The Book Lovers' Companion by Lionel Shriver

Author:Lionel Shriver
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781782433644
Publisher: Michael O' Mara Books
Published: 2014-07-15T04:00:00+00:00

DISCUSSION POINTS

• ‘Any Christian who is not a hero is a pig’ – Léon Bloy. What concepts of heroism does the author explore?

• How do the various characters grow in self-understanding?

• ‘Have no anxiety about anything …’ – the Letter of Paul to the Philippians. This is one of the novel’s epigraphs. What are some of the anxieties that power the narrative?

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

• The 1998 feature-length film Simon Birch, directed by Mark Steven Johnson, was loosely based on the novel. It omitted much of the latter half and altered the ending. Irving did not believe that this novel could successfully be made into a film.

• In 2002, the Royal National Theatre staged Simon Bent’s adaptation, A Prayer for Owen Meany: On Faith.

• The novel has seeped into cultural references. Californian punk-rock band Lagwagon based the song ‘Owen Meany’ on the book, as did the band Jimmy Eat World with their song ‘Goodbye Sky Harbor’.

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