The Imaginary Girlfriend: A Memoir.

IRVING, John.

Item Number: 108331

London: Bloomsbury, 1996.

First edition of “this masterpiece” (Edmonton Journal). Octavo, original cloth. Signed by the author on the title page, “Merry Christmas John Irving.” Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by React.

“The Imaginary Girlfriend is a miniature autobiography detailing Irving’s parallel careers of writing and wrestling. . . . Tales of encounters with writers (John Cheever, Nelson Algren, Kurt Vonnegut) are intertwined with those about his wrestling teammates and coaches. With humor and compassion, [Irving] details the few truly important lessons he learned about writing. . . . And in beefing up his narrative with anecdotes that are every bit as hilarious as the antics in his novels, Irving combines the lessons of both obsessions (wrestling and writing) . . . into a somber reflection on the importance of living well" (The Denver Post).