John Irving

Growing up in a family that defies conventions and evades questions concerning the eventful past, Adam goes to Aspen, where he was conceived, to learn the truth about his mother, a former slalom skier and ski instructor, and meets some ghosts, which are not the first or the last ones he sees. "In Aspen, Colorado, in 1941, Rachel Brewster is a slalom skier at the National Downhill and Slalom Championships. Little Ray, as she is called, finishes nowhere...

The story of the actor Jack Burns. His mother, Alice, is a Toronto tattoo artist. When Jack is four, he travels with Alice to several North Sea ports; they are trying to find Jack's missing father, William, a church organist who is addicted to being tattooed. But Alice is a mystery, and William can't be found. Even Jack's memories are subject to doubt. Jack Burns goes to schools in Canada and New England, but what shapes him are his relationships...

The epic story of a family, dysfunctional at best, unable to cope with tragedy--or with each other.

The son of a famous radical feminist spends his life struggling with his diverse personal relationships and with his ambition to be a writer.

While playing baseball in the summer of 1953, Owen Meany hits a foul ball that kills his best friend's mother, and he becomes convinced that he is an instrument of God.

The author's most political novel since The Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany, this novel is an intimate and unforgettable portrait of the solitariness of a bisexual man who is dedicated to making himself "worthwhile."

Inspiring the global fight to revolutionize the way food is grown, distributed, and eaten. In the almost thirty years since Carlo Petrini began the Slow Food organization, he has been constantly engaged in the fight for food justice. Beginning first in his native Italy and then expanding all over the world, the movement has created a powerful force for change. The essential argument of this book is that food is an avenue towards freedom. This uplifting...