A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving

So why is Owen Meany my best book ever?
Every single part of the interwoven plot seemed to be essential and necessary to culminate in a great ending. It's like every single word mattered. The whole reading experience was perfect. Okay, okay, you get it, I loved it. Read it!

A truly fantastic book. I don't often recommend books to others as I know how personal each read is but I've bought this for many of my friends. Owen Meany is a giant of a character wrapped up in the most fascinating but everyday plot. I've read this many times and love it.

a fantastic book - quirky and un-put-down-able. Brilliant ending!

I loved this book.
You really get to understand the characters, and it's brilliantly written in an excellent style.The character of Owen, and how you follow the story had me gripped from the start. I have since read several others books written by the same author.

truly heartwarming - like all his other books, which i went onto read aftwer this. very evocative. made me happy, laugh, smile and think

This is a great book. Owen Meany is a quirky and endearing character. Although the plot is central to the book and from the beginning you know it is leading up to a life changing event, there is a lot of narrative about different family occasions and relationships that are equally enjoyable and funny.

This is a great book. Owen Meany is a quirky and endearing character. Although the plot is central to the book and from the beginning you know it is leading up to a life changing event, there is a lot of narrative about different family occasions and relationships that are equally enjoyable and funny.

While most of John Irving's books are fairly unusual, "A Prayer for Owen Meany" is particularly so. Owen Meany is probably the most memorable character that I've ever come across in a book. A dwarf with a voice so striking that his dialogue is WRITTEN IN CAPITAL LETTERS, he also believes (rightly!) that he is an instrument of God after he kills his best friend's mother with a baseball. Owen's best friend narrates, alternating the story of his growing up with Owen with anecdotes from his "present" life in the late 80's.

I reluctantly read the book after much nagging by my father and found it a real page-turner. I've since read most of Irving's other novels, and loved many of them, but I think "A Prayer for Owen Meany" has been the best so far. I would also strongly recommend "A Widow for One Year" and "The Cider House Rules".