of drive and focus. The book starts with a potential cure for his persistent UTIs, hence water-method, and then careens backwards and forwards in time, sometimes confusingly. Key episodes include meeting his wife, Olympic skier ‘biggie’, leaving her, being part of an independent production company in New York with new girlfriend Tulpen, and subsequently leaving her. There are a number of background themes; his protracted doctoral thesis translating (or rather mistranslating) an epic ‘Old Low Norse’ poem; friction with his despairing urologist father; his attempts to bond with his children and have grown up relationships when he is a child himself! Also to add to the self-referential layers, Trumper uses the poem ‘Akthelt and Gunnel’ to mirror his life and there is biopic film, working title ‘F**king Up’. As I said good grown-up comic fun.