Random House, 8/12/1974 12:00:01 A. hardcover. Good. 1.2000 in x 8.4000 in x 5.6000 in. 1st edition, second printing. DJ with some rubbing and abraded lamination, one spot with paper abraded. Light shelf wear. Else clean and tight.

Synopsis

The 158-Pound Marriage, author John Irving's third published novel, revolves around an unidentified narrator, a college professor, and a mediocre novelist. The narrator met his wife Utch, an orphaned survivor of WWII, in Vienna while doing research. They are a relatively happy couple; their family rounded out by two children. At a faculty party, they meet Severin Winter, a Viennese-born professor and coach of the college wrestling team, and his wife, Edith. The couple's interests (Edith is an aspiring fiction writer, and Severin has a commonality with Utch's upbringing in Austria) and resulting infatuations between the couples lead to after-dinner partner-swapping. At first, the swinging goes smoothly, but eventually, uneven feelings and obsessions throw the couples off track. The title, The 158-Pound Marriage , refers to the 158-pound weight class in wrestling, which Severin, the coach, feels is the most competitive. The book is small, only 176 pages, compared to Irving's later weighty tomes, like the 610 page The World According to Garp ( 1978) and The Cider House Rules (1985), which is 973 pages.

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Details

Bookseller: Webster's Bookstore Cafe (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #: mon0000129874
Title: The 158-Pound Marriage
Author: Irving, John
Format/Binding: Hardcover
Book Condition: Used - Good
Quantity Available: 1
ISBN 10: 0394484142
ISBN 13: 9780394484143
Publisher: Random House
Place of Publication: New York
Date Published: 8/12/1974 12:00:01 A
Size: 1.2000 in x 8.4000 in x 5.6000 i
Bookseller catalogs: Book;
X weight: 1.2000 lb

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Glossary

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Rubbing: Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
Shelf Wear: Shelf wear (shelfwear) describes damage caused over time to a book by placing and removing a book from a shelf. This damage is...
Tight: Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.