A Belfast Child
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A Belfast Child
Buy Now for $21.99
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Narrated by:
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Patrick Moy
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By:
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John Chambers
About this listen
John Chambers was brought up on Belfast's notorious Loyalist Glencairn estate, during the height of the Troubles. From an early age he witnessed violence, hatred and horror as Northern Ireland tore itself apart in civil strife. Kneecapping, brutal murders and even public tarring-and-feathering were simply a fact of life for the children on the estate. He thought he knew which side he was on, but although raised as a Loyalist, he was hiding a troubling secret: that his disappeared mother - whom he'd always been told was dead - was a Roman Catholic, 'the enemy'.
In a memoir of rare power, John explores the dark heart of Northern Irish sectarianism in the '70s and '80s. With searing honesty and native Belfast wit, he describes the light and darkness of his unique childhood and his teenage journey through mod culture and ultra-Loyalism, before an escape from Belfast to London - where, still haunted by the shadow of his fractured family history - he began a turbulent and hedonistic adulthood.
A Belfast Child is a tale of divided loyalties, dark secrets and the scars left by hatred and violence on a proud city - but also a story of hope, healing and ultimate redemption for a family caught in the rising tide of the Troubles.
©2020 John Chambers (P)2020 Bonnier PublishingSTORY OF MANY LAYERS
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Why do people think that performing a Belfast accent is just a matter of going up at the end of sentences and throwing in the odd "so he did". STOP IT. The accent has been butchered over the years by Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, et al. Would it not have been possible to have this book read by someone from Belfast? I would imagine that a large proportion of the readers / listeners to this would have experience / interest / knowledge of 'The Troubles' and would be able to tell the difference between a Belfast man and a Dublin actor. To that end I'll offer to read Angela's Ashes and throw in plenty of 'Begorrahs' and 'Patiddle de te bodaydoes'.
I am sure the irony of having the life of a West Belfast Loyalist narrated by someone from Dublin is not lost on people with any knowledge of the last 100 years of Irish History. Personally I wouldn't give that a second thought if the narration was not like sitting in a car whilst a learner driver grinds the gearbox.
Good luck to Patrick Moy. I place the blame for this squarely on Audible. I think their approach to that is summed up by the line from the book..... "Sure you're all Micks anyway".
Excellent audiobook ruined (Where is Shank Hill?)
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A very special book.
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