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The Temporary Gentleman
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
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Publisher's summary
A stunning new novel from the Man Booker shortlisted author of The Secret Scripture.
In this highly anticipated new novel, Irishman Jack McNultyis a "temporary gentleman" - an Irishman whose commission in the British army inWWII was never permanent. Sitting in his lodgings in Accra, Ghana, in 1957, he's writing the story of his life with desperate urgency. He cannot take one step further without examining all of the extraordinary events that he has seen. A lifetime of war and world travel - as a soldier in WWII, an engineer, a UN observer - has brought him to this point. But the memory that weighs heaviest on his heart is that of the beautiful Mai Kirwan and their tempestuous, heartbreaking marriage. Mai was once the great beauty of Sligo, a magnetic yet unstable woman who, after sharing a life with Jack, gradually slipped from his grasp.
Award-winning author Sebastian Barry's The Temporary Gentleman is the sixth book in his cycle of separate yet interconnected novels that brilliantly reimagine characters from Barry's own family.
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For Gideon Mack, faithless minister, unfaithful husband, and troubled soul, the existence of God, let alone the Devil, is no more credible than that of ghosts or fairies - until the day he falls into a gorge and is rescued by someone who might just be Satan.
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Fantastic
- By Christopher on 07-06-08
By: James Robertson
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The Good Apprentice
- By: Iris Murdoch
- Narrated by: Christopher Cazenove
- Length: 20 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Stuart Cuno has decided to become good. Not believing in God, he invents his own methods, which include celibacy, chastity, and the abandonment of a promising academic career. Interfering friends and relations question his sincerity, his sanity, and his motives.
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A Squabble of Smartypants
- By Geoff Maddison on 09-10-12
By: Iris Murdoch
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The Short Stories of Anton Chekhov, Volume 1
- By: Anton Chekhov
- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 3 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, (1860-1904), was born in Russia at Taganrog on the Sea of Azov. His name has become synonymous with a certain literary style much admired and widely copied since his death. Typically, a Chekhov story is a "mood", a state of mind, usually with regard to relations between one person and another. Under the influence of the constant, infinitesimal, and unforeseen pinpricks of life, there occurs a gradual transformation of that state of mind.
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A Box of Chocolates
- By Darlene on 02-08-05
By: Anton Chekhov
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The Tea Rose
- By: Jennifer Donnelly
- Narrated by: Jill Tanner
- Length: 28 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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East London, 1888 - a city apart. A place of shadow and light where thieves, whores, and dreamers mingle, where children play in the cobbled streets by day and a killer stalks at night, where bright hopes meet the darkest truths. Here, by the whispering waters of the Thames, Fiona Finnegan, a worker in a tea factory, hopes to own a shop one day, together with her lifelong love, Joe Bristow, a costermonger's son. With nothing but their faith in each other to spur them on, Fiona and Joe struggle, save, and sacrifice to achieve their dreams.
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Wow. Wow wow wow!
- By I like to shop on 04-26-16
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Doctor Zhivago
- By: Boris Pasternak, Larissa Volokhonsky - translator, Richard Pevear - translator
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 23 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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In celebration of the 40th anniversary of its original publication, here is a new translation of the classic story of the life and loves of a poet/physician during the turmoil of the Russian Revolution. Taking his family from Moscow to what he hopes will be shelter in the Ural Mountains, Zhivago finds himself instead embroiled in the battle between the Whites and the Reds. Set against this backdrop of cruelty and strife is Zhivago’s love for the tender and beautiful Lara.
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Russian Philosophical Feast
- By Syd Young on 02-16-13
By: Boris Pasternak, and others
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Keep the Aspidistra Flying
- By: George Orwell
- Narrated by: Richard E. Grant
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Gordon Comstock loathes dull, middle-class respectability and worship of money. He gives up a 'good job' in advertising to work part-time in a bookshop, giving him more time to write. But he slides instead into a self-induced poverty that destroys his creativity and his spirit. Only Rosemary, ever-faithful Rosemary, has the strength to challenge his commitment to his chosen way of life.
