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The Cider House Rules Paperback – June 23, 1997
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First published in 1985, The Cider House Rules is set in rural Maine in the first half of the twentieth century. The novel tells the story of Dr. Wilbur Larch—saint and obstetrician, founder and director of the orphanage in the town of St. Cloud’s, ether addict and abortionist. This is also the story of Dr. Larch’s favorite orphan, Homer Wells, who is never adopted.
Praise for The Cider House Rules
“ [Irving] is among the very best storytellers at work today. At the base of Irving’s own moral concerns is a rare and lasting regard for human kindness.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer
“ Superb in scope and originality, a novel as good as one could hope to find from any author, anywhere, anytime. Engrossing, moving, thoroughly satisfying.”—Joseph Heller
“ An old-fashioned, big-hearted novel . . . with its epic yearning caught in the nineteenth century, somewhere between Trollope and Twain.”—Boston Sunday Globe
- Print length640 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherBallantine Books
- Publication dateJune 23, 1997
- Dimensions5.2 x 1.3 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100345417941
- ISBN-13978-0345417947
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“ [Irving] is among the very best storytellers at work today. At the base of Irving’s own moral concerns is a rare and lasting regard for human kindness.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer
“ Superb in scope and originality, a novel as good as one could hope to find from any author, anywhere, anytime. Engrossing, moving, thoroughly satisfying.”—Joseph Heller
“ An old-fashioned, big-hearted novel . . . with its epic yearning caught in the nineteenth century, somewhere between Trollope and Twain.”—Boston Sunday Globe
From the Inside Flap
From the Back Cover
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
The Boy Who Belonged to St. Cloud’s
In the hospital of the orphanage-the boys’ division at St. Cloud’s, Maine-two nurses were in charge of naming the new babies and checking that their little penises were healing from the obligatory circumcision. In those days (in 192_), all boys born at St. Cloud’s were circumcised because the orphanage physician had experienced some difficulty in treating uncircumcised soldiers, for this and for that, in World War I. The doctor, who was also the doctor of the boys’ division, was not a religious man; circumcision was not a rite with him-it was a strictly medical act, performed for hygienic reasons. His name was Wilbur Larch, which, except for the scent of ether that always accompanied him, reminded one of the nurses of the tough, durable wood of the coniferous tree of that name. She hated, however, the ridiculous name of Wilbur, and took offense at the silliness of combining a word like Wilbur with something as substantial as a tree.
The other nurse imagined herself to be in love with Dr. Larch, and when it was her turn to name a baby, she frequently named him John Larch, or John Wilbur (her father’s name was John), or Wilbur Walsh (her mother’s maiden name had been Walsh). Despite her love for Dr. Larch, she could not imagine Larch as anything but a last name-and when she thought of him, she did not think of trees at all. For its flexibility as a first or as a last name, she loved the name of Wilbur-and when she tired of her use of John, or was criticized by her colleague for overusing it, she could rarely come up with anything more original than a Robert Larch or a Jack Wilbur (she seemed not to know that Jack was often a nickname for John).
If he had been named by this dull, love-struck nurse, he probably would have been a Larch or a Wilbur of one kind or another; and a John, a Jack, or a Robert-to make matters even duller. Because it was the other nurse’s turn, he was named Homer Wells.
The other nurse’s father was in the business of drilling wells, which was hard, harrowing, honest, precise work-to her thinking her father was composed of these qualities, which lent the word “wells” a certain deep, down-to-earth aura. “Homer” had been the name of one of her family’s umpteen cats.
This other nurse-Nurse Angela, to almost everyone-rarely repeated the names of her babies, whereas poor Nurse Edna had named three John Wilbur Juniors, and two John Larch the Thirds. Nurse Angela knew an inexhaustible number of no-nonsense nouns, which she diligently employed as last names-Maple, Fields, Stone, Hill, Knot, Day, Waters (to list a few)-and a slightly less impressive list of first names borrowed from a family history of many dead but cherished pets (Felix, Fuzzy, Smoky, Sam, Snowy, Joe, Curly, Ed and so forth).
For most of the orphans, of course, these nurse-given names were temporary. The boys’ division had a better record than the girls’ division at placing the orphans in homes when they were babies; too young ever to know the names their good nurses had given them; most of the orphans wouldn’t even remember Nurse Angela or Nurse Edna, the first women in the world to fuss over them. Dr. Larch made it a firm policy that the orphans’ adoptive families not be informed of the names the nurses gave with such zeal. The feeling at St. Cloud’s was that a child, upon leaving the orphanage, should know the thrill of a fresh start-but (especially the boys who were difficult to place and lived at St. Cloud’s the longest) it was hard for Nurse Angela and Nurse Edna, and even for Dr. Larch, not to think of their John Wilburs and John Larches (their Felix Hills, Curly Maples, Joe Knots, Smoky Waterses) as possessing their nurse-given names forever.
The reason Homer Wells kept his name was that he came back to St. Cloud’s so many times, after so many failed foster home, that the orphanage was forced to acknowledge Homer’s intention to make St. Cloud’s his home. It was not easy for anyone to accept, but Nurse Angela and Nurse Edna-and, finally, Dr. Wilbur Larch-were forced to admit that Homer Wells belonged to St. Cloud’s. The determined boy was not put up for adoption anymore.
