At 73,John Irving has lost none of his fighting spirit. The writer and ex-wrestler lets rip at Trump, US politics, and Caitlyn Jenner’s critics – and the ‘extreme patriotism’ of the Great American Novel. Then he throws our interviewer to the floorJohn Irving,much-loved novelist, Oscar-winning screenwriter, and the final Great American Author standing,hooks me in a headlock and slams his heel down on my toes. A noise in an unfamiliar register escapes me. Irvings publicist winces and shrinks into her boutique sofa. This wasn’t on the book-tour itinerary.
Before he became wealthy and famous, the author of The Hotel New Hampshire and A Prayer for Owen Meany subsidised his writing career and raised his family with a moment job in wrestling. He grappled and he coached. But hes 73 now: I’ve got two decades on him, and I’ve challenged him to exhibit me a few moves. As we feint and weave around a London hotel suite,my half-remembered research comes back to me like a terrible reproof. Irving hasn’t touched a drop of alcohol in years and has regained the fighting trim he boasted when he was still in his storied leotard. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com