As ever, Irving is at his best with the family relationships he creates. They are simultaneously touching and infuriating. It is with these relationships that Irving firmly grasps universal truths and puts a chokehold on his readers.... Irving's descriptions are distressing to read, but they force the reader to relate to the characters in a way they would not in most works of fiction. -Calgary Herald Bittersweet . . . moving. -People Until I Find You . . . cuts closer to the bone than any of [Irving's] previous works. -Ottawa Citizen Praise for John Irving: John Irving has received awards from the Rockefeller Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation; he has won an O. Henry Award, a National Book Award and an Oscar. Irving's novels are perceptive and precise reflections of the world around us. -The Washington Post Book World John Irving is one of the very finest writers alive today. -The Associated Press A serious artist of remarkable powers. -Chicago Sun-Times Irving's popularity is not hard to understand. His world is really the world according to nearly everyone. -Time A premier storyteller, master of the tragicomic and among the first rank of contemporary novelists. -Los Angeles Times Book Review [Irving's] instincts are so basically sound, his talent for storytelling so bright and strong that he gets down to the truth of his time. -The New York Times Book Review John Irving is a writer of prodigious talent. -Calgary Herald John Irving is devoted to his people and his plots in a way that makes him unique among the most popular and widely read of the living American novelists. He has become his generation's Dickens. -NOW Magazine He is among the very best storytellers at work today. At the base of Irving's own moral concerns is a rare and lasting regard for human kindness. -The Philadelphia Inquirer Praise for The Fourth Hand: A rich and deeply moving tale. . .Vintage Irving: A story of two very disparate people, and the strange ways we grow. . . . Irving's novels are perceptive and precise reflections of the world around us. -The Washington Post Book World Using comedy, satiric social commentary and his adroit ability to tell a good yarn, Irving proffers a sweet love story with the very serious underlying theme of human transformation. -Ottawa Citizen John Irving is one of the very finest writers alive today. -The Associated Press From the Hardcover edition. sakriti opis