Setting Free the Bears

by John Irving

It is 1967 and two Viennese university students want to liberate the Vienna Zoo, as was done after World War II. But their good intentions have both comic and gruesome consequences, in this first novel written by a twenty-five year old John Irving, already a master storyteller.

Genres: Fiction, Literature, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, American, Novels, The United States Of America

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

About the author

JOHN IRVING was born in Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1942. His first novel, Setting Free the Bears, was published in 1968, when he was twenty-six. He competed as a wrestler for twenty years, and coached wrestling until he was forty-seven.
Mr. Irving has been nominated for a National Book Award three times—winning once, in 1980, for his novel The World According to Garp. He received an O. Henry Award in 1981 for his short story “Interior Space.” In 2000, Mr. Irving won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Cider House Rules. In 2013, he won a Lambda Literary Award for his novel In One Person.
An international writer—his novels have been translated into more than thirty-five languages—John Irving lives in Toronto. His all-time best-selling novel, in every language, is A Prayer for Owen Meany.
Avenue of Mysteries is his fourteenth novel.

Reviews

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like many people, I have read and enjoyed some of John Irving's novels. My particular favourites were: A Prayer for Owen Meany, The World According to Garp and A Son Of The Circus.

Perhaps not as well known is his debut novel, Setting Free the Bears.

Disaffected student Hannes Graff hooks up with free-wheeling motorcycle enthusiast Siegfried (Siggy) Javotnik and they embark on a picaresque jaunt across Austria, encountering many odd individuals, both human and otherwise, along the way. Javotnik has a pet project which has developed into a strange obsession. He wishes to repeat a wild stunt that had been pulled off once before: to liberate all the animals from the Heitzinger Zoo in Vienna. Circumstances intervene and the mantle is passed to Graff.

Irving had studied in Vienna and the first draft of this novel was later submitted as a Master's thesis at the University of Iowa. He satirizes this fact in the novel itself: Javotnik submits his "Highly Selective Autobiography" to a professor only to have it angrily rejected as being a skewed portrayal of history.

The structure of the novel appears fragmented. Parts One and Three contain titled segments which are too short to be chapters. Part Two contains selections from the journals of Siggy Javotnik, which alternate between two narratives. One tells how he stakes out the Heitzinger Zoo, while the other relates not only his own life-story but the circumstances which brought his parents together in war-torn Vienna. The fragmented effect is somewhat irritating to me, but Irving does manage to tie the threads together and produce a funny yet disturbing climax.

The novel has many elements which work successfully in Irving's later books. Irving has been compared to Dickens because he is able to present the eccentricities of his characters in a humorous way. He is also able to present the thoughts or emotions not only of humans but of animals as well. Moreover, many of the themes which appear in his succeeding books make their first appearance here: the setting of Vienna, captive bears, bizarre accidents, absent parents, and characters whose highly charged libidos torment them constantly. Yet the novel has a feel of insouciance and cockiness about it. I can't really put my finger on it, but it did not impress me as much as some of the later works I have mentioned above.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe this was Irving’s first published work. The novel, one of my favourites of his, foreshadows some of Irving’s greatest writings. It deals with the rebelliousness of youth, which is often a blind vision, or takes the form of a comic revolution. Graff, a student, and Siggy, a mechanic, go on a motorcycle tour in Austria, which culminates in Graff, after Siggy’s death in an accident, setting free the animals of the zoo in Vienna, with disastrous consequences. Written with great verve and sometimes bordering on the fantastical, like all of Irving’s books, it reminds me a bit of Günter Grass’s work, who I understand Irving admires.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was Irving’s debut, and although you can see seeds of the Dickensian characterization at which he excels in his best work, it was just not good overall. Neither Siggy nor Graff held my interest, and the dialogue feels stiff and unrealistic. There’s also some downright strange wording: “I could peek how the helmet nearly covered her eyes”; “the rain still puddled the courtyard”; “When his spongy ribs whomped the cobbles, the horse said, ‘Gnif!’” I couldn’t decide if this was Irving trying to show that the story is set abroad or if it was just evidence of bad writing. My husband is enough of an Irving fan to have gobbled the book up by the time we reached Austria, but I decided it wasn’t going to get much better. That’s a shame, as I would have liked to get to them, you know, actually setting free the bears at the Vienna Zoo. [Read the first 75 pages out of 384.]

