I found this John Irving book on a clearance table several years ago and just go around to reading it. It is a weird book. The story is about a news reporter whose hand is bitten off by a lion while he is on assignment. A woman who doesn't know him decides to donate her husband's hand to him for a transplant, but the husband is still alive.
The story follows not just the reporter and the donor's wife, but also the hand surgeon, his housekeeper, and several women with whom the reporter is involved. In some cases, Irving spent large sections of the book telling back stories for these characters. The book shared many themes with others by Irving: physical disability, egregious sexuality, India, a circus, and a very broken main character. He also makes some strong comments about the 24-hour news cycle through the main character's working at a CNN-like station.
I'm not sure I'd strongly recommend this book. It kept my attention but did not make any large points about love or life that haven't been made before, even by Irving. Stick to Garp.
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