John Irving is often accused of rewriting his own autobiography in each novel he produces (which is highly unfair considering the well-worn writer’s adage “write what you know”). Sure, his writing is self-referential. He draws from his own experiences, but that’s where it ends.

The reader sees similar themes run throughout Irving’s books --- including sex, gender, love, abandonment, orphaned children, prep schools, independent women, New England, and writing as a career. But like a good movie remake or sequel, these references are Easter eggs, nods to familiarity, to the insider who knows his work. They are like comfortable shoes that one wears everyday…because why would you wear something else?

"For the true Irving devotee, THE LAST CHAIRLIFT...has it all, and then some. For those unfamiliar with Irving, start with an earlier work, and fall in love with his ability to create realistically absurd scenarios and enthrallingly memorable characters."

That’s where Irving excels. He gives us what we, his fans, want from him, but he also takes us down different and unexpected paths each time. He engages the reader right from the start in THE LAST CHAIRLIFT with a likable albeit unconventional narrator, Adam, who is struggling with issues of identity.

Reminiscent of Irving’s most notable character Garp (and yet not), Adam is the only child of Rachel, or Little Ray, as she is known in the family. A one-time Olympic hopeful, Rachel is a seasonal ski instructor who disappears for months at a time, leaving Adam to be raised by his extended family of eccentric individuals (like a grandfather who appears as a ghost later, dressed solely in a diaper). There is an assemblage of characters --- gay, straight, trans, mute, moaning, dead, ghostly, short, wrestling, skiing --- but at the heart of the book is a child-man searching for answers he may never get.

Irving is not a clichéd writer. His scenes are often surprisingly delightful in their departure from expectation, which I have always loved about his work. You don’t see what’s coming, despite how visual his writing is. When it lands, you can’t help but be transfixed by both the stellar landing and the sheer uniqueness of it. A few examples include the transition of Rachel’s husband of convenience to a woman, Adam’s escorting of two corpses down a mountain slope on the titular chairlift, a girlfriend’s bowel evacuation in bed --- all astonishing scenes that result in the shake of a reader’s head and a tandem smile. The book is rife with these vignettes, as is any Irving novel. These are quirky characters living life to its quirkiest.

An Irving book would not be complete without commentary on the larger issues of life and the world. Acceptance is at the heart of this novel, whether familial, societal, sexual or political. Irving touches on it all in this 900-plus-page volume. “There is more than one way to love people,” says one pivotal character, a line that speaks to the core of the story, if not all of Irving’s oeuvre. At base, Adam, a struggling screenwriter, is witnessing and discovering love in all its permutations.

For the true Irving devotee, THE LAST CHAIRLIFT (which he has stated will be his last novel) has it all, and then some. For those unfamiliar with Irving, start with an earlier work, and fall in love with his ability to create realistically absurd scenarios and enthrallingly memorable characters. You will appreciate this voluminous book more if you are familiar with and have grown to adore what Irving is inviting you to experience.