[Wendy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book because I've loved everything else by John Irving. This book is bad, really bad. It was so bad I couldn't even finish it.

[Živilė Matijaškienė · Rating 3 out of 5]

LT/EN

Labai ilgai ieškojau pirmosios šio autoriaus knygos. Viltys buvo pakilę lig dangaus, tačiau skaitant supratau, kad gal ir gerai, kad pažintį su Irvingu pradėjau ne nuo šios knygos.

Visumoje, istorija gan įdomi - sudėtingai skaitoma, bet turėjo savojo Irvingiškojo žavesio. Na o tie trumpi skyriai - iš visų jo skaitytų knygų - tikrai, kad trumpaiusi!

Visos Irvingo knygos vienos iš tų, kurios sunkokai ir lėtokai skaitosi, bet labai džiaugiuosi perskaičiusi jo pirmąjį kūrinį. Rodos dar artimiau pažinau šį autorių.

____________________________________

I have been searching for this book for ages. Naturally, my hopes were sky high.
But while reading the book, I understood that I was lucky enough to start my journey, getting to know and love this author, not with this book.

Overall story was ok. It was interesting and had raw "Irwing(ish)" charm. And those short charpters surely must be shortest of all of the books he wrote!

Irwings books were never an easy or quick read. I am happy to have done it and somehow feel closer to the author.

[Caleb · Rating 1 out of 5]

I quit on this book. The first hundred pages, which involve an adventure through Austria by two young lads on a motorcycle is enjoyable, if a little vapid. The remaining 250 pages, which changes dramatically in tone and format, is excerpts from a diary of one of those two guys and is painfully dull to read. I struggled through 100+ pages of this, wanting to get back to the narrative but it didn't come and so I quit. There are too many good books around to waste your time on something as unremarkable and unpolished as this, I figure. The jacket had promised a "mixture of Til Eugenspeil and Ken Kesey". Okay, I haven't read Eugenspiel, but I'm not sure what about Irving's writing here bears comparison with Kesey. Irvings prose is flat and childish, nothing like the rich textured world that Kesey can paint.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. So fun and whimsical. A wonderful escape, summer read. Like any John Irving book it's not free of tragedy, but it's one of his lighter books. Love the little details in there that you can't forget, like stealing salt shakers and silverware from a restaurant. I'd love to have this degree of freedom some time. I honestly can't remember if women in this book are characterized as more than "a tall glass of water" because it's been a while since I read it and I remember that bothering me a bit. But I loved it for the immense freedom I felt while reading it.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been more than 20 years since I first read this book and I'm happy I did the re-read.

This is John Irving's debut novel, and right from the start it's clear he is a major talent. His inventiveness, his ability to engage the reader, and his ability to bring the reader into the characters' world is amazing.

Hannes and Siggy start out on a late-60's motorcycle road trip, leaving Vienna behind, but somewhat obsessed about the plight of the animals in the Vienna Zoo. After a few misadventures, Siggy leaves this earth and Hannes inherits his notebooks, filled with reconnaissance of the zoo and inspiration for liberating the animals. After hooking up with young and bright-eyed Gallen, Hannes brings his new girlfriend to Vienna, and they execute a zoo-break that heads in a direction they couldn't foresee.

Irving uses the device of Siggy's notebooks to take the reader on an adventure of zoo liberation, but also gives an extensive history of the German-Austrian Anschluss, as experienced by Siggy and his family. Again, it is a testimony to Irving's talent how he manages to weave together these story lines and keeps you turning pages to the end. If you're an Irving fan, be sure to check out this debut novel - it's worth the read!

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perversion and absurdity of this story could only possibly mean one thing. That is is an Irving tale.

'Setting Free the Bears' was entertaining for exactly the same reasons that I have enjoyed everything I have ever read by Irving since first picking up Owen Meany in highschool (middleschool?).

The long, rather drawn out tale of Siggy's 'pre-history' as found in his notebook is, well, rather long and drawn out. Though it is tough to get through, this point is acknowledged by the author as part of the character himself, so, I guess I'll cut him some slack.

