El tercer libro de John Irving me ha gustado más que Libertad para los osos aunque le falta un poco de ese "no sé qué qué sé yo" que tienen sus libros posteriores. Diría que especialmente he echado en falta encariñarme con los personajes, que es algo que suele pasarme con los libros de este autor.

I like John Irving’s writing and A Prayer for Owen Meany is one of my favourite novels, but this indulgent study in sexual selfishness just isn’t my jam. The story of two college professors and their wives and the partner swapping arrangement that threatens both marriages is just boring. Lots of descriptive sex which I didn’t need, and I’m not a prude by any means. The character descriptions were the best of this book. Each of their backstories were interesting but I didn’t like any of the characters at all. A real “meh” of a book.

Irving always packs his stories with quirks and characters that make you squirm. There's always some maiming going on and plenty of oral sex with dire consequences........ There - made you squirm. I've loved him for reasons I can't quite describe - like a guilty pleasure or the train wreck you can't take your eyes off of. True, I absolutely loved A Prayer for Owen Meany - but didn't we all?

And I might add this book to the "loved" category. It's a whopper of a moral tale and you get the pleasure of a rollicking Irving read.

Lecture plutôt décevante. L’auteur sait bien écrire, mais part dans des descriptions éternelles qui alourdissent la lecture. Je me perdais souvent dans ses parenthèses que je trouvais futiles au final. En général le ton est léger, humoristique et c’est réussi mais l’histoire ne me captive pas particulièrement. C’est une parenthèse dans la vie de ces personnages complexes, mais je n’avais pas ce besoin de découvrir à tout prix ce qui allait leur arriver. Je sentais une sorte d’exaspération envers le narrateur et je n’avais pas envie qu’il réussisse ou qu’il trouve le bonheur nécessairement.

If one views the works of John Irving as a whole, this novel stands out like a sore thumb. Published in 1974, it is, without a doubt, a product of its time - when sexual freedom and experimentation were rampant and menages a quatre, such as described in the novel, were not that uncommon. Although encompassing many of Irving's themes: Vienna, wrestling, infidelity, and the character's propensity for emotionally destroying one another, it lacks the magic and playfulness of his other works. Irving's "story within a story" style is gone and is replaced by a style that seems more suitable for a writer of literary digests than for a novelist, with the result that the reader does not get to know the characters as well as in his other works or even really care what happens to them.

When Irving is unable to create characters that the reader cares about, his whole work suffers. In fact, it is Irving's characterizations that are the center of his art. One is hard pressed to name any of his main characters that does not strike a sympathetic note with the reader; even the foolish charlatan, Bogus Trumper (The Water-Method Man) [how prescient of Irving to catch the similarities between Donald Trump and Bogus], has his charming side and at least suggests that he has learned from his mistakes and is ready to make another go of it. Not so in this novel. All four characters are fairly reprehensible. The unnamed narrator, a tenured professor of history whose historical novels are not even recognized as "publications" by his department; his wife, Utch, an Austrian refugee from World War II, who confuses a cow for her mother (you'll have to read the book!); the Viennese wrestling coach and professor of German, Severin Winter, and his svelte wife and aspiring writer, Edith, all come across as caricatures rather than real characters.

The story of the sexual escapades that seemingly consume their fairly boring lives is told in almost clinical terms and lacks any of the passion that, one would hope, would come from such a shared arrangement. As the narrator relates the story of self-absorption, self-delusion, and sexual dalliance, the reader comes to realize why the narrator's historical novels quickly go out of print and are not recognized by his colleagues as serious works - he is a mediocre writer, and for a historian, oblivious to the lessons of history. But in spite of all the shortcomings of the main characters, Irving shines a penlight of hope that perhaps not all is totally lost. The two Austrians, having survived World War II and its aftermath, have their feet on much firmer ground than do the two Americans, and one gets the faintest of impressions that maybe, just maybe, the Winters will get back together and learn something from this experience, and that even the most injured of the quartet, Utch, will perhaps pull things together. As for the narrator, the reader knows with certainty that he will continue to live on the periphery, always attempting those things for which he is marked for failure.

as always, john irving creates beautiful characters. each of the four main characters represent a different angle in an approach to life and it is easy to align your loyalties with one of them while still completely understanding the others.

severin scares me a little because i think that's who i relate to the most.

