Dear Readers, With the publication of Queen Esther just around the corner, I sat down with my longtime editor, Jonathan Karp, to discuss the new novel, my previous novels, and more. Like many of you, Jon was curious about the return, in Queen Esther, of Dr. Larch from The Cider House Rules. Watch a clip of our conversation, below. I’ll be sharing more clips of my conversation with Jon in the coming weeks—stay tuned! — John | John Irving

Dear Readers, Today marks one month to the English-language publication of The Last Chairlift. In anticipation of October 18, my wonderful publishers at Simon & Schuster UK put together an animation inspired by the book’s cover art. I’m sharing it with a note of thanks to everyone who’s left me encouraging, generous comments. You’ve made my past seven years better. The Last Chairlift will soon be in your hands. There’s been excitement in preparation for the fall, but there’s also been terrible n

Dear Readers, Like many of my novels, including The Cider House Rules, Queen Esther is historical fiction. This means that even the smallest details—from the medical equipment used in Maine in the early 20th century to the news on TV in Vienna in the 1960s—really matter. My research for Queen Esther started forty-four years ago in Jerusalem—my editor, Jonathan Karp, is entirely correct when he says that I “spend a lot of time trying to get the details right”! See our conversation, below. — John

John Irving on Reels

John Irving’s new novel, ‘Queen Esther,’ touches decades of Israeli history

John Irving’s ‘Queen Esther’ returns readers to setting of ‘The Cider House Rules’