Even so, it took my two separate tries to get through this book. I remember starting it years ago and simply never getting further than a few pages into the notebook. Understandably so. But, lock a man up in Korea for a year and he's bound to read anything you throw at him so I figured I'd tough through it this time. Thankfully I felt my time was rewarded.

What I simply do not grasp is how a young man of only 25 can just sort of 'bang out' such a remarkably intricate tale. I'm sure it has much to do with writing and rewriting yet I still firmly belive that some people, Irving being one of them, were just born to share words with others.

Who knows, perhaps I'll get around to the Cider House Rules that I bought once upon a time and never cracked open.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

How did this book get published? I love John Irving. The novel A Prayer for Owen Meany is my favorite book of all time. How in the world was that book written by the same author as this book? It boggles my mind! This book was honestly one of the worst books I’ve ever read. It has no redeeming qualities. I didn’t like any of the characters. The plot was ridiculous. This book was a complete waste of my time. I do not recommend it to anyone. Go read some of his other novels, but this one should be gathering dust at the bottom of a recycling pile.

[hauke.e · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dieses Buch ist die Definition für Mittelmaß. Definitiv nicht schlecht oder langweilig, aber auch nicht besonders überragend. Irving kann sehr gute Geschichten schreiben (siehe Gottes Werk und Teufels Beitrag), aber Lasst die Bären los gehört nicht dazu, was sicherlich darin liegt, dass dies sein Erstlingswerk ist. Trotzdem findet man hier schon typische Irving-Elemente und auch der Stil ist relativ ähnlich zu dem, was er später schreiben sollte. Und gerade der skurrile, außergewöhnliche Stil ist das, was mir besonders gut gefällt.
Inhaltlich erlebt der Leser auf 500 Seiten schon recht viel. Die beiden Protagonisten Graff und Siggi, beide eher erfolgslose Wiener Studenten, entscheiden sich spontan, auf einem alten Motorrad durch Österreich zu reisen, ohne besonderes Ziel. Im ersten Teil haben wir einen klassischen "Roadmovie", der Spaß macht. Allerdings ist die Übersetzung so dermaßen misslungen; die Dialoge sind unrealistisch und die Sprache der beiden, auch wenn man sich in den 60ern befindet, nicht zeitgemäß.
Im zweiten Teil gibt es einen harten Bruch in der Geschichte und man erfährt von Siggis Vorgeschichte und dem Leben seiner Eltern im zweiten Weltkrieg. An dieser Stelle hätte ich mir noch mehr die Perspektive Siggis in der Nachkriegszeit gewünscht. Das wurde zu Beginn des zweiten Teils kurz angeschnitten, danach leider nicht mehr aufgegriffen. Dennoch ist der zweite Teil für mich der spannendste Teil des Buches.
Im dritten Teil springt die Geschichte zurück ans Ende des ersten Teils. Inhaltlich werde ich hier nichts mehr zu schreiben.
Insgesamt hat das Buch einige Schwächen, was die Charakterausarbeitung angeht. Im Grunde sind einige Hauptfiguren bis zum Ende blass, was so Irving-untypisch ist und er in späteren Werken besser macht. Zudem wird die Geschichte mir am Ende zu pathetisch (für das Thema).

[Noce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Autocertificazione di sana e robusta costituzione letteraria.

Salve a tutti.

Sono “Libertà per gli orsi”. Sì, il libro di Irving, proprio quello, sono io.

Sono approdato in casa di questa tipa con la testa un po’ per aria, che in Internet pretende di farsi chiamare Noce Moscata, quando io l’avrei chiamata invece Prezzemolo, data la continuità con cui me la trovo tra i piedi e la costanza con cui ha preteso negli ultimi giorni di essere accompagnata dappertutto: dal dentista, in una stanzetta d’attesa dove la luce era talmente fioca che i miei caratteri si rifiutavano di farsi leggere; in bagno, accanto a quell’enorme pila trasandatissima di Settimane Enigmistiche che avevano le orecchie ovunque; a letto, che vabbè, tutto sommato stavo comodo, salvo quando spegneva la luce e mi appoggiava nella parte vuota dell’alcova, dove venivo regolarmente schiacciato dal suo peso a intervalli regolari di due o tre ore; in cucina all’alba, dove mi faceva morire dal freddo, perché era talmente lenta a leggere, che rimanevo con la stessa pagina aperta per interi quarti d’ora, non vi dico tutto quello star fermi, senza neanche una copertina addosso, che dolori mi ha procurato alla mia povera costa già provata dal tempo.