This is a compelling and startling book. Irving does a superb job of feeding you each character’s history in order to understand why this foursome even happens and for me, these character backgrounds were truly the meat of the book. Because you know so much about each member you can realize the tensions and trigger points exposed during their affairs together. The underlying theme is this: scorn, jealousy and rage disguised by carnal desire cannot stay hidden forever.

I have heard a lot about John Irving on Goodreads but unfortunately this book was not a wow one for me. The book needs to be catogorised in erotica though. The phases were slightly confusing and the transitions between past and present were blurred out. It took me a while to get used to the story. Generally I talk about why I took away the stars but here I found the story building up after a 100 pages and the good ending was the one which gained the stars.
The ending gives the story a twist and the character arcs will now be on your judgement of good or bad. Moreover the wrestling terminology was quite foreign to me so I couldn't comprehend the humour around wrestling. As per reviews on his works I think that will be a common disadvantage for me on all his works.

Istorija apie dviejų šeimų mėginimą dalintis partneriais, atvirai ir be skrupulų. Labai vaizdingas ir... sakykim, kūniškas kūrinys.

Įdomu tai, kad man “Vidutinio svorio santuoka” pasirodė labai neirvingiška knyga. Visų pirma, 245 psl. dažniausiai sudaro 50%, o kartais ir mažiau kūrinio apimties. Antra - dažniausiai jo knygose veikia labai stiprūs, vieni su kitais dėl žibintų šviesos kovojantys net keli pagrindiniai veikėjai, o čia aš beveik neradau nei vieno. Visi keturi esminiai veikėjai kažkaip vienodai išblukę, tarytum visi keturi yra vienas. Trečia - dažniausiai savo kūriniuose Irvingas dėlioja gyvenimo kelionę, rašo coming of age romaną; Čia, tuo tarpu, apimamas vos kelių mėnesių laikotarpis ir dviejų šeimų psichologinis niuansas.

Kita vertus, tai pirma jo knyga, kuri jaučiasi tokia moderni, t.y., ne klasikinė, kaip kiti mano skaityti, kur svarbiau už istoriją yra psicholiginė kelionė. Man tai, deja, ne pliusas.

Not my favorite Irving

I loved Hotel New Hampshire, World According to Garp, and A Prayer for Owen Meany. I didn’t know what to think of this one. I finished it because it’s Irving, and there were a few good nuggets, but man, I just couldn’t make myself give a crap about any of the characters or where their story was going. Meh. Sorry Irving, I love you, but this just didn’t do it for me.

Like 3 books in 1. Each story interesting and thought provoking. I like the depth of personification bestowed upon each character. The story pushes the realm of relationships, both physically and emotionally. Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for. Not only do you risk the feeling, wants, needs, desires of others, but you might find yourself second guessing your own thoughts , limitations and expectations.

Food for thought- John Irving has been inducted into the Wrestlers Hall of Fame.

3.5 ⭐️
Skończyłam dawno i nie miałam motywacji do wystawienia oceny. Książka bardzo mnie zaintrygowała od samego początku. Lubię zabieg chronologicznego przedstawienia nam postaci wraz z ich osobowością i przeszłością. Wtedy nic mi się nie miesza. A potwierdzenie tego co słyszę lubię widzieć w fabule. I dokładnie to tu dostałam. Z pozoru to nic wielkiego, brak akcji tylko opisanie kilku wydarzeń. Ale tak naprawdę mamy tu dogłębną analizę związku grupowego czwórki osób. Szczególnie Severin jest tu na świeczniku. Wiele informacji i spostrzeżeń jest nam podawanych na tacy a wielu rzeczy musimy się dopatrywać między wierszami albo czytać z z pozoru nieistotnych zachowań bohaterów. Fascynujące jest jak jedno doświadczenie może różnorodnie wpływać na kilka osób. Coś w tej książce było takiego że przyciągała mnie do siebie nie oferując tak naprawdę nic specjalnego.
Moją winą jest że czytałam ją długo ze względu na brak czasu.
Byłam sceptycznie nastawiona do twórczości Irwinga a teraz napewno będę chciała sięgnąć po coś jeszcze spod jego pióra.