Enjoyed the essays about growing up, wrestling, and favorite authors. For those I would rate 4 or 5 stars.
The stories were not to my taste, and each one was followed by an author statement that he didn’t like them either! What?! A collection of previously rejected stuff from a desk drawer.

This is a weird hybrid monster of a collection. As Irving points out more than once, he is more accomplished at writing (and better known for) novels than for shorter works. Yet here is a collection of shorter works by him. Possibly _A Son of the Circus_, his previous long novel, wore him out...?

This is a kind of chimera: a three-part monstrosity. The first part is autobiographical writings (one of which, the nearly book-length _The Invisible Girlfriend_, was in fact published separately and has a review by your truly elsewhere). The title piece is in this section. The two shorter pieces aren't really worth much; the prize here is _The Invisible Girlfriend_. The title piece mostly shows the shortcomings of liberal guilt and does a poor job of highlighting the shortcomings of representing the "voiceless" in our communities (a la Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak's "Can the Subaltern Speak?").

Of the six short stories, most aren't worth much (even Irving acknowledges their amateurishness and unsatisfactory nature). The best is the first, "Interior Spaces," although "The Hotel Grillparzer" is not bad, even though it is presented whole (in tow parts) in _The World According to Garp_).

The critical essays are actually quite good. Irving does a fine job analyzing the good points of Dickens's _Great Expecatations_ and the other works here are also worth reading.

All in all, though, I can't really recommend this. You're better off reading _The Cider House Rules_ or _A Son of the Circus_ if you want to read Irving at his best.

Money quote: “George Ronkers was a young urologist in a university town - a lucrative situation nowadays; the uninformed liberality of both the young and old college community produced a marvel of venereal variety.”

If you love Irving and are familiar with his work, you have to read (or already have read) this book. You know well his reoccurring characterization and themes; in here you may find what inspired such an idiosyncratic mind.

If you're an aspiring author or creative writing instructor, I strongly recommend the essays. The stories are ok and fun for fans, but I wouldn't recommend the whole work outside of this picky and patient group of readers.

Most of this was forgettable, as are most books of short stories when I don't write a review for 10 months. But i do remember "The Imaginary Girlfriend", not by name, but because it was an ode to wresting. I read Pat Conroy's "My Losing Season", about his basketball playing days in college, mostly, and could imagine Irving, having finished reading the Conroy book, saying to a friend "Hold my beer." Conroy's passion for wresting lasts beyond his youth, such that he's coaching and wrestling decades beyond his college days. Irving writes dedication well, and it is oddly inspiring to read about that dedication to an unmonetized sport.

Be sure to read the essays in the back about Dickens and Gunter Grass - it will change your perspective on reading fiction forever - and for the better. The short stories are terrific, too. I especially like "The Pension Grillparzer," which shows up in Irving's book "The Cider House Rules" as well.

Just not worth it. Hard to get into, disjointed collection of short stories and memoir essays.

De onderhavige uitgave van “De redding van Piggy Sneed” bevat niet alleen de onder deze titel gepubliceerde bundel verhalen, maar ook, onder de titel “Het verzonnen meisje”, de memoires van de auteur.
De verhalen stellen stuk voor stuk nogal teleur, en waar het om die memoires gaat grijp ik gemakshalve maar even terug op hetgeen Adriaan Venema schrijft in het Woord Vooraf bij zijn eigen –in tegenstelling tot die van John Irving tenminste nog rancuneus getoonzette– memoires (“Verleden Tijd”, p. 8): “Bovendien is het nogal arrogant om te denken dat je privé-leven zó fascinerend is en zó belangrijk dat anderen er kennis van moeten nemen.” Fascinerend zouden Irvings memoires hoogstens kunnen zijn voor lezers die Irvings liefhebberij delen in de sport van het worstelen, voor mij was het lezen van bladzij of honderd daarover veeleer een worstelen tegen de slaap.

The idea of trying to save piggy is a strong one indeed - inventing a story that changes the sad complicated truth.
This was fun a nice to have some short form John Irving to read.
Other reviews are correct it’s not cohesive as a collection and also…my copy seems to not have all the stories in it???
A good pick up for free, read during covid quarantine.

I love John Irving. I discovered him with “Son of the Circus”. It wasn’t an easy novel to begin. I wasn’t at all sure how to “take” Irving’s eclectic characters. However, we often don’t choose with whom we fall in love. I fell in love with Irving novels. “A Prayer of Owen Meany” is perhaps the most cherished work, for me, of all time.

I didn’t know that “Trying to Save Piggy Sneed” was a memoir when I started reading. I’m not disappointed. Mr. Irving led me to Frederick Buechner’s “The Book of Bebb”. I’m excited, on John’s recommendation, to read some Gunter Grass. And, I look at Dickens in a previously undiscovered light after reading Irving’s exegesis and review. I have a good friend who’s a wrestling aficionado, and so I found Irving’s tales of wrestling mania instructional and informative.

The few short stories that are included in this book are wonderfully Irving-esque. The background personal information, while not effusive, is a nice glimpse into the life of the writer.

I would recommend this book to anyone who, like me, loves Irving....but, it’s not an introduction to his work. It is a memoir, and will have meaning and understanding, only as that.

John Irving was my favorite author back in the 80’s. I still love his books but began to lose interest after A Prayer for Owen Meany, maybe because my life became too busy raising 2 kids or because his books became less interesting and more repetitive or maybe a little of both. Trying to Save Piggy Sneed has sat on my shelf unread since 1996. My life is less busy now so I picked it up. This book is part memoir, part fiction and part homage to Charles Dickens and Gunter Grass. While I enjoyed re-reading The Pension Grillparzer and I loved his homage to my favorite author Charles Dickens, most of Irving’s stories are not that interesting. He talks a lot about his passion for wrestling and his politics. I learned that much of his fiction is drawn from his life. This book overall was a disappointing.

"Dans un état proche de l'Iowa"
"Les buts du petits matins font partie de ces illusions qu'il faut entretenir si l'on compte arriver où que ce soit."
"Quand on entreprend quelque chose à deux, la priorité des priorités est de se partager équitablement les épreuves."
"Nous sommes prêts à tout pour faire accroire que nous n'avons rien qui nous tracasse."
"Il faut bien le savoir : le pire est toujours sûr."
"Il faut souvent perdre nos priorités de vue pour mieux les distinguer."
"Le courage est une lutte de tous les instants, et la grâce se paie."