EPISODE · Jul 2, 2020 · 37 MIN
John Irving: A Prayer for Owen Meany
from Writers Off the Page: From the TIFA Archives · host Toronto Public Library
Works by John IrvingA Prayer for Owen MeanyThe World According to Garp (book in various formats)The World According to Gary (1982 film starring Robin Williams, Glenn Close and John Lithgow)Avenue of MysteriesThe Cider House RulesLast Night in Twisted RiverOther Related Books or Materials13 Facts about A Prayer for Owen Meany (link opens an article from Mental Floss from Apr 2015)John Irving in 1990 (link opens TPL Special Collections page of the Toronto Star Archives featuring a 1990 photo of Irving by Doug Griffin)Episode 162: A Prayer for Owen Meany (link opens a podcast episode by Overdue Podcast)John Irving: A Prayer for Owen Meany (link opens a podcast episode by BBC Radio 4 Bookclub) About the HostNovelist Randy Boyagoda is a professor of English at the University of Toronto and principal of St. Michael’s College, where he holds the Basilian Chair in Christianity, Arts, and Letters. He is the author of three novels: Original Prin, Beggar's Feast, and Governor of the Northern Province. His fiction has been nominated for the Scotiabank Giller Prize (2006) and IMPAC Dublin Literary Prize (2012), and named a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice Selection (2012 and 2019) and Globe and Mail Best Book (2018). He contributes essays, reviews, and opinions to publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, First Things, Commonweal, Harper’s, Financial Times (UK), Guardian, New Statesman, Globe and Mail, and National Post, in addition to appearing frequently on CBC Radio. He served as President of PEN Canada from 2015-2017.Music is by Yuka From the ArchivesWriters Off the Page: 40 Years of TIFA is the first series associated with the Toronto Public Library’s multi-year digital initiative, From the Archives, which presents curated and digitized audio, video and other content from some of Canada’s biggest cultural institutions and organizations.Thanks to the Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA) for allowing TPL access to their archives to feature some of the best-known writers in the world from moments in the past. Thanks as well to Library and Archives Canada for generously allowing TPL access to these archives.
What this episode covers
In an early draft of one of Irving’s most beloved novels, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Irving’s reading makes Owen Meany come alive in a way that his reader may never have experienced before. Whether a long-time fan of Irving or Owen Meany or new to the novel, this reading captures why Irving is such an entertaining reader but also such a vital and natural storyteller. Irving’s reading was recorded in 1986 as part of Toronto’s International Readings at Harbourfront Series (now called TIFA) and is used with the kind permission of John Irving and the Turnbull Agency. It’s also made possible with the permission of Toronto International Festival of Authors.
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John Irving: A Prayer for Owen Meany
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