Books

New York: William Morrow and Company, 1989. First edition of the author's seventh novel and what many consider his finest. Octavo, original half gray cloth. Presentation copy, warmly inscribed by the author on the title page, "For James with my appreciation. John Irving." Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Honi Werner. A Prayer for Owen Meany won high praise on publication for “Irving’s powerful storytelling, his gift for creating memorable characters, his humor and his elemental emotional power” (Chronology of American Literature). "Irving's powerful storytelling, his gift for creating memorable characters, his humor and his elemental emotional power stimulated critics to compare him to Charles Dickens" (Chronology of American Literature). "A rare creation in the somehow exhausted world of late 20th-century fiction-it is an amazingly brave piece of work" (Stephen King).

A masterpiece of storytelling by John Irving, 'A Prayer for Owen Meany' centers on the life of Johnny Wheelwright and his best friend, Owen Meany, who believes he is an instrument of God.