Queen Esther

John Irving's latest novel delivers the familiar comfort of his signature themes – wrestling, New England boarding schools, the Vietnam War, and LGBTQ characters woven seamlessly into the story. If you’re getting excited, slow down. I don’t think this one is for every reader.Queen Esther doesn't quite hit the mark of Irving's beloved work. The novel drags in places – especially at the beginning. It starts with a very progressive family in a small, conservative New England town. It takes a long time to put the family into place – four sisters with four adopted nannies (who are truly part of the family) – the last being a Jewish girl from Dr. Larch’s orphanage (Yes, that Dr. Larch). When Esther comes to live with them to help raise their fourth daughter, Honor. Then everything starts. Again, that took a while. I nearly put it down. If you enjoy his work, my advice is to keep going. It picks up considerably once Honor’s son, the protagonist Jimmy, reaches Austria.That said, this is still a solid read for Irving devotees. Not every book can be a favorite, and Queen Esther earns a respectable grade. It won’t rank up among his finest. But I give it 3.5 stars, rounded to 4, because it is John Irving. If you haven’t read his books yet, put this one down and go directly to Cider House Rules, The World According to Garp, or A Prayer for Owen Meany. Read this one when you already love him.

2.5 stars, rounded upThis is a tough review for me to write. I enjoyed The Cider House Rules but could not connect with Queen Esther. Queen Esther is not a sequel but the same orphanage and doctor play a role in this novel, but not a large one. The title character is a precocious young woman of 14 who is taken in by the Winslow family as an au pair for their youngest daughter. The Winslow family is unusual as are just about all of the characters in the novel.I thought the first part of the novel was interesting as was the ending but so much of the in between dragged for me. I learned more than I would ever want to know about the debatable merits of circumcising males. I had no emotional connection to any of the characters and thought most were unbelievable. This novel did not work for me but perhaps will for others.Thanks to the author, NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

Another wonderful, engaging, enjoyable story by John Irving.Queen Esther tells the story of Esther Nacht, a Viennese-born Jewish orphan adopted by a non-Jewish, New England family. Esther's early life makes for a fascinating read, which includes an appearance by Dr; Wilbur Larch (younger here than in The Cider House Rules). His inclusion is a nice touch connecting an earlier work of the author. The theme of how anti-semitism affects people in different ways over the years was a fascinating but sadly true portrait of the human race. I learned a lot about Jewish culture, anti-semitism, and its effects on the Jewish people.Esther's family is portrayed with Irving's usual quirkiness, humor and heart. A German Shepherd named Hard Rain was a joyful tool of comic relief.Five stars! Highly recommended! Would make for a great book club selection for readers.Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced read of this marvelous work!

Irving is one of my favorite authors, so it saddens me greatly how much I disliked this book. So much so that I’m bailing on it.The family’s last name is Winslow. Do you know how many times their full name is referenced? 916 times. That’s more than twice a page. It was endearing at first, but it’s tiresome. Add in the father always saying, “Right, you are so and so” (usually Connie) and it’s just too much.Furthermore, while this is told in Irving’s typical meandering storytelling style, Esther takes a backseat to the book, which is utterly perplexing.But I will keep an eye out for his next book as it will take more than one off book to dissuade me from his stories.

In John Irving’s novel, “Queen Esther,” Esther Nacht is born in Vienna in 1905. Her father dies on board the ship to Portland, Maine; her mother is murdered by anti-Semites in Portland.Of this history, Esther said, “My mother didn’t live long enough to be a mother. I didn’t want to be someone my mother didn’t get to be. I’m just trying to be the best Jew I can.”And with that, Esther decides to bring her son, Jimmy, into the world under the two-mom theory: Esther is the birth mother and her step-adopted sister, Honor Winslow, raises the child.James (Jimmy) Winslow was sent to Vienna, Austria for a year abroad and had two roommates, Jolanda Lammers from Amsterdam and Claude Guilbert from Paris. His German language tutor was Fraulein Annelies Eissler who had a strong Austrian accent..Irving takes great pains to include German words in his characters’ dialogue but, in addition, he substitutes the Viennese word “Wiederschaun” instead of “Wiedersehen” which seems he is taking license with readers who can speak German but do not know Viennese colloquialisms (unless the reader happened to spend a year in Vienna).Jimmy’s experiences in Vienna are uproariously funny especially regarding the German shepherd “Hard Rain.” The exception is a murder sequence handled with insidious aplomb.Jimmy writes a book and goes to Israel for a book signing. It is here that John Irving drops the hilarity, replacing it with poignancy when Jimmy meets two central figures to his life.It is only then that Jimmy begins to face the duality of his upbringing.I cried.Thanks to Net Galley and Simon &Schuster for an advance copy.