Avenue of Mysteries

A funny, moving and entertaining foray into the literary realm of Magic Realism

Given his penchant for blending comical farce with genuinely moving scenes of sorrow and loss -- accidents and murders and sexual assaults in THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP; serial killers and crazed men club members in A SON OF THE CIRCUS; the loss of a hand to a lion (not a spoiler) and a dog-poop flinging doctor in THE FOURTH HAND; not to mention dwarves, bears and transsexuals galore -- John Irving has always been a second (more northern) cousin to the magic realism movement embodied by the likes of Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Isabel Allende. But with AVENUE OF MYSTERIES (a novel set in Mexico, the Philippines and, briefly, Iowa) he enters the waters with both feet -- actually, he immerses himself, AND his characters. Like a strand of DNA, there are two intertwined, inseparable stories being told from the start: the first is that of the older (over 50) Juan Diego Guerrero -- successful, somewhat famous, writer (and sometime teacher at the Writers workshops in Iowa) -- who is travelling to the Philippines to fulfil a promise made to a kind, American (draft-dodging) stranger he met as an orphan in Mexico. His American doctor has recently prescribed both beta blockers (Lopressor) and sexual stimulants (Viagra), because the beta blockers make him tired. The combination of the two drugs interfere with Juan Diego's often vivid dreams, an essential tool for a writer of fiction. So he tends to NOT follow the prescribed dosage everyday. Thus, the weary writer -- a flight to the Philippines is a looong flight, not to mention the short jaunts when he arrives -- is prone to nod off, and dream of his past. Which brings us to the second, but inter-twined, strand of narrative. As a boy in Mexico, Juan Diego grew up as an orphan who worked in the dumps of Oaxaca. In Mexico, there are entire families who make a living sorting things like copper and other recyclables from the huge dumps, and helping burn other parts of the refuge. In addition to sorting, Juan Diego also rescues man...