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Gordon's Grey World is Colored with Grant
- By Timothy on 09-25-11
By: George Orwell
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All the Lives We Never Lived
- By: Anuradha Roy
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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From the Man Booker Prize-nominated author of Sleeping on Jupiter, The Folded Earth, and An Atlas of Impossible Longing, a poignant and sweeping novel set in India during World War II and the present day about a son’s quest to uncover the truth about his mother....
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Beautiful book
- By Sonia S. on 12-13-19
By: Anuradha Roy
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The Best Ghost Stories Ever Told
- Best Stories Ever Told
- By: Stephen Brennan - editor
- Narrated by: J. M. Badger, Imelda Pot
- Length: 24 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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A big, brilliant, spooky collection of classic and contemporary ghost stories that will make you hesitate before turning off that light.
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A very mixed review
- By Michael Mayer on 08-05-15
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The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
- By: R. A. Dick
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Jasicki
- Length: 5 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Burdened by debt after her husband's death, Lucy Muir insists on moving into the very cheap Gull Cottage in the quaint seaside village of Whitecliff, despite multiple warnings that the house is haunted. Upon discovering the rumors to be true, the young widow ends up forming a special companionship with the ghost of handsome former sea captain Daniel Gregg. Lucy finds in her secret relationship with Captain Gregg a comfort and blossoming love she never could have predicted.
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Bias Review Warning
- By Michael on 09-22-19
By: R. A. Dick
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The Magus
- By: John Fowles
- Narrated by: Nicholas Boulton
- Length: 26 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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John Fowles’s The Magus was a literary landmark of the 1960s. Nicholas Urfe goes to a Greek island to teach at a private school and becomes enmeshed in curious happenings at the home of a mysterious Greek recluse, Maurice Conchis. Are these events, involving attractive young English sisters, just psychological games, or an elaborate joke, or more? Reality shifts as the story unfolds. The Magus reflected the issues of the 1960s perfectly, and it continues to create tension and concern today.
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One of the best novels that I really think I hate.
- By Darwin8u on 01-29-14
By: John Fowles
What listeners say about The Temporary Gentleman
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- g
- 04-17-16
urelentingly depressing
although Gerald Doyle is an outstanding narrator, he could not elevate this story to a level that inspires sustained interest. it is an unrelenting story of woe.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Kindle Customer
- 05-12-14
Grab a box of Kleenex because if you have a heart you will need it.
If you could sum up The Temporary Gentleman in three words, what would they be?
Heartbreaking love story.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Temporary Gentleman?
There are so many memorable moments.The author does such a wonderful job in painting pictures of the characters and Gerard Doyle narration brings them to life so vividly.I would say probably a couple of the most memorable moments would be when Jack first meets his future in-laws.Another would be the scene immediately following the wedding.I believe the one that affected me most though, as the daughter of an alcoholic mother would be when he returned home to find his wife and young daughter outside in the snow.I don't want to say much as I don't want to spoil the story for anyone.
What does Gerard Doyle bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Mr. Doyle has quickly become one of my favorite narrators.I am pretty sure I would listen to him read the Yellow Pages.My first experience with Gerard Doyle was the graves are walking.I think that any book narrated by him is better because of it.
Any additional comments?
I read the Amazon reviews, as there were no Audible Reviews available yet for this book at the time.I was still completely I am prepared for what this book would do to me emotionally.I am still thinking about this book and finding it hard to move onto another after finishing it.It has been a long time since I have read such a sad book and one that has affected me so much I just could not tear myself away from it though.I was thrown for a loop even by the ending.Kind of thought I knew pretty much how it would end, but I was definitely wrong.This book is hard to describe but definitely worth the time taken to read it.I felt so conflicted throughout the book.Both anger and compassion for May and Jack.My heart broke for both of them and of course for the children.This book definitely brings alcoholism, codependency, and to some extent mental illness and secrets and problems that go along with all those things to life for the reader.This is the first book I have read by this author, but will definitely be checking out more of his books.
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5 people found this helpful
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- Janna Wong Healy
- 02-01-22
An Acquired Taste
It was only after I finished the book and did some reading about it that I learned it is the third book in a trilogy by Sebastian Barry about the McNulty men. (There was also an admonishment that the books should be read in order...oops.)