Nurse Angela, with her love of cats and orphans, once remarked of Homer Wells that the boy must adore the name she gave him because he fought so hard not to lose it.
Product details
- Publisher : Ballantine Books (June 23, 1997)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 640 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0345417941
- ISBN-13 : 978-0345417947
- Item Weight : 15.6 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.2 x 1.3 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #27,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #676 in Family Saga Fiction
- #1,698 in Psychological Thrillers (Books)
- #2,535 in Literary Fiction (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
John Irving published his first novel, Setting Free the Bears, in 1968. He has been nominated for a National Book Award three times-winning once, in 1980, for the novel The World According to Garp. He also received an O. Henry Award, in 1981, for the short story "Interior Space." In 1992, Mr. Irving was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma. In 2000, he won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Cider House Rules-a film with seven Academy Award nominations. In 2001, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
For more information about the author, please visit www.john-irving.com
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I absolutely LOVED this book. Even though it was fairly long, I had a very hard time putting it down. And there were only one or two parts that I thought may have been lagging a bit. I was actually quite surprised by how fast-paced it was, considering that it is 600 pages. But I became enthralled with the world of Wilbur Larch and Homer Wells. Their relationship with each other, as well as their own separate worlds, were so captivating.
I loved that a huge part of this novel is its focus on abortion, especially because I had previously never read any novels on this topic before. Besides just reading about the different characters' opinions on the subject, I learned so much about abortion culture in the US back in the early 20th century — which, honestly, I didn't even know existed.
On top of being a fast-paced read on an intriguing topic, it was also extremely well written. The characterization was my favorite part of the novel. I felt like I truly got to know each and every one of the characters, and I became very attached to them. Irving also made some narrative style choices that I thought were really interesting. At one point (obviously I won't say when), the novel skips forward fifteen years, at a moment when you really, really want to keep reading and find out what's going to happen. I was so surprised by this choice, but I think that it added a lot of depth to the novel. We are able to see how the characters were affected by their decisions and actions in the past, even though we didn't get to experience those things with them at the time. There are a few other choices Irving made that surprised me as well — I definitely appreciated how different and unexpected it was at times.
After reading "Cider House Rules," I can't wait to read more from Irving. This novel is now one of my very favorite modern classics. It's a book that everybody should read. As somebody who is pro-choice, I would be interested in seeing how a pro-life reader would react to the story. I don't doubt that many pro-life readers would probably skip over this book, due to its content, but they (and everybody else) should know that there's a lot more to this novel than just its focus on abortion and medicine.
Well, I read the book, and what I ended up doing is loving the story even more (it's a lot better than the movie, which I didn't think can be topped... except you don't get to see how cute those little orphan kids were in the book.... the movie really did do that better), but I never liked Candy more. In fact, I think I despised her even more. But Wally gets a lot more color and definition in the book, as do all the other characters. Nothing quite like a book to get into someone's head.
I liked this book so much, I immediately started another John Irving novel that was also made into a movie, Widow for a Year. The movie, however, was called "The Door Through the Floor". I highly recommend that book as well.
But the novel is so much more than that. During the time period of this novel, set between the 1920s and the 1950s, abortion was illegal. Dr. Larch's formative years as a medical student were marked by various experiences with desperate, pregnant women, and the horrors they had to undergo at the hands of back-street abortionists who didn't know what they were doing. And so, unofficially, Dr. Larch is an abortionist, providing safe abortions for those women desperate enough to trek all the way to back-of-beyonds Maine because they have heard about the good doctor. Homer Wells, having seen the "products of conception" as they are being thrown away, and horrified at the thought of killing babies, refuses to go along with this part of his training. And this disagreement is one reason why Homer Wells, aged nineteen, finally leaves St. Clouds to go off into the wide wide world with his new chums Candy and Wally.
So there you have it. By the magic of his story-telling skills, John Irving gives us a balanced portrayal of abortion, in all of its agonies and difficulties.
So what are THE CIDER HOUSE RULES? During Homer's sojourn away from the orphanage he becomes a part of a cider making business, owned by Candy and Wally. It is his responsibility to type up these rules for the apple-pickers who come all the way from South Carolina for the seasonal job. The Cider House Rules becomes a metaphor for rules, your rules, my rules and society's rules, and how this plays out in the abortion debate.
I won't say any more so as not to spoil this story for you. But if you haven't read John Irving's THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, you are in for a treat. Five stars.
Top reviews from other countries
Another thing worth noting is that that this story has two main characters; the ether-addicted Dr. Wilbur Larch and orphan cum-doctor Homer Wells. While this may possibly create focus issues for the reader, it is unlikely to inhibit enjoyment of this marvelous literary work that is marked with humanity, kindness, and wisdom. Iriving is a powerful storyteller.
Now, if you have not seen the movie but are contemplating purchasing this book, be aware that it deals frequently with abortion and in most of those from a decidedly pro-choice perspective. John Irving, writing “Rules” in the mid-80’s (about a much earlier period), was very cognizant of the legalization debate brewing, escalating, in the U-S and elsewhere, and it is likely (I strongly believe) that this book served as an eye-opener for many. But, as my headline to this review emphasizes the debate has again erupted, and I am personally saddened, nay angered, that (in the U-S) women are once more being denied dignity and the fundamental right of choice.