A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

A Prayer for Owen Meany is a difficult novel to summarize.  On the surface level, it is a coming of age story about two New Hampshire boys set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War.  Beneath the surface, it's an exploration of the bonds of friendship, religious faith and miracles.  The plot concerns best friends Johnny Wheelwright and Owen Meany.  The boys face a turning point when Owen, notable for his diminutive stature and unusual voice, accidentally strikes and kills Johnny's mother with a foul ball at a Little League baseball game.  While Johnny accepts this as a tragic accident, Owen considers it to be a preordained act of God; he believes he was acting as God's instrument.  The events that follow are miraculous, fascinating and deeply sad.  I'm not one to heap praise on every novel I read, but I don't feel like I'm exaggerating when I say that this book is completely extraordinary, and unlike anything I've ever read.

Since this was my month of reading on my Kindle, I didn't realize how long this book was when I started working on it.  As the novel gets off to a slow start, this worked against me.  I got frustrated with how slowly the little percentage read number in the corner of my Kindle was moving, and lost a bit of focus.  By the time I got myself on track and accepted that it was going to be a good long while before I was finished, I was behind on my reading challenge.  However, this book was so excellent that all of my slowness was worth it.  I'm four books behind now on my quest to reach 100 novels read this year, but that's nothing compared to what this story made me feel.  It really was that good.

Part of its appeal is the character of Owen.  His unusual height, his high-pitched voice, his sarcastic brand of intelligence, his unshakeable faith in God, and THE FACT THAT ALL OF HIS DIALOGUE IS WRITTEN ENTIRELY IN CAPITAL LETTERS firmly cement him in my mind as one of the best, most likeable characters I have ever read.  He wormed his way into my heart and kept me engaged in the story, even when I was frustrated that it was going slowly.  Owen is the kind of character that I would want to be more like - fully committed to his ideals.  He's the kind of person who absolutely knows himself.  This trait drives the plot forward - he is sure that God is using him for some purpose and is unwavering that that belief.  It's both unusual and refreshing to read about a person like that.  I admire that.  I wish I was as free from self-doubt!

Another aspect of the novel that I enjoyed was the intricacy of the plot.  Every little event in the story has a purpose, and watching all of the threads draw together at the end is an absolute pleasure.  This is the kind of novel that will only get better when you reread it.  I'd venture to say that you would notice something new each time you read - I'm sure I missed a ton of connections this first time through.  After struggling through a few clumsily written books this month (like the rest of the Maze Runner series), it was very refreshing to explore a plot that was so well-done technically.  This is a book for a mature mind, and I appreciated its intricacies.

Prior to reading this, I had heard good reviews, but I was still a little concerned about the religious aspects of the text when I first started reading. I am not remotely religious and am not generally entertained by reading about religion.  Strangely, although this book is about religious faith and miracles on a very deep level, I really didn't mind it - I would even go so far as to say I enjoyed the way religion is used here.  A Prayer for Owen Meany manages to be both religious and non-preachy at the same time.  It deals with faith in a way that doesn't feel condescending to non-believers.  It was completely fine, which feels weird to say.  I didn't expect to feel this way.

In A Prayer for Owen Meany, Irving has created a beautiful, honest and well-written novel.  The characters are unforgettable and the plot is well-constructed. This is definitely a new favorite of mine, and one that I hope to reread eventually.  I don't say that too often. This is a truly special book.