The World According To Garp

John Irving

1978

(film 1982)

If you want the lowdown on the plot, characters, etc... google the book. This is a blog with book reviews, yes, but the reviews are not generic, but tend to tell how the subject to be reviewed fits into, or pertains to, my own life.

In this case, Garp, the heroin and neurotic father, shows anxiety at the heels of his children. This is precisely how I can relate to Garp. Garp is a man who puts his children first - he makes sure that every decision he makes ensures that his kids are figured into that equation. I live by that philosophy. It is a hard philosophy. You may have many days where you feel that your decisions are wrong. Some days you cry because the you see how your decisions and actions affect your children - both positively and negatively.

Garp sits awake for hours some evenings just simply looking at his children sleep. I watch my kids sleep. I love to see them in that state. I sit and watch and think about how they were created, if they will still appreciate my goofiness and my love for them when they are embarrassed by my presence. I think about how happy they will be when they marry. I think about how their life will end...hoping, hoping, hoping that it will be painless and they will have family or friends to be there to send them off into another world.