Book Review: Last Night in Twisted River

Last Night in Twisted River: A Novel by John Irving

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Last Night in Twisted River was a book that took me awhile to get into. But, once I got a few chapters in, I found myself enjoying it. It's not one of the best books I've ever read, but I would recommend it to others. I like how circular the book is, but found the weaving in and out of past and present a bit difficult to follow a times. (I think that is why it took me awhile to get into the book - it was hard to follow until I got used to the style.)

I loved the characters - pretty much all of them, which is unusual. My favorite is probably Ketchum. He cracked me up - his outbursts and chosen phrases, as well as his spin on things, were quite interesting. Danny and Dominic were also great characters. My only problem with the characters was Ketchum's political affiliation. With how into guns/knives/hunting he is, I found it a bit hard to swallow that he'd be such a die-hard Democrat!

Speaking of politics, I felt this book was overly political. Do we really have to bemoan the Bush presidency and bash Republicans as uneducated fools? I really don't think any of that was necessary. There could have been some alluding to it without it being so plentiful toward the end.

That said, I overall really liked the book. I hadn't read anything by John Irving before, although I had heard of him. I will be looking for more of his books.

Last Night in Twisted River will be on sale on Oct. 27. To pre-order, click here.


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