Ma non è questo il punto.

Il punto è che, siccome la qui presente Signorina Noscata, o Moscata, insomma quello che è, ha avuto l’ardire di violentare la mia privacy, prendendomi dalla biblioteca in una bella giornata di Dicembre, e privandomi della mia routine quotidiana, fatta di partite a tressette con i miei vicini, passeggiate negli scaffali adiacenti, pennichelle omeriche nella quiete di silenziosi pomeriggi solatii, ho deciso di approfittarne e di farle scrivere questa dichiarazione in mia vece.

Non crediate sia stato facile. Questa tipa stramba è più cocciuta di un asino. Perché è ovvio che io non so parlare, però con l’alfabeto Morse sono un campione. Ma vallo a spiegare a questa capra, che ogni pagina aperta a caso da lei, e volutamente da me, corrispondeva a una precisa lettera dell’alfabeto? Ci abbiamo messo un’intera settimana solo per riuscire a intenderci.

Quindi, bando alle ciance. Quello che vorrei dire al mondo, di cui fa parte anche l’esponente umano di cui mi son servito, è questo. È inutile che diciate che sono un libro totalmente differente da quelli che il mio caro papà John ha scritto in età matura. Vorrei ricordarvi che sono stata la sua prima creazione letteraria, e grande fu la delusione quando non ebbi il giusto successo. Certo, lo stile era un po’ acerbo. Ma anche questa capra Moscatizia o Moscatella si è accorta che il genio era già li, in attesa di dispiegare le ali.

In fondo, allora mio padre aveva solo 26 anni, età in cui il talento se lo si ha, è già ben visibile, ma manca ancora l’esperienza per poter afferrarne il colore. E il colore è venuto dopo. Ma quello su cui voglio che vi soffermiate, è il John in potenza che si cela dietro le mie pagine. Ok, la storia non è né ricca e commovente come quella di mio nipote Owen, o di mio cugino Garp, e neppure tanto ben architettata, ma avete fatto caso alla lingua? Quanto maledettamente articolata è? Quante sfumature di ironia e di profondità lessicale è capace di partorire mio padre? Un genio, un fottutissimo genio (si può dire fottutissimo in Internet?).

Per cui, cari esponenti bipedi dei miei paragrafi, vedete di giudicare l’opera per quello che è. Un’embrione di perfezione, che va apprezzato per ciò che il mio paparino sarebbe riuscito a dare in seguito, per la sua lampante capacità innata di dotare qualsiasi cosa racconti, di una morale profonda che pervade la mente.

Poi certo, bizzarra quest’idea di raccontare di un giovanotto scapestrato e folle (mi ricorda quasi questa zucca spettinata che sta scrivendo) che decide di liberare gli animali di uno zoo. Ma allora mio padre era giovane e le sue idee erano estrose quanto la sua età.

Quindi acerbo o meno, prolisso magari un po’ qui e un po’ là, dalla struttura binaria come quello di una doppia pista di idee, cosa tipica dei talenti, io sono comunque un manifesto di brillante fantasia (io volevo dire “acuminata brillantezza” ma la signorina So tutto io mi ha detto che “brillante fantasia” rende meglio).

Così, siccome ho saputo che voi misurate le cose a stelline (che razza di metodo cretino, non potreste limitarvi a dire, bello, brutto, discreto, orripilante?), mi auto-promuovo portatore di tre stelline e tre quarti. Avrei detto quattro, ma la cialtrona che scrive dice che non ci si puo’ promuovere da soli, perciò ci siamo accordati sulle tre stelline e tre quarti.

Vi saluto lettori di tutto il mondo. Seeee, vabbè ho esagerato.

