John Irving is a talented enough writer to create a different setting for The Last Chairlift. Adam even lives on Front Street with his grandmother, the exact same street as in A Prayer for Owen Meany. There are also many, many similarities with A Prayer for Owen Meany. About 25% of the book is a screenplay which just doesn’t work (if you are really interested in a mixed media book that works check out Maddie Mortimer’s Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies). Some of the topics aren’t that interesting (like wrestling…snooze fest). It should have been broken up into various books as it is almost 1,000 pages. It is character driven, and it doesn’t have a strong plot. We follow Adam through his life including how he navigates the sexual politics of those he loves and also his journey to discover the identity of his father.Īt first glance, The Last Chairlift is horrible. He grows up with an eclectic family including a grandmother, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

He is born to an unwed single mother, Little Ray. On the surface, The Last Chairlift is about Adam’s life. Well….if it was easy to explain, the book blurb would be more accurate, but I’ll do my best. It doesn’t accurately describe The Last Chairlift. But it speaks to me, and it moves me.ĭon’t read the book blurb. The Last Chairlift isn’t a perfect novel.

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