Instrument of God - Book Review

This is my life these days.

That coffee is a decaf.  It's a shame, I tell you.  But me and caffeine?  Such an on and off love story.  Like me and G before the marital commitment.  No marital commitment with caffeine.  Just a tawdry affair.

Working hard hard hard for that  *&^$#@ B.  {You will so be getting a post in all caps if I manage to swing an A.  You have been warned.  I'm not getting my hopes up.}

Book review!

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving.

I had a good friend in college who was totally in love with this book.  He used to quote it all the time and endlessly badger me about reading it.  So naturally I never did.  How I wish I could talk to him about it now.  I think he's teaching at a university in Maryland somewhere.  Too bad I'm not on Facebook.  Too bad I will never be on Facebook.

Owen Meany, a measly boy with a shrill voice, son of a granite digger, thinks he is the instrument of God.  He just might be.  This story is told from the perspective of his good friend, Johnny, and consists of their childhood antics, on into high school and early adulthood.  OMG it is laugh-out-loud funny.  It is complex and deep and well-written, but it is worth the read simply for all the times you will lean over on the couch, chuckling to yourself.

It begins in the 1950's and lasts through the '80's.  There are times when Irving drones on and on about the Vietnam War and then later, the Iran Contra affair, part of which relates to the plot and part of which seems like a rant against the Reagan era.  Whatevs.  Read the book!  But not on a plane or on vacation or when you're in the mood for a light read.  It's a deeper read with a truly fulfilling ending.

Enjoy!