Vi saluto sparuti lettori, manipolo di screanzati, ultimi di una stirpe infame, che leggete Noce Mostarda (ahahah, sono burbero in superficie, ma scherzoso dentro). E ricordatevi che io sono fascinoso e brioso nonostante l’immaturità. Ah sì, e che ho anche una copertina molto animalista, perciò sono comunque al passo coi tempi.

Cià.

[Erkki Kähkönen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok kirja moottoripyöristä.

[Jim Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Irving is my favorite author. This may be surprising to some because I am not what I consider the L.L. Bean, preppy type, in my opinion anyway. I decided to read his first book after giving up on his last one. I decided why not start at the very beginning and start over again.
John Irving has some reoccurring themes in his books, bears, accidents, strange sexual behavior. There is a good illustrative graph if you Wiki John Irving. This book is no exception except for one theme, which is MOTORCYCLES. This book is preoccupied with MOTORCYCLES in the same way Slaughter House 5 is concerned with the bombing of Dresden. What I appreciate is that I never suspected as I read the story that he would go on and on about motorcycles but he finds a way to include them in sometimes absurd ways. I felt like I learned a lot about them. Useless stuff mostly, how they sound, how they suck air, what it feels like to burn your legs on a tailpipe, what types of motorcycles the Vermacht used, how you should always use your front brake, how to best toss a grenade under a parked car while driving one, the list goes on and on.
I did not give this book five stars. I would give a few of his books 5 stars but this one lacked something his best work has. Maybe it is that it isn't quite outrageous enough. I would love to have someone who knows something about the workings of MOTORCYCLES read this book and tell me if he is full of scheiße.

[Liisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This makes me sad to admit but John Irving´s books have been such disappointments lately - and I used to consider him one of my favorite authors. The ones I´ve read recently are boring, reading them feels like a chore instead of a gripping enjoyment. Setting Free the Bears has a similar style to Irving´s later novels and it even features some of the elements (like bears) that seem to always come up in his stories. The history parts especially have some funny bits, but I found the women to be written extremely poorly and even the main characters couldn´t hold my interest. It was nearly impossible to create any connection to them. I really hope I´ll find more gems by John Irving or else I´ll stop searching. It feels like I either absolutely adore his stories or almost despise them. Right now I´d be happy to come across something I´d at least enjoy.

[Angelique · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a treat, I started my 11th! book by John Irving. And.just.couldn't.get.into.it! Which breaks my heart. It's because his voice that I love so much isn't there yet, it's like a poorly written Vonnegut and lacks the character development that is usually there. After nearly 100 pages, I just couldn't care about Siggy and Graff and thought, well frot this!

[Ysza · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too crazy for me!

[Thomas Stroemquist · Rating 2 out of 5]

Irving's first shows signs of great storytelling to come, but is awkward and silly at times. Recommended for completeists.

[Carmen Daza Márquez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Esta fue la primera novela que escribió y publicó John Irving y también sin duda uno de sus peores libros. Pero a diferencia de sus libros malos de solemnidad como La cuarta mano, Libertad para los osos peca sobre todo del exceso y la falta de mesura que caracterizará a su producción posterior pero que en este libro el autor aún no es capaz de controlar y convertir en materia literaria, de manera que termina ahogando toda la trama narrativa.

El tema de la excentricidad personal como única forma de afrontar una realidad brutal, que tan prominente será en sus obras fundamentales como La vida según Garp y Oración por Owen, ya domina en la novela primeriza de Irving. Siggy es el joven filósofo anarquista que planea liberar a los animales del zoo de Viena, Graff es el sensato compañero de aventuras que a pesar de todo se ve envuelto en los locos planes de Siggy por no saber decir que no y porque la amistad es algo sagrado. El componente autobiográfico es fundamental, el jovencísimo John Irving viajó de sus Estados Unidos natales a Viena en 1963 con solo 21 años para estudiar en el Instituto de Estudios Europeos de la capital austríaca, en un momento en el que las huellas de la segunda guerra mundial todavía eran bien visibles al tiempo que la rebeldía de los años 60 ya empezaba a fraguarse. Esta mezcla resultó explosiva para un autor como Irving, capaz de absorber como una esponja el ambiente y los sentimientos que mueven a la gente de a pie a llevar a cabo pequeños o grandes actos heroicos que no cambiarán la historia pero que sí serán de influencia decisiva en las vidas de las personas que les rodean.

