Cloistered
My Years as a Nun
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Narrated by:
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Catherine Coldstream
About this listen
Long-listed, NPR Best Book of the Year, 2024
This program is read by the author.
"A profoundly moving memoir which gripped me . . . It’s about spirituality and asceticism and silence and sisterhood, but also about how flawed human beings can abuse power and how hermetically sealed communities, which should care for and protect their members, can be dangerously vulnerable to threats from inside their walls.”—Mark Haddon, author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, The Porpoise and others
An astonishing memoir of twelve years as a contemplative nun in a silent monastery.
Cloistered takes the listener deep into the hidden world of a traditional Carmelite monastery as it approaches the third Millennium and tells the story of an intense personal journey into and out of an enclosed life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Finding an apparently perfect world at Akenside Priory, in Northumberland, Catherine trusts herself to a group of twenty silent women, believing she is trusting herself to God. As the beauty and mystery of an ancient way of life enfold her, she surrenders herself wholly to its power, quite unaware of the complexity and dangers that lie ahead.
Cut off from the wider world for decades, the community has managed to evade accountability to any authority beyond itself. When Sister Catherine realises that a mesmerising cult of the personality, with the distortions it entails, has replaced the ancient ideal of religious obedience, she is faced with a dilemma. Will she submit to this, or will she be forced to speak out?
An exploration of the limits of trust, Cloistered shows us how far youthful idealism can take us along the road of self-surrender, and of how much harm is done when institutional flaws go unacknowledged. Catherine’s honest account of her time in the monastery–and her dramatic flight from it–is both a love song to a lost community and an exploration of what is most compelling, yet most potentially destructive when closed human groups become laws unto themselves.
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.
©2024 Catherine Coldstream (P)2024 Macmillan AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Medieval Myths & Mysteries
- By: Dorsey Armstrong, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Dorsey Armstrong
- Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins
- Original Recording
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The 10 enlightening (and often humorous) lectures of Medieval Myths and Mysteries will show you how far from the “dark” times of legend these centuries were. Uncover the facts about the Knights Templar. Reveal the truth behind the tales of legendary creatures like the Questing Beast and the unicorn. Trace the events of the Black Death and the ways it altered the world in its wake, and much more. With Professor Armstrong, you will dig deep into the ways that later generations reshaped the narrative of the medieval years and perpetuated the myths.
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Interesting, but centered on Britain
- By Ximena on 04-10-20
By: Dorsey Armstrong, and others
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What listeners say about Cloistered
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- Julianne Buenting
- 03-21-24
Fasinating and thoughtful
This book is beautifully written and performed. It provides a detailed story of cloisterd life and of a vocstional journey that evolves and changes much within a deep trusting faith and love of God.
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- Amazon Customer
- 04-06-24
Fascinating memoir
First of all, the author gave a wonderful performance in reading her book. Very well done!
Being a spiritual seeker myself, I so related to the author’s life and search for her life meaning. The description of the religious community and relationships was very interesting. Yes, dysfunctional but sadly, not all that unique. I’ve been a part of and have read of many such organizations. As the author observed……it’s human nature.
Thank you, Catherine, for sharing your amazing story!!
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- Walt Trachim
- 04-26-24
Amazing story
The author provided the narration for this story. It started off a little bit slowly but it picked up the pace in the second half of the narrative. Her experience, to say the least, was shocking, especially her description of the beating she took at the hands of the now deceased prioress.
Overall, the narrative was quite captivating. I would strongly recommend it
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-02-24
The book I needed at this time
As a 70 year old woman who spent her whole life working for the Catholic Church (but not a nun!) this book gave an honest picture of the struggles so many of us faced. It was the final personal victory and sense of peace and forgiveness delivered by the author that can give us hope.
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- We R Dust
- 06-04-24
Interesting, but so long-winded!
The book was interesting, but it just dragged on and on. The tone became semi-“whiney” as well. I was just annoyed by the end.
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- KBW
- 04-07-24
An Exquisite Memoir
Once upon a time I seriously considered the cloister. If I had entered it would have been about the same era as the author’s experience. Through the audiobook I heard her tell the story of her initial years as I had imagined them for myself. I visited monasteries frequently while traveling to be transported by the chanting, by the stone corridors, the humble accommodations. Her story was a vicarious living of what might have been, including similar challenges, if I’d chosen a different path. Many years later, as a health professional, I had the opportunity to make visits to care for some aging cloistered nuns. While advanced in years they struck me as quite childlike emotionally and intellectually. Surely they had developed in similarly protected and sheltered conditions. I hope that reforms in monasticism have evolved and gotten through to healthier models of community and spiritual development. I’m very grateful for the authors courage and vulnerability in excavating and telling this story.
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- elaine
- 04-28-24
Unforgettable
Beautifully written and narrated on audio book . This genuine and compelling memoir of Catherine Coldstream's experience in the cloister will stay with me. Am grateful to have listened to this deeply spiritual work that incorporated both psychological and social dimensions to this moving story.
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- iggynut
- 04-23-24
Beautiful book
Catherine Cold stream has written Cloistered, a deeply personal and beautiful book about her years as a Carmelite nun. Her relationship with the God she believes in becomes a challenge, as does her relationship with the Order she has joined. This is a very human story where people, including nuns, act as people do. I highly recommend this book.
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- Kenneth J. Luurs
- 04-11-24
A wonderful memoir, enhanced via listening to the audio book
A great listen. The narrative is honest, engaging and thoughtfully told. I’ll likely revisit this audiobook in the future.
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- sensitivefern
- 05-16-24
Amazing, poetically told memoir
I learned about this book from an NPR interview between the author and Terry Gross. Terry noted the poetic way that Catherine tells her story. She has such a way with words and has a beautiful speaking voice as well. I have always been curious what life as a nun might look like and while it seems most communities are much healthier than this one, it was quite interesting.
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