John Winslow Irving is an American-Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter.

The World According to Garp is John Irving's fourth novel, about a man born out of wedlock to a feminist leader who grows up to be a writer. Published in 1978, the book was a bestseller for several years. It was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction in 1979, and its first paperback edition won the award the following year.