Y a través del cuaderno de notas de Siggy, que ocupará toda la parte central del libro, se irán alternando los planes de liberación del zoológico con un recuento de la historia personal de su familia desde los prolegómenos de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Esta historia familiar es para mi gusto lo mejor de todo el libro, en ella John Irving se centra en la gente de Viena, qué supuso para ellos ir perdiendo día tras día la soberanía sobre su país y sus propias vidas sin que el gobierno pudiera hacer nada para evitarlo y siendo abandonados por la comunidad internacional, primero a la dominación alemana y después a la “liberación” rusa. Los vienenes como víctimas del gran juego político europeo, pocos autores han sido capaces de mirar más allá de los monumentos y la grandeza de la ciudad y fijarse en la gente común, los austríacos de la calle que basan su identidad en la premisa fundamental de no ser alemán por encima de todas las cosas y que han estado todo el siglo XX pagando por ello. Libertad para los osos es un libro irregular, por momentos ilegible, pero gracias a este gran componente humano resulta un libro enormemente entrañable.

[Luke · Rating 2 out of 5]

I first read this book when I was about 14. It seemed amazing back then, as it was an excursion into history and kinda-sorta sex and the road and motorcycles and that whole enthusiastic, Dickens-hipster thing. Yeah, daddy-o.

The problem about reading it with an older eye is that it hasn't aged particularly well. The text is clunky and overcomplex, the characters pretty one-dimensional - Gallen is basically a big-hipped R. Crumb figure with less intrigue - and the whole atmosphere is a little too keep-on-truckin' to be read without cringing.

Plotwise, it's broken into then-and-now sections, where a plot to release animals from a zoo is salted through with personal history and general observation. There's a desire to evoke wartime Vienna in all its rebelliousness - but Irving adds too much improbability. It just doesn't ring true, and half the time the reader spends more time fighting through the drudgery than they do enjoying the story.

A bunch of my gripes with this book probably are because it's not the first Irving I've read, though it was the first novel he wrote. I think his sense of construction became a lot clearer in following works - and perhaps less artificial and showy. But here, the intercutting of WWII history with the modern (well, 1960s) day is a bit hamfisted, and seems to exhibit a little too much desire to impress the reader. These are things handled better elsewhere in his work.

Add to that and it's just not funny. At least, not intentionally. Humour is the one thing I associate with Irving, and it seems in short supply here. You can see the text reaching, but it sounds a bum note every time.

I didn't know until now that the book had been Irving's Masters thesis, rejigged after the fact. It reads like it. If you want to read more of Irving, this isn't the place to start.

[Fraser · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are instances in which Irving’s future storytelling brilliance is on display, but the pace of this early work felt a bit slow. The tale does build to a satisfying climax that is appropriately Irvingesque; comically absurd and inevitably tragic.

[Sarppa · Rating 2 out of 5]

70% kirjasta oli aivan tosi tylsää tekstiä jonka läpi piti taistella. Mutta sitten se loput 30% oli ehkä luovinta ja kiehtovinta toiminta kohtausten kerrontaa mitä olen ikinä lukenut. Ihailen tuota 30% ihan helvetisti, mutta en voi antaa enempää kuin 2 tähteä jos 70% on ruosteista ripulia.

[Marjatta · Rating 1 out of 5]

Varmaankin hieno klassikkoteos,mutta enpä ole typerämpää kirjaa lukenut pitkään aikaan.Kyllä meni aika hukkaan,ihan harmittaa.

[Mirella Ducasteele · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gekocht op de tweedehands boekenbeurs in Ardooie.
Omdat ik alles van Irving aan het lezen ben.

Over de annexatie van Oostenrijk in de Tweede Wereldoorlog, over de dierentuin, over vriendschap, liefde en dwaze studenten.

Lang geleden dat ik zoveel moeite moest doen om een boek uit te lezen. Sommige zullen het wellicht een diepe gelaagdheid noemen, voor mij is het een onsamenhangende warboel met bizarre personages.