If you like stream-of-consciousness writing, you will love this book. Barry writes beautifully; every word in every sentence is meant to be there. If you don't enjoy this type of writing, you might get a bit impatient as it moves from one time period to another, from one adventure to another, and so tends to wander a bit if you're not paying close attention.
But, when reflecting on what you've just read (or listened to), you will most likely come to the same conclusion I did: this is a searing, engrossing, sad story of one man's life, the mistakes he made, and the intense love he had for his wife.
The narration by Gerard Doyle is spot-on; it's soothing and the Irish accent brings John McNulty's story to life in a realistic way.
I'm not sure I will revisit this book, and I likely won't read the first two books in the trilogy. But, I don't regret reading this one as the prose is so darn beautiful.
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- Sasha the book eater
- 07-15-24
Beautiful and wrenching
Has anyone learned how to rip our hearts out like Irish writers? This astonishing tale of small individual lives in the grip of huge events (and private confusions) will do so. Prepare yourself for lyrical, searching prose, as distilled as any poem. The musical, luminous performance by Gerard Doyle matches his finest reading performances, and adds dimensions of understated emotion to this saga of war, love, loss and awareness. Sligo and Dublin, Ghana and the Middle East, come to life in ways that chime with the innermost harmonics of our humanity. Can’t lie, I cried repeatedly as the characters were alternately animated and undermined by their passions, duties, faith, failings, wit, hopes, humor, shame and guilt; by sex, Empire, colonialism, war, alcohol, courage and cowardice. Ireland, Britishness, and indeed the world, are brought to life during and after the World Wars. An extraordinary experience for those who listen to audiobooks with their whole hearts and minds.
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- Keenan
- 05-19-17
Gerard Doyle brings depth to this protagonist
What did you love best about The Temporary Gentleman?
It is an unusual story, artfully told, of a not-particularly attractive protagonist drifting through life. There is something captivating about it that is beyond my comprehension.
Who was your favorite character and why?
None of them.
What does Gerard Doyle bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
If I had read the book instead, I don't think I would have finished it. Gerard Doyle's characterization brought dimension to this character that I would not have read into him.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Disturbing. There was one laugh-out-loud moment near the end of the book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Mary
- 09-21-19
Stunning
Barry has given us a gloriously poetic, nuanced study of love as it exists woven in the suffering and tragedy of life. That this flawed, tenacious love provides neither salvation or redemption makes the lessons — of penitence, forgiveness, and of a self striving towards its full humanity — all the more compelling. It has touched me more than any book this year.
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- will33
- 06-01-21
Made me cry
The language is gorgeous. I loved the insight Jack had into his own failings and I actually wept.
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- Jeff Lacy
- 03-27-18
Nice appropriate performance
Narrator Gerard Doyle gives an appropriate performance—a voice inline with characters, modulated and sensitively performed, well paced, and a nice Irish accent and tone. This is a meaningful novel, a story of a husband and wife who are alcoholics and how their excessive drinking damaged their marriage, their roles as parents, their finances, their health, and their assessment of themselves. It also took a tole on their children, parents, siblings, and friends. Barry writes in the first person in the style of a memoir. It works well.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Rosanne Font
- 04-29-15
Unrewarding
After listening to Sebastian Barry's 'Secret Scripture' I was excited to listen to his next novel. Though his descriptive language is outstanding, the story was too sad & broken for me to appreciate it.
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- Cinnabelle
- 07-31-21
Interesting Story
I am in two minds about the book. It was masterful story telling. The writing was superb and the narrator was excellent.
Still, I think the main character was very dislikable. He was an alcoholic but couldn’t see his alcoholism only his wife’s. He refused to see how his drinking contributed to hers.
His wife suffered from postpartum depression and when his mother and his wife’s best friend shared their concern he brushed it off.
He had very little relationship with his two daughters and one daughter, given her parents relationship, seems to have ended up in an abusive marriage.
The main character’s end was not surprising and it was difficult to have any empathy for him
I would highly recommend the book because it’s masterful writing. One phrase/idea that will stay wit me is : “drunkenness is a form of human absence, a maelstrom that blanks out the landscape.”
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