Avenue of Mysteries (Irving)

Book Reviews
Irving fans will recognize similarities with past work: a circus, ambiguous parentage, a child with supernatural powers, various Christian churches, and a transvestite.... Diehard Irving fans will likely enjoy this latest, but those without such loyalties might be better served...[by] A Prayer for Owen Meany.
Publishers Weekly


(Starred review.) Successful novelist...is taken under the wing of a mysterious mother and daughter, who seem to appear and disappear at opportune times and manipulate his actions....The "mysteries" in the title refer primarily to the religious sense of the word, particularly as manifested in miracles and visions of the Virgin Mary. —Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Univ. of Minnesota Libs., Minneapolis
Library Journal


(Starred review.) An empathically imagined, masterfully told, and utterly transporting tale of transcendent sacrifice and perseverance, unlikely love, and profound mysteries.
Booklist

Irving works his familiar themes—Catholicism, sex, death—with a light and assured touch, and though the dream-narrative construct is a little shelf-worn, it serves the story well. Though not as irresistible as early works..., a welcome return to form.
Kirkus Reviews