Ik heb de gewoonte om 's avonds in mijn bed nog eens in mijn hoofd te overlopen wat ik die dag las. Maar hier kreeg ik er geen lijn in: de hele grote lijnen kon ik samenvatten, maar verder? Een wirwar aan gebeurtenissen en personen: van een in een kip verklede boer, over een wedstrijdmotor, over de verschillende oorlogspartijen in het voormalig Joegoslavië.

Het is het eerste boek van John Irving en Ik herkende er de latere schrijver niet in.

Ik heb een beetje bijgeleerd over de Anschluss, en heel veel over de verschillende oorlogspartijen in Joegoslavië en de opkomst van Tito. Maar verder was het voor mij een ondermaats boek.

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Táto kniha nepatrí medzi tie, ktoré vás už po pár stranách pohltia tak, že sa od nich neviete odtrhnúť. U mňa to bolo skôr naopak - keď som ju odložila, uvedomila som si, že mi vlastne vôbec nechýba. Ale byť trpezlivý sa nakoniec oplatilo.

Príbeh o priateľstve a jeho niekedy až absurdných dôsledkoch nám Irving pomaly dávkuje tak, akoby sa chcel aj formou čo najviac priblížiť letnému výletu na motorke. Bezstarostné 60. roky sa prepletajú s druhou svetovou vojnou a okupáciou Viedne.

Veľmi sa mi páčil leitmotív a dala sa zvládnuť aj trošku nezvyčajná forma, ktorá podľa recenzií mnohých odradila. Pre množstvo Irvingových fanúšikov bola kniha sklamaním, čo pre mňa znamená jediné - o to viac sa teším na tie ďalšie.

Myslím, že na diplomovú prácu veľmi fajn :)

[Rocio · Rating 3 out of 5]

¿Podrían lograr el viaje o perderán en el intento?
Un libro aburrido y divertido. No pasa nada interesante, pero no podes parar de leerlo. Quería saber como continuaba.
Nos narra las desventuras de Graff y Siggy. Piensan hacer un viaje sin una guía de ruta. Vemos como un personaje se deja llevar por otro con las ideas más delirantes. Uno que no puede dejar de pensar en un zoológico y la libertad de dichos animales.
No puedo entender como se dejó llevar a esta aventura. Como están los dos personajes tan alocados.
Me descoloco y conmovió el final. Me sacó alguna sonrisa en su momento. Me gustó bastante. No es profundo, cumple la función de entretener. Lo recomiendo para pasar el rato, aunque te puede llevar algunos días ya que es un poco largo.

[Egle Gus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tikėjausi, kad labiau patiks. Pirmoji dalis intrigavo, nekantravau sužinoti kokie nuotykiai laukia, tačiau prasidėjus antrajai daliai, kuri buvo vainikuota tik vieno personažo priešistorinei gyvenimo istorijai, nusivyliau, dingo visas įdomumas. Tuomet trečiojoje knygos dalyje dar šiek tiek buvo bandyta grįžti į tą nuotaiką, kuri buvo sukurta pradžioje, tačiau veltui, nes realiai visa istorija jau buvo papasakota. P.S. Ateityje tikrai knietėtų perskaityti garsiąsias John'o Irving'o knygas, tiesiog palyginimui, ar būtent tik ši knyga man nepatiko, ar vis tik autorius ne mano širdžiai.

[Leo Ratz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Leider hat mir John Irvings allererstes Buch nicht so super gefallen - es sind ganz viele Elemente da, die ich in seinem anderen Büchern so liebe (absurde Familiengeschichten, endloses Abschweifen, Tiere mit Gedanken und Ideen, tragische Elemente & historische Einbettung), aber das hier hat sich leider nicht bewährt für mich. Es ist an vielen Stellen leider auch wirklich schlecht gealtert und das vermiest irgendwie eine Geschichte, die doch sehr wholesome sein möchte.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4/5
And so begins my reading (and re-reading) journey of John Irving's canon in chronological order this year. I would love to discuss this with others but for now, I am jotting down his themes.
Motorcycles 🏍️
Bears 🐻
Vienna
Missing Fathers
Skiing

[Der Buchklub · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Buchbesprechung gibt's in unserem Podcast:

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/p...

Aber Vorsicht, Spoiler!