There are a number of common themes that run through his novels: New England, Vienna, bears, prostitution, absent parents, the death of main characters, wrestling, sexual deviances, to name a few. Weird fates usually happen to weird people, right? It'd be weird if that weren't the case, but now we're just playing word games. It doesn't seem far-fetched at the time (at least not to an Irving fan), because the characters are still believable, and the events that take place are simply extensions of their quirky personalities. When Irving's host of motley characters interact- ironic, tragic, comical, over-the-top, bizarre things happen. Typically the strong hero-esque roles are filled by women with strong personalities - but not always. Yet his protagonists are typically men who are easily relatable - flawed, but likable. Irving lets these personalities play themselves out, and trusts that the reader will come to understand the inner-core of the character as that character continues to get revealed. He can do this because his descriptions and stories are very detailed and tend to be true to the universal life experiences we've all had in dealing with, and observing, people. Instead he gives the reader insight into their personalities through their reactions, styles, comments, loves, hates, interactions, and all-around preferences. Irving rarely describes the internalized thoughts and emotions of his characters. Characters from Irving novels I read years ago still leap out at me I still feel they are real, and that I know them.

I've never read an Irving novel that didn't have, in my judgment, superb character development.

He wants his readers to really get to know his characters. Irving writes of these lives through story telling. The breadth of the novel typically goes through one generational span, but often you'll get (at least) a few beginning chapters detailing the lives of the protagonist's parents or grandparents, as well. They typically have a Dickensian plot, in which you follow the characters through large portions of their lives. This novel isn't one of his 'big three', but it's damn good.įirst off, most Irving novels have some general characteristics: If you haven't read Irving yet, I think you should give him a try.

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