Tuesday, September 24, 2013

But Owen is Not the Meany

I wonder why John Irving chose to name his leading man Owen Meany? Our book club met tonight and Brenda led the discussion of "A Prayer for Owen Meany." How fortunate that my break enabled attendance for book club night! The book was an autobiographical-type novel about the narrator, John Wheelwright. And his friend Owen is not evil or mean-spirited, just small -- probably dwarvish. I agree that God uses the weak to lead the strong. But that is just one layer of this Protest-the-Vietnam-War story line. It meandered through all the muck of the 60s, which I didn't enjoy, and it sounds very elitist in terms of smart academic males who rebel against the norms and traditions of society just for the sake of originality. No thought to the long-term consequences of their actions and words.
But book club is always an opportunity to learn and expand my horizons. And eat terrific appetizers. I made cinnamon rolls, which may not be as 60s-kitsch as Bonnie's peach cobbler, but they